Rust & Stardust Productions Turning Leaves Available for touring 2015-2016 To book the show for your venue, or if you have any queries, please contact Eleanor Conlon eleanorconlon12@gmail.com
Technical Requirements Stage At least 1 metre wide and 1 metre deep The set consists of one chair. Lighting General warm wash One special/spot Sound None Special effects A small amount of liquid and an apple is used on stage during the show. Get in / get out Approximately 5 minutes. Technical rehearsal time required Approximately 1 2 hours.
The Company Jessica Blake L (Trees Grow High) Jessica played the leading role of Jenny in a multi award winning feature film adaptation of Philip Pullman s novel The Butterfly Tattoo, shortly after graduating from a drama degree at the University of Winchester. Other feature film work includes comedy drama Being Sold (winner Best Film at LIFF) and The Four Warriors (Lionsgate 2015). She has also acted in several radio plays for BBC Radio 4, and TV drama The Power of Poetry, again for the BBC. Jessica recently completed a theatre tour of No Man s Land for History in Action Theatre Company. She has also performed in Rust & Stardust s The Wild Man of Orford. Eleanor Conlon Writer / Director (Trees Grow High, Turning Leaves) Eleanor is a writer, director and producer with an MA in Shakespeare and Early Modern Drama. Her work has been produced at Brighton Fringe, Lindfield Festival, Edinburgh Fringe, The Space and The New Vic. Plays include East of the Sun and West of the Moon, The Golden Apple, These Precious Hidden Things, The Last of Eden, Freyja s Tears and The Wild Man of Orford. She previously established and worked with Sussex theatre company The Barefoot Players. She currently writes and directs for Rust & Stardust, which she founded with Katie Sommers and is touring with Atomic Force Productions Beowulf. She is part of Bright Moon Puppet Circle, a collaborative collective of artists and performers with a shared love of storytelling and puppetry. Steve Hay Danny (Oh Danny Boy) Steve is a boat dwelling Oxford based Scottish actor. Recent film work includes a role as a gypsy in Sony/Starz hit US TV series Outlander, and Justin Kurzel's new version of Macbeth. Recent theatre includes Collider for Saturday Matinee Company, A Fistful of Mondays, Fun Run and Spare Prick for Joe Graham's Balancing Act, and BOSS and Hidden Spire for Lizzy McBain's Under Construction. He is also a regular reader and helps cast and direct Short Stories Aloud, curated by Sarah Franklin, and for John Retallack's Ruskin Theatre Platforms. He played JM Barrie in The Mythmakers in London's West End and in New York. He has also appeared in several music videos for lo fi band Candy Says, and surf a billy rockers The Long Insiders. He is a founding member of the Oxford Actors Network. Glen Kinch Maltravers (Turning Leaves) Glen toured to New York and across Canada with the National Youth Theatre. He trained at the Webber Douglas Academy and has worked at Derby Playhouse, Worthing Connaught, Nottingham Playhouse (a dozen times), Farnham Redgrave, Bolton Octagon, and in London at the Young Vic, the New Ambassadors, and also at the Leicester Square Theatre in Spike Milligan s Puckoon. His many tours through England, Wales, Ireland and the Low Countries include outdoor promenade productions with Midsommer Actors, and Original Shakespeare Company productions at the Globe reconstructions in London and Dusseldorf. He has played several Shakespeare clowns including Touchstone, Launcelot Gobbo, and at various times all the Dream Mechanicals except Snug. He played George in a production of Of Mice and Men which won a Manchester Evening News award. He s also acted for several television companies, and in comedy commercials radio plays, and the odd film. John Retallack Director (Oh Danny Boy) John is Tutor in Writing for Performance at Ruskin College, Oxford and remains an Associate Artist at Bristol Old Vic, where he worked from 2010 2013. From 2000 2010, he was the founding director of Company of Angels which produces new and experimental work for young audiences. He has written a number of plays in recent years for theatre and for radio. Plays include Wild Girl (2014), Truant (2013), Arlo (2010), Risk (2007), Virgins (2006), Ballroom (2004) and Hannah and Hanna (2001). His plays have been translated into several languages and are published by Oberon and Methuen. John was formerly director of Oxford Stage Company (1989 1999) and he was the founding director of Actors Touring Company (ATC) (1977 85). His work has been awarded a number of prizes, including two coveted SWET awards, and he has toured and worked in many countries including Europe, India, Japan and America. He is currently under commission from The Unicorn and he is planning to develop Hannah and Hanna in Dreamland for UK Arts International. He is directing Purcell s Dido and Aeneas for English Concert and in July 2015 he will direct the Stage Premiere of Owen Sheers Pink Mist for Bristol Old Vic. Jaime Woodham Writer (Oh Danny Boy) Jaime is a writer and burlesque performer. She studied Writing for Performance at Ruskin College with John Retallack and is going to be studying Drama, Applied Theatre and Education at Central in 2016. Oh Danny Boy is part of Jaime s trilogy of monologues Waterloo, first performed at the Old Fire Station in Oxford. Recent work includes Before The Tempest for the Old Fire Station, and SLAG for Ruskin Performance Day, also to be performed in Munich at Actor s Workout.. Jaime is a regular participant in Ruskin Theatre Platforms; recent performance includes Win in Top Girls and Marlon in Waterloo. Marketing Information
Basic copy Crime and the treatment of criminals ought to be black and white. One rule for everyone. But is justice free from the assumptions of gender and class ever really possible? Turning Leaves brings together three stark, powerful solo performances to discuss social perception and analysis of crime and risk. Trees Grow High Written and directed by Eleanor Conlon and performed by Jessica Blake A response to media controversies about female perpetrators of sex crimes. Oh Danny Boy Written by Jaime Woodham, directed by John Retallack and performed by Steve Hay A dark and destructive reflection on society's responsibility to its outcasts. Turning Leaves Written and directed by Eleanor Conlon, performed by Glen Kinch A discussion of the establishment s attitudes to crime and whether true impartiality is ever possible. Turning Leaves is recommended for ages 14 and above. Rust & Stardust is a Sussex based theatre and production company. Their work focuses on new writing, puppetry, animation and music. They are passionate about stories and storytelling, folklore and mythology, and all things homegrown and handmade. Web links Website: www.rustandstardustproductions.co.uk Facebook: www.facebook.com /ruststardustproductions Twitter: @ruststardust1 Sample Press Release
Following a run at Edinburgh Fringe, Turning Leaves is heading to <your town> as part of a short UK tour. Seriously clever stuff (London City Nights) Following a successful year at Edinburgh Fringe Festival, this powerful and thought provoking trio of solo performances is coming to <your venue> to draw audiences into their dark, disturbing world. Crime and the treatment of criminals ought to be black and white. But is justice free from the assumptions of gender and class ever really possible? Stark and unsettling, Rust & Stardust s Turning Leaves is an uncomfortably intimate examination of social perceptions of crime and criminals. Rust & Stardust is a Sussex based theatre and production company. Their work focuses on new writing, puppetry, animation and music. They are passionate about stories and storytelling, folklore and mythology, unconventional performance spaces and all things homegrown and handmade. ENDS Performance information: <Venue> <Dates> <Times> <Ticket information> Turning Leaves is aimed at adults and children aged 14+. Press contact: Eleanor Conlon, Rust & Stardust Productions eleanorconlon12@gmail.com / 07921 462591 Sample Poster