While Lee Lomas’ new play Killing Nana focuses on a central character caught in a claustrophobic, anxiety-ridden situation, rehearsals for the play look anything but. Check out these behind the scenes pictures, then book your tickets.
Staged by 1956 Entertainment at the Hen & Chickens Theatre from 9 to 13 April, Killing Nana is a cynical comedy-drama exploring the effect anxiety can have on the brain and how that twists what is real and what is not.
Stephen is in his late twenties, he spends the majority of his time in his dressing gown, staring at the television and drinking copious amounts of tea. Keeping him company, or suitably irritated, are Kimmy and Anne, girlfriend and Nana’s carer. The trio’s lack of love is made up for by a need for unarticulated, dark sexual desire and a lust for control over one another. Driven by social anxiety, sexual confusion and dysfunctional relationships, three people dream of murdering Nana.
Playwright Lee Lomas staged his last play, Sunrise for the Blind, at Tristan Bates Theatre earlier this year. A writer and director, Lomas also acts, boasting credits including Coronation Street, Shameless, The A Word, Casualty and Happy Valley. He recently played Father Marcus in long-running C4 drama Hollyoaks. Lomas stars as Stephen in Killing Nana. He previously starred in productions including Sunrise for the Blind, Oliver Twist and Port.
Killing Nana runs as part of a spring season at The Hen & Chickens Theatre that also includes The Haunting of 47, Theatre Festival Pending and The Colourful Greens. It’s also one of a number of plays bringing working- and benefits-class stories to the stage this spring, including Starved, by Lomas’ Sunrise for the Blind co-star Michael Black (Bread and Roses Theatre) and the double-bill of Killymuck and Box Clever at Bunker Theatre.