***UPDATE: Change of cast and dates - The Watcher was due to open on March 8th starring actress and TV Presenter Donna Air. Unfortunately, due to an accident in which she suffered a broken leg, Donna has had to withdraw from the production. However we have been able to save the production by securing Sarah Manners (PC Kirsty Wright - The Bill, Casualty, Mile High) to replace her. The show will now open on Mar 21st and run until April 23rd (excluding Apr 4th-9th)***
In January this year Fresh Look Theatre were given the opportunity to stage the The Watcher, by Jeremy Paul, at the new and hotly tipped venue Waterloo East Theatre, for a four week run beginning March 8th 2011. We are thrilled to be able to present this new and revised version following success of the earlier one-act version at the Edinburgh festival a few years ago. We stongly believe that this play is a fantastic piece of theatre, presented by a talented team of creative people and should be seen by as wide an audience as possible - not only during this four weeks but beyond.
To make this a reality we need to ensure that we have the funds to get the show to opening night with the right team and the right equipment in place - from the lights, sound and the set, to the cast, crew and publicity. However, due to the short notice of the production we are struggling to raise enough funds to get this play to where it deserves, which is why we need your help. For a small company like Fresh Look Theatre, funding has always been hard to come by and since the recent Arts funding cuts this has become even harder. We therefore rely heavily on committment, good will, and the generous support of individuals like yourself to make projects like this at all viable.
As The Watcher has a small cast of just two and a relatively simple set, the production is considered to be a fairly modest one. However to put this in some context, with venue costs, wages, set, and publicity all at a bare minimum, the production would scarcely break even if every ticket sold at full price for every show. This is why every penny matters and why anything that you can pledge - from £10 to £1,000 - would make a big difference to the production.
If you like going to the theatre and want to see a quality piece of entertainment then get yourself a ticket and come along to see the show - that would be a great help.
If, however, you want to support The Watcher and Fresh Look Theatre in a different way, to support the Arts and join us on what we hope is a much more exciting journey than a single evening's entertainment, then please make a pledge and help us reach that potential.
Yours sincerely,
Roger Martin
Artistic Director
Fresh Look Theatre
About the show:
The Watcher is a psychological drama by BAFTA and EMMY award winning writer Jeremy Paul. The play was first aired at the Edinburgh Festival a few years ago (Pleasance Courtyard) and had a successful run as a one act play. Since then the play has been re-written and extended into a full two act play which we were due to stage in London in April/ May 2011.
"A woman, alone in a park, is sunbathing. A stranger approaches. There is a sense of danger as they observe each other. Through a series of twists and turns an uneasy power struggle intensifies until truths are revealed. But who is watching whom? And why?
Skilfully crafted by Jeremy Paul, this entertaining drama runs the gamut of power struggles and duplicity, touching on the abuse of power by those in authority. The two characters navigate the fine line between reality and fiction, revealing some telling truths about their situation, their prejudices and an unexpected conclusion."
Roger Martin directs and Jon Shaw, who played the part of Kevin in the Edinburgh show, recreates his role as Kevin.
Press quotes from Edinburgh:
"Games abound in this constantly twisting play by Jeremy Paul. . .Jon Shaw puts in an excellent shift with Roger Martin’s direction tight and inventive."
The Stage - Thom Dibdin
“an intelligent analysis of the way the sexes relate with delicate ambiguity to the relationship between Sonia and Kevin, their dialogue charged with sexual tension”
The Scotsman
