The Return of the Exile
Devised and Directed by Ioli Andreadi, director of One Way-Eutopia*
At The Yard Theatre, Unit 2, Queens Yard, White Post Lane, E9 5EN, Hackney Wick, a warehouse that was converted using recycled materials from the Olympic Park and the surrounding area.
Dates and Time: 11th, 12th, 13th, 21st, 22nd, 25th and 26th of October 2011, at 8 pm.
'The return of the exile', an experimental piece of theatre, was inspired by Ilya Repin’s painting ‘They did not expect him’, in which a man returns home from a concentration camp and almost no-one in his family welcomes him. The 'experiments' in 'The return of the exile' are the following: our focus on the actors’ physicality through a ‘movement script’, the use of a soundscape that serves as a substitute for speech, absurd props used to signify everyday objects and live painting on stage. The above are part of a simple, clear story on what is happening during the absence of a contemporary exile, who used to be the most beloved member of his family, and his difficult, dangerous and problematic return.
The project pays hommage to theatre we look up to, such as former Goat Island (Chicago based Every House Has A Door), director Lev Dodin and the current staging of 'The South Pacific' that will be presented at the Barbican this year.
'The return of the exile' was first developed and presented at the Lincoln Center Theater Director's Lab in New York in 2009, where it received enthusiastic feedback by an audience of sixty international directors. In 2010 it was co-produced by and had a very successful run at the Cultural Multi-Space Athinais in Athens and was part of a Director's Showcase at RADA. This is 'The return of the exile’s' first UK run.
The brilliant artists who participate in this project are the director's long-time collaborators/actors Phil Burrows, Central School of Speech and Drama graduates Konstantinos Kavakiotis, Luke Harrison and Dunkan Wilkins, Birmingham School of Acting graduate Rahil Liapopoulou and RADA graduate Melina Theocharidou, as well as New York based set designer Sarah Edkins, whose credits include set designs for The Kitchen, at HERE, Classic Stage Company, La Mama, as well as The Julliard School, The Actors Studio and NYU. Our assistant director is performance artist Ariadne Kritonos.
Among the aims of this project are: 1) for artists who have been collaborating for the past few years to have a UK run - a further step in the life of the project as well as in our careers, 2) to engage in a dialogue, through our work, discussions and workshops, with the other members of The Yard Theatre ensemble and acquire a sense of belonging to a community of like-minded artists, 3) to engage in a dialogue, through our work and workshops, with young people from the area of Hackney Wick, 4) to challenge and discuss 'The Return of the Exile', through the show and workshops, with the help of students taught by Staff from the Performance Research Group of King's College, 5) to communicate and discuss exile as part of our age of constant migrations, while being far away, at home, or inside one's body.
Ioli: "This activity fits in with my current work and its future development in that 1) it deals with the subject of the exiled, the misfit, which I have continued to analyse since 2003 and 2) it is an opportunity to further explore the working relationships with my talented collaborators with whom we share, and each time develop, common artistic aims and the work ethics of an ensemble of creators who ask questions that make us think 'inside' and, in part, 'outside' established forms of theatre 'as it is'."
Cast includes**: Phil Burrows, Luke Harrison, Konstantinos Kavakiotis, Rahil Liapopoulou, Melina Theocharidou, Duncan Wilkins.
Soundscape: Yiannis Paxevanis
Set Design: Sarah Edkins
Assistant Director, Stage Manager: Ariadne Kritonos
Photos by: Luna Lunera
Produced by: Fay Brown
We are asking for your valuable support, which, alongside the valuable support from the English Department of King's College London, our Arts Council application (expected results: end of September) and a 50% profit out of the box office, will enable us to cover specific production costs, namely the cost of the set and the props, as well as the cast and crew’s travel expenses from and to Deptford(where we rehearse) and Hackney Wick.
*Previous shows include: The Sleep Illness (Studio Ledra, Semeion Theatre, Athens), The Wilde Rose (Thyra Technis, Athens), In Town (3rd State Award for New Playwright, Semeion Theatre, Athens), Epidemic (RADA, Forest Fringe Festival, Southwark Playhouse, Cultural Multispace Athinais), Best Friends Forever (Old Red Lion Theatre), Les Amants Heureux N’ Ont Pas D’ Histoire (codirector Tzu chun Chou, Southwark Playhouse Secrets), Valuing Yourself at 25 euros a day (by Deborah Pearson, Arcola Theatre, Miniaturists), Bacchae (NYMF, New York, music by Erato A. Kremmyda), Come Appear Punish (work-in-progress, codirector Jay Stern Colt Coeur, Brooklyn), Game.Show (work-in-progress, codirector Gabriella Willenz, Greystone Hotel, New York).
**2010 cast: Phil Burrows, Luke Harrison, Konstantinos Kavakiotis, Sandra Maturana - who can also be seen in the video as the young daughter of the family-, Melina Theocharidou, Duncan Wilkins. It was choreographed by Mariela Nestora, lighting design by Karen Quigley. 2009 cast: Gary Abrahams, Garrett Ayers, David Franco, Styx Mhlanga, Heather Alicia Simms, Rachel Wohlander. It was choreographed by Barry Mc Nabb. Stage Manager: Kara Aghabekian.
