Play the Goat, Bristol Old Vic’s newest company of emerging theatre talent from Made In Bristol, present their debut show Off-Peak
13 Jun 2019
PRESS NIGHT: Thu 4 Jul at 8pm
This July, Bristol Old Vic's newest generation of Made In Bristol, will take to the Weston Studio with their debut show, Off-Peak, an absurd piece of comedy about a global happiness campaign group.
Made In Bristol is Bristol Old Vic's young theatre-makers scheme created by the Engagement Department, which trains a group of 18–25 year olds as workshop leaders, assistants and theatre-makers. The course consists of classes that allow them to develop their skills and form their own unique style of work as a company, taught by leading industry professionals, including Sally Cookson, David Glass and Tom Morris.
The twelve Made In Bristol members have been residents in the building over the past year and contain nine former Bristol Old Vic Young Company members who are looking to develop their passion into a career.
Play the Goat in rehearsals (Photography Harry Plowden)
Together, they have formed Play the Goat, a company of theatre makers committed to taking their audiences on a bizarre and curious adventure. They are constantly playing with and exploring stories that break the mould. Inspired by the unconventional, and driven by what makes us all unique, they make theatre that lets you escape.
Previous companies formed through the Made In Bristol scheme include the hugely successful Wardrobe Ensemble (Education, Education, Education, currently playing in the West End), INKBLOC Ensemble (LEGO® Beach) and Propolis Theatre (Spill). Play the Goat’s previous work as part of the scheme includes Limelight, a theatrical tour for Bristol Old Vic’s Heritage Weekend in Nov 2018.
Speaking about her year with Made In Bristol, Play The Goat member Chloe Thurlow said, “To create a theatre company from scratch, working completely collaboratively, has been challenging but so worth it. We've all learnt new things and picked up roles we wouldn't have been able to take on in an ordinary production. And I've loved every part of it.’
Their debut show Off-Peak will play in the Weston Studio from Wed 3 Jul – Sat 6 Jul.It centres on campaign group Felix, who have become notorious for their controversial publicity stunts around the world. Their mission is to achieve complete global happiness. As they come together to meet on a train, route Bristol to London Paddington is about to get a lot more interesting…
Off-Peak is packed with biting wit and riotous energy. Playing with the absurdity of the mundane, the piece will question: When do the ends stop justifying the means?
Bristol Old Vic is the longest continuously running theatre in the UK, and celebrated its 250th anniversary in 2016. The historic playhouse aims to inspire audiences with its own original productions, both at home and on tour, whilst nurturing the next generation of artists, whether that be through their 350-strong Young Company, their many outreach and education projects or their trailblazing artist development programme, Bristol Ferment.
They use their funding to support experiment and innovation, to allow access to their programme for people who would not otherwise encounter it, or be able to afford it, and to keep their extraordinary heritage alive and animated.
On 24 Sep 2018, Bristol Old Vic completed its 2-year multi-million pound redevelopment project, which transformed its front of house space into a warm and welcoming public building for all of Bristol to enjoy, created a new studio theatre and opened up its unique theatrical heritage to the public for the first time.