The North East Theatre Guide: Preview: Gods Are Fallen And All Safety Gone at Newcastle Alphabetti Theatre

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Greyscale presents:

Gods Are Fallen And All Safety Gone

Newcastle Alphabetti Theatre

Thursday 2^nd – Saturday 4^th June 2016

A mother and daughter from the local community join the cast on stage each night of the run, in a dynamic and subtle exploration of the most intense of family relationships

Written and directed by Selma Dimitrijevic

Photos: picturesbybish

Borrowing its title from John Steinbeck’s East of Eden, this highly celebrated work from one of the UK’s foremost contemporary theatre companies explores a moment of realisation universal to all; a child’s eventual recognition of their parents as a fellow human being. The show, performed by a male cast, presents a lifetime of conversations all condensed into an hour of subtle and intimate performance, observed live by a real life mother and daughter from theatre’s local community.

‘You feel a sudden urgent need to call your own parents and children, fearful you might be a minute too late.’ Lyn Gardner, THE GUARDIAN

Photos: picturesbybish

‘Beautifully, cleverly and intelligently performed’ (Andrew Haydon, Postcards from the Gods) the performance plays out the story of a 30-something daughter visiting her aging mother, and depicts the most simple of conversations from baths, to tea, boyfriends and the weather. Using repetition with subtle developments and changes, the piece produces a dynamic analysis of a lifetime of interactions between the two, gently pulling apart an ever-evolving relationship with a distinctly inevitable end.

“It’s a very pure form of theatre – intimate, pared down and emotionally true.” Natasha Tripney, THE STAGE

Photos: picturesbybish

Director Selma Dimitrijevic said, ‘When Almeida offered us a bit of time and money to develop a new project I knew I wanted to do our own version of Gods. The making of the show turned out to be the defining point for the company. It was at the same time the easiest and the most difficult thing we did as a team. We stripped it down to basics, two actors, two guests and the audience; so there is nowhere to hide. Every time we do it, we basically say: “here, this is who we are, this is what we feel”, and our fantastic audiences seem to be ready to do the same.’

“What a quiet, restrained and gently devastating piece this is!” Miriam Gillinson, TIME OUT

Photos: picturesbybish

Selma Dimitrijevic is artistic director of Greyscale. As a director and writer she has worked with a wide range of venues and companies both nationally and internationally.

Joe Caffrey played Dad in the original West End production of Billy Elliot and has toured with highly successful shows such as Cooking With Elvis and Wet House.

Max Runham is a performer and a singer-songwriter. Proving his statement that ‘nothing should be a barrier to people with disability’ he has also been a parkour runner for the last ten years.

“This is searching, intelligent work that gently shakes us then quietly ends, leaving behind a bruise and an ache.” Sam Marlowe THE TIMES

Photos: picturesbybish

Greyscale is a Newcastle based theatre company formed by a group of established directors, writers, actors, and designers interested in exploring the fringes and gaps of the theatrical process. The company make carefully structured, powerfully live, political and anarchic theatre for a modern audience.

Gods Are Fallen And All Safety Gone has been touring in the UK and internationally for the last 4 years.

On The Web:

Twitter: @GreyscaleTC #GodsAreFallen

Website: www.greyscale.org.uk

Running Time: 55 minutes

Suitable for ages 14+

Cast & Creatives:

Written and Directed by Selma Dimitrijevic

Cast: Joe Caffrey and Max Runham

Associate Director Maria Crocker

Designed by Oliver Townsend

Spring 2016 tour dates: