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“The most important thing I’ve worked on in the last ten years.” Mark Wingett, Foreword to the play
“A modern classic.” – Audience Feedback
Just before Covid broadsided the world, I was fortunate enough to get a rare second round of R n D funding from Arts Council for THE RESPONSE. This meant I could workshop with the actors and hone a 1 hour selection of scenes – a sort of extended trailer – and we could showcase it at www.theseagull.co.uk and the SOHO theatre in February 2020.
With a reduced cast and now female lead with the extraordinary Zora Bishop as Nafisah and James El Sharawy joining Mark Wingett, Jennifer Matter, Jamie Cutler and Mark Finbow, I was blessed with another fantastic team. Watch here for more news on what happens next with the play – hopefully the full version. I was able to get the script down to the exact length of the England V Sweden world cup match it takes place during so it really did move at lightning pace.
It’s also really satisfying when drama students ask if they can use monologues from it for auditions!
So thank you, Arts Council and thank you to the incredible team that shepherded this into life. Here’s to the future.
Response Photography by: Charlotte McGuinness. Bishy Barnabee Photography
In November 2017 I was lucky enough to win support from the Arts Council for a new play that had been cooking away in my head for a while. “The Response” is the story of four extremists who take British hostages during the 1996 world cup match between England and Sweden. But nothing is what you expect and there are plenty of turns along the way is this political drama.
This was something very special to me – the first work of my own for a while, teaming up with Karen Read at the Seagull Theatre and also thanks to Manuel Puro Casting Director, I was able to assemble an absolutely stellar cast that lifted the work to a whole new level as we worked through the R and D. Yuo can see them above but here’s a shout out to the brilliantly talented Reece Ritchie, Mark Wingett, Jennifer Matter, Avin Shah, Mark Finbow, Charlotte Mcguiness, Duramaney Kamara and James Cutler. We worked through the script and workshopped it, I went away and developed it post the workshops then we regrouped where they gave the most incredible rehereared reading “plus” I’ve seen. It looks like things will progress further, possibly not only in the theatre for the play so do keep an eye out here. Photos are from the brilliant Charlie Ketchen. Clips and interviews and review links below but also look for The Response Play youtube channel for more content…
One of the most important and moving aspects of the research was meeting the incredible Dan Biddle, the most injured survivor of the 7/7 bombings. Meeting Dan wa a life changing experience for me and his story is not only beyond harrowing to the point of being unimaginably horrific, it’s mnore than that – inspiring. Dan was a rock and such a support in the research of The Response and we will be hopefully working together on a brand new project soon. With such a delicate and provocative subject, it was vital the research was accurate and as insitghtful as possible and thanks to all the members of the emergency services, detectives, witnesses, members of the Muslim, Christian and other faiths that helped with the research on the subject and the events and perspectives of 7/7, we were able to deliver a play that not only stood up dramatically but also factually and spiritually…
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