Opening on Thursday 26th January 2006!

Contemporary Clowning Projects
in association with CB Projects
and Richard Jordan Productions Ltd
Presents
only fools (no horses)


(click to see a larger picture)

Written by Sarah Woods
from an original idea by Angela de Castro
Designed by Michael Breakey
Directed by John Wright

Lear’s Fool (Angela de Castro), Touchstone (Stephen Harper) and Feste (Simon Jermond) – 3 of Shakespeare’s beloved characters – are stuck in the worlds of their plays and their never ending roles have become a bore. Suspended together in a parallel universe, entertaining and tormenting each other, we hear the stories of these desperate fools as they try to understand where they are, why and how to escape the purgatory that they’ve been condemned to

Contemporary Clowning Projects is committed to promoting the art of theatrical clowning, presenting new, darkly comic, edgy theatre. Highly visual and magical, this show is created by an internationally acclaimed team, including the seriously talented Brasilian actress Angela de Castro, formerly seen in London’s glittering West End in Slava’s Snowshow.

Blending dark comic humour with tragedy we are taken on a poignant journey of lost hopes and dreams… Expect the unexpected.

Aerial Choreography by Lindsey Butcher
Lighting by Douglas Kuhrt
Soundscape by Daniel Weaver
Video Design by Monica Alcazar
Performers: Angela de Castro, Stephen Harper and Simon Jermond

Spring 2006 preview tour:

The Corn Exchange, Newbury
Market Place, Newbury, Berks RG14 5BD
Thurs 26 & Fri 27 Jan @ 7.45pm
Box Office: 01635 522733
www.cornexchangenew.com

New Wolsey Theatre
Civic Drive, Ipswich
Tues 31 and Weds 1 Feb @ 7.45pm
Box Office: 01473 295900
www.wolseytheatre.co.uk

Melton Theatre
Asfordby Road, Melton Mowbray
Thur 9, Fri 10 & Sat 11 Feb @7pm
Fri 10 @ 11am
Box Office: 01664 851111
www.meltontheatre.co.uk

Lighthouse
Poole’s Centre For The Arts
21 Kingland Road, Poole, Dorset BH15 1UG
Mon 13 & Tue 14 Feb @ 7.30pm
Box Office: 08700 668701
www.lighthousepoole.co.uk

The Chester Gateway Theatre
Hamilton Place, Chester CH1 2BH
Thur 16 Feb @ 7.30pm
Fri 17 & sat 18 Feb @ 7.45pm
Box Office: 01244 340392
www.chestergateway.co.uk

Autumn 2006 tour dates to be confirmed

Workshops and courses connected to the show are available. See the training page on this website.

A big thank you to everyone who has helped make this production happen:
our Executive Producer, Chenine Bhathena at CB Projects
our Collaborative Producer, Richard Jordan at Richard Jordan Productions Ltd.
Our Shakespeare consultant, Stephen Wisker
Casting Director, Sooki McShane
our Arts Council England officers, David Micklem and Lyndsey Stephenson
Charlie Holland at The Circus Space
Jon Fawcett and Riverside Studios
Lighthouse Poole
Corn Exchange Newbury
Jane Hytch and Belgrade Theatre Company
Suzy Wilson at the Cold Ensemble
and the many artists who have contributed to the development of the project along the way.

“her work and attitude suggests a strong affinity with the master of the genre Dario Fo.”
NWN

“a tremendous Brazilian performer who is the last word in poignancy.”
The Independent
West End Review

Stagehands… 2-3 clowns take the place of the stage hands and, in between the acts of a cabaret show, help clear the stage for the next act. However, they cause chaos with their unruly antics and keep the audience in tears of laughter, whilst the poor stage manager had to work around them for the next act to start.
Director: Angela de Castro
Performers: Angela de Castro, Sue Broadway, Bim Mason, Hilary Ramsden
Ideal for cabaret/mixed bill nights as an ‘entre actes’
2001 WOMAD festival, England.
2001 Festival do Pallases, Andorra
2000 Anjos do Picadeiro, Clowns Festival, Rio de Janeiro, Brasil.

“Prepare to be entertained. One blink and you are in danger of missing something ludicrously funny.”
The Voice

The HaHarmonics… de Castro’s clown choir
‘Oh Carols!’ Winter 2001-2 at The Globe, Covent Garden Plaza, Brixton Town Centre Christmas lights opening ceremony, Phoenix Arts centre Leicester, Theatre Royal Winchester
‘Summer Holiday’, June 2003 at the Gateway International Performance Summer School in Edinburgh).
Supporters: ArtsEd (the Arts Educational Schools) London

“can make you laugh and cry in the same moment, a sign of serious talent.”
Everywoman

Alleluia: the Clown Opera… a large-scale show, mixing clowning, live music/opera, puppetry and strong design, this show was originally developed in collaboration with The John F. Kennedy Centre for the Performing Arts in Washington DC, USA. A work-in-progress looking for partners to develop the show further, this production has the potential to take theatre clowning, visual arts and the dramatic experience to another level.
De Castro has tried out scenes and images from this project at a number of festivals and venues, including:
2001 Festival du Pallases, Andorra
2000 opening ceremony of Anjos do Picadeiro, Teatro Glauce Rocha , Rio de Janeiro, Brasil
2000 work-in-progress John F Kennedy Centre for the Performing Arts, Washington DC, USA
Supporters: The John F Kennedy Centre, Washington DC, USA; Arts Foundation; ICT Productions

Previous shows include:
The Gift (solo show, supported by the Arts Council, 1991-1998) and My Life Is Like A Yo Yo (Writer: Bryony Lavery from the original stories and poems of Angela de Castro Director: Gail Kelly, supported by the Arts Council, Battersea Arts Centre and the Brasilian Embassy in London, 2003).