CULTURE CLUB
BURY THE LEDE
NEXT GENERATION
Leading playwright Lucy Kirkwood’s The Children will be brought to life at the Theatre Royal this month
WORDS BY MIRIAM BALANESCU
O ver the course of the past decade, the Theatre Royal in Bury St Edmund’s has been staging productions of plays handpicked by their very own artistic director, Owen Calvert-Lyons; plays which he purports to be the crème de la crème of theatre written in the last ten years. The Children , Lucy Kirkwood’s tension- building tale of nuclear disaster and unravelling relationships, is up next. Taking place in a seaside town, a retired married couple – both former nuclear scientists – live a sequestered, peaceful life, until an old friend arrives and upsets the balance of their lives. “It’s a brilliant play,” enthuses Owen, “beautifully written by one of our country’s most exciting playwrights. It’s a really powerful drama. And I think that there’s an audience in this region who want to see big, important powerful plays. To an extent, it’s about climate change, which is probably the biggest thing facing all of us right now. It’s also particularly important in this county, because the play deals with aspects of nuclear power. At the point we selected this play, the government was right on the cusp of giving the go ahead to Sizewell C.” Kirkwood is also the brains behind Chimerica , winner of the Olivier award for best new play in 2013, among an impressive array of plaudits. With a cast of just three, the dialogue is what propels The Children along, gradually teasing out the true nature of the relationships between characters and keeping audiences on their toes. “There’s lots going on both in what is said and what is left unsaid,” explains Owen. “That demands brilliant actors able to convey the full spectrum of meaning in that text. “Like all the great stories, nothing is given to us on a plate and we have to work it out ourselves.” A huge drive behind Owen’s keen initiative to host productions of the finest contemporary plays is the chance to bring top work to smaller theatres and local
What unites every play is ‘the way they wrestle with very big ideas’, exemplified by Home, I’m Darling , which was showcased last year. “The joy of theatre is going to a production and being able to – for an hour and a half to two hours – think about something complicated, but in a really enjoyable, pleasurable way, to reflect on some of the big questions,” Owen suggests. While putting on productions of the best contemporary plays may seem like an obvious choice, it is relatively unusual for regional theatres. “The reason lots of venues programme older works is because they know their audience will be familiar with those names,” says Owen. “A younger playwright or a newer play title feels like more of a risk.” Kirkwood’s play tackles generational responsibility and passing on the mistakes of the past to those living in the present. The ‘post-disaster’ story has already enticed the well-known actress Imogen Stubbs as its lead, while the intimacy of the Theatre Royal suits the play to a tee. “The world feels pretty bleak and things feel pretty broken,” muses Owen. “There’s always something very hopeful about these sorts of narratives, because they’re often about building back or a return, the green shoots of change coming through.” HERE AND NOW Theatre Royal in Bury St Edmunds has been putting on bold contemporary plays ever since Owen Calvert-Lyons took over as artistic director
© DAN COLE MEDIA
audiences. They no longer have to venture all the way to London for world-class theatrical experiences. “It comes from a passion for regional theatre and audiences, believing that people who live in our area shouldn’t have to travel into London to see the greatest plays of the last ten years. Versions of those should be created on their doorstep,” insists Owen. “We’re very lucky in the UK that we’ve got a really thriving theatre ecology – and always have,” Owen continues. “The big London stages have all been populated by artists coming through regional theatre, so it’s always been an important part of the overall picture.”
We’re lucky in the UK – we’ve got a thriving theatre ecology
The Children can be seen at the Theatre Royal from 10 to 25 March
22 MARCH 2023 CAMBSEDITION.CO.UK
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