You can feel the tension in Irene Gomez-Emilsson’s rehearsal room images for The Ballerina. That’s only right, as the drama tells the story of a brutal interrogation. Take a look then book your tickets!
Based on various stories of fractious relationships between intelligence services and diplomats, democracies and dictatorships, and what we view as right and wrong, Anne-Sophie Marie‘s play is described as Conrad’s Heart of Darkness meets Dahl’s Charlie and the Chocolate Factory. It runs at VAULT Festival from 18-22 March 2019.
Set in a country not so far away, British diplomat Colin Clutterbuck is brutally arrested by the National Intelligence Agency. Thrown into a cell and accused of conspiring to overthrow the government, Colin fights back with wit and great British banter. Faced with infamous master interrogator Pacifique Muamba, the young diplomat is about to be painfully re-educated and taken to the brink of madness.
The sophisticated and intelligent Muamba represents the individuals behind dictatorships, and compels us to question, who are these individuals really and, more importantly, who could they have been?
The Ballerina, shortlisted for Theatre 503’s 2016 Playwriting Award, explores the aftermath of colonial rule in an unnamed African country and the resulting destruction of a European presence within the continent, exploring how contemporary Western audiences consider, or don’t consider, the impact of their foreign policy around the world. It was first staged at New York’s Theatrelab in January 2019.
Director James Scotland is an alumni of the National Youth Theatre of Great Britain and trained at the American Academy of Dramatic Arts. He worked as Assistant Director on She Ventures and He Wins at the Young Vic. Scotland also co-founded Outer Gaea, the London-based, international theatre company staging The Ballerina.
The Ballerina rehearsal images (Images: Irene Gomez-Emilsson)
