Tristan Bates Theatre The Actors Centre, 1a Tower St, London WC2H 9NP Covent Garden / Leicester Sq / Tottenham Ct Rd

Book now: 020 7240 6283 www.tristanbatestheatre.co.uk

FIRST 2015A FESTIVAL OF SOLO PERFORMANCES11 -- 28 FEBRUARY 2015

'GLORIOUSLY DIVERSE'

INDEPENDENT

'A SAFE BET FOR A GOOD

NIGHT OUT'THE STAGE

TICKETS FROM

JUST £5

Solo performances are one of the greatest risks and most exciting challenges for an artist, and offer audiences a strikingly direct and intimate relationship.Now in its third year, FIRST celebrates and champions all that is possible in the form. This year features our strongest line-up with award-winning and internationally-acclaimed artists alongside sparkling new talents, ranging from new writing to physical theatre, cabaret, magic, verbatim, immersive performance and even circus!Come in, take a look, and welcome to FIRST 2015.

Wed 11 Feb, 7.00pm. £17.50FESTIVAL OPENING NIGHT + Q&ADAME DIANA RIGG: NO TURN UNSTONEDFrom the RSC to the West End and The Avengers to Game of Thrones, the inimitable Dame Diana Rigg talks about her career and her screamingly funny book No Turn Unstoned, a collection of ‘the worst theatrical reviews in history’. ‘A love letter to theatre itself’ Guardian‘Terrifically good company... richly entertaining’ Telegraph

Wed 11 & Thu 12 Feb, 9.15pm. £10 / £8I NEVER TOLD A JOKE IN MY LIFE

A speech about dead comedians, about forgotten comedians, about every comedian that’s ever been and ever will be.

Solo performer Chris Williams recites an endless list of all the things that could happen in a comedy act – from fights with the audience to sing-a-longs, walk-outs and on stage

deaths – all drawn from real-life incidents.‘Comedy genius!’ (STOFF Festival director)

Thu 12 & Fri 13 Feb, 7.30pm. £10 / £8WHISKEY TANGO FOXTROTA new play in development by Rebecca Crookshank.1997. Hungover from her 17th birthday, Crookshank, a wannabe Spice Girl, signs up for the Royal Air Force.Based on her time serving Queen and Country protecting the UK Air Defence Region, Crookshank charts her journey from basic training to the Falkland Islands. Join her and some penguins for this heartwarming and hilarious adventure.

Fri 13 Feb, 6.00pm. £10 / £8 concsANNOYING THE NEIGHBOURS

Pioneering Verbatim performer Louise Wallinger tells hilarious and disturbing tales of shooting squirrels, uninvited nose-arounds, using the neighbour’s garden as an ashtray and demolishing their garage.

Based on interview material from inquisitive and quarrelling neighbours and the council workers who deal with their disputes.

Fri 13 Feb, 7pm & 9pm. £9 / £7. John Curry Studio (limited capacity)DATING GAMEFor those looking for love, in love or wondering if they can do better... Led by dating guru Linda L’Amour, meet new people and uncover the secret of true love in this immersive show about humanity, love and reconnecting in a digital age. Comedy-theatre at its best by Emma Nias.‘Disarmingly honest, surprisingly empowering and utterly stupid. This is what theatre is for!’ Total Theatre

Sat 14 Feb, 3pm. £10 / £8BUTZI -- QUITE UNUSUALThe London premiere of a brand new hour from acclaimed French magician Butzi. A table flies a foot away from your eyes, the future is predicted, and - despite your confusion - you’re still laughing. Linking modern and traditional magic by using everyday objects, Butzi will blow your mind in an hour of wonder and amazement.

Sat 14 Feb, 7.30pm. £7 / £5ANDREW MADDOCK -- CYPRUS SUNSETS

Getting dumped, Madonna, Keo Beer & package holidays. Welcome to the ultimate anti-Valentines play.

Following his Off-West End Award nominated The Me Plays, Andrew presents a further instalment in the trials and tribulations of Me.

‘Highly Poignant’ Exeunt on The Me Plays

Fri 13 & Sat 14 Feb, 9.15pm. £7 / £5 DOWN-UP -- CIRCUS GEEKS

A solo show about competition, innovation and the possibilities of the mundane, strung together by a subject

overlooked by society: Yo-Yos (yes, the kids’ toy).From the Filipino emigrant who made his fortune in the

1930s to modern technology behind a worldwide subculture, Down-Up shows that a Yo-Yo is for life, not just for Christmas.‘A fascinating insight into a niche universe’ Circus Diaries

Mon 16 Feb, 7pm; Tue 17 - Thu 19 Feb, 7.30pm. £10 / £8SOMETIMES I LAUGH LIKE MY SISTERSince her big sister, BBC journalist Kate Peyton, was murdered in Somalia in February 2005, Rebecca has had rather a strange time. Preparing a wake rather than a wedding and with no second opinion on the kitchen-lighting fiasco, Rebecca gallops through the curious corollaries of the worst of times with wit, warmth and honesty.Rebecca Peyton’s extraordinary show returns for just 4 nights to mark the 10th anniversary of her sister’s death.

‘A reminder of how absurdly precious life is’ The Times Independent, Scotsman, WOS

Tue 17 - Fri 20 Feb, 9.15pm & Sat 21 Feb, 4.15pm. £10 / £8 MARLENE -- THE COMPETITION

Late at night in a Soho cabaret bar, an impersonator pulls on a mask and lives another life in the hope,

perhaps, of making more sense of her own...Fusing the frivolous style of cabaret with song and

dance, smoke and fishnets, Marlene reveals the naked truth about a middle aged female immigrant artist as

she pays homage to an idol. Created by international award-winning artist Eva Magyar, the show was developed at FIRST in 2014 and now returns to the TBT for its world premiere.

Thu 19 Feb, 6pm. £10 / £8THE SINGING PSYCHIC‘She is smart, she is funny and she KNOWS THINGS.’ In this world of mystery and music, The Singing Psychic invites you to an intriguing hour of comedy and song through fun-filled psychic readings. Created & performed by Marysia Trembecka. ‘She certainly knows how to entertain’ Three Weeks

Sun 15 Feb, 3pm. £8 / £6 DAVID FOREST: PLAYING WITH MYSELF

I haven’t got a partner, I’ve long been on the shelf, but I’m quite happy playing with myself... David Forest introduces and

performs his own songs in a sparkling 50 minutes of fun.‘This is Cabaret to die for!’ Lynn Ruth Miller

Sat 21 & Sun 22 Feb, 2.30pm. £10 / £8EDITH, ELIZABETH & IWritten & performed by Jules Craig, this comic, fast moving one-woman show has a cast of three all vying for the role of leading lady. Inspired by the life of poet Edith Sitwell and her biographies of Elizabeth I, Juliet attempts to put on a play about her heroines, but discovers that telling the tales of others has its own pitfalls, particularly when the subjects themselves turn up...‘A complex, wildly intimate project’ FemaleArts

Mon 23 Feb, 7.30pm. £8 / £6DARK DATES: AN AUDIENCE WITH CASSANDRA BICKCassandra is your average London girl who happens to run a dating agency for vampires – who suddenly gets a lot more attention when someone starts killing her clients. A fresh, funny tale by Zoe Cunningham, adapted from Tracey Sinclair’s acclaimed book.

Sun 22 Feb, 4.15pm. £10 / £8 TOURETTESHERO: BACKSTAGE IN BISCUITLAND

Jess Thom has Tourettes, a neurological condition that makes her say ‘biscuit’ 16,000 times a day...

This two-woman solo show weaves comedy, puppetry, singing and tics to explore spontaneity, creativity, disability,

and things you never knew would make you laugh.Winner: Total Theatre Award 2014

‘Extraordinarily entertaining’ GuardianRelaxed performance, signed for deaf or hearing impaired

audiences. Contact the venue for more imformation.

Fri 20 & Sat 21 Feb, 7.30pm. £10 / £8LOVE

On a sunny afternoon, ‘Y’ posted an ad looking for a partner with whom he would make love, then be killed, cut in pieces,

and eaten - reaching his idea of sexual nirvana. ‘X’ most benevolently responded to the ad. This is their love story.

Inspired by real events, award-winning theatre-maker Petar Miloshevski returns to the TBT with this strikingly physical and visual show following 2014 sell-out hit The Beautiful.

‘Miloshevski’s extraordinary tour de force’ Theatrelandtalks

Tue 24 Feb, 9.15pm. £10 / £8ADVENTURE / MISADVENTUREA heady, exhilarating mix of evocative, existential travelogue, darkly comedic riffs on nesting fails, and an evil frog wrenched from a clowns penis. Join acclaimed writer-performer Nick Field for a captivating and hilarious journey of elusive discoveries.‘Utilises beautiful language and an endearing stage presence to tell a story that is personal, honest and heartfelt’ Guardian

Wed 25 - Sat 28 Feb, 7.30pm & Sat 28 Feb, 3pm. £9 / £7ANGEL IN THE ABATTOIR

A gripping, humorous and dark new drama starring BAFTA-winning actor and comedian

William Andrews (Broadchurch, Him & Her) and written by Fringe First winner Dave Florez.

Clifford wants to be a hero. Lorna wants to be left alone. Both need to be saved. Through tales of a

haunted past, and a longed for future, one man teeters on the edge – will he fly or fall?

‘Hard hitting drama that burns bright’ Metro on Florez’s Somewhere Beneath It All... ‘Fresh, funny and at times achingly

beautiful’ Scotsman on Florez’s Hand Over First

Wed 25 Feb, 9.15pm. £10 / £8CHARLIE & THE PHILOSORAPPERSJoin FIRST 2013 & 2014 favourite Charlie Dupré on a head-stretching hip-hop voyage through the history of thought.Featuring David Hume avoiding an abandoned Self, an over-confident chicken, the ultimate Dawkins-God standoff, and a host of rhythmic ruminators hell-bent on rapping their way into the fabric of reality. ‘A feat of linguistic acrobatics’ Scotsman

Tue 24 Feb, 7.30pm. £8 / £6CAN'T CARE, WON'T CARE

A care worker. A confession. A crime? Is it that she can’t or won’t care? BBC Slam Champion Sophia Walker pits Care

Worker against The State in this darkly comedic murder trial based on true stories. Would you break the law to save a life?

Winner Best UK Spoken Word Show 2014 Winner Best Spoken Word Show, Edinburgh Free Fringe 2014

Sat 21 Feb, 9.15pm. £8 / £6BALLS: LE FIRST TIME FOR EVERYTHINGBack by popular demand and hosted by the inimitable Donal Coonan (Le Flop), BALLS is a loose, exciting, high-risk cabaret of quick-fire solo performances where all material must be completely new.Interested to perform? Email donalcoonan@googlemail.com.

Mon 16 & Mon 23 Feb, 8.30pm. £7 / £5FIRST 2015 SCRATCH NIGHTS

Two bumper Monday nights of short plays, works-in-progress and experiments, with new work by Annie Herridge, Aaron Anthony

Wallace, Chris Sav, Healah Riazi, Martyn Dempsey, Susan Hodgetts, Ben Alderton, Kristin Kristjansdottir & Sean Burn. Full listings online.

FIRST 2015 -- ACTORS CENTRE WORKSHOPSMOVE WITH INTENTION with Eva Magyar. A practical workshop on building character not just through words but the whole body. 11 Feb, 10.30am-1.30pm. £28 (AC members £18).

VERBATIM THEATRE with Louise Wallinger. An introduction to the skills required to make & perform Verbatim Theatre. 10 & 16 Feb, 10.30am-1.30pm. £51 (AC members £36).

Thu 26 & Fri 27 Feb, 9.15pm. £5ROSS & RACHEL

So no one told you life was gonna be this way.15 years after their happy ending, Ross and Rachel are still

together. And they’ve just had some bad news.A new play in progress by James Fritz (Four Minutes Twelve Seconds, Hampstead Theatre, Verity Bargate Award runner-

up), Ross & Rachel is a dizzying comic duologue for one performer. By turns disquieting and hilarious, it challenges

one actor to stage the breakup of the 21st Century.Your mother warned you there’d be days like these.

SCRATCH & WORKSHOP OPPORTUNITIES

CREATE YOUR OWN SOLO SHOW with Colin Watkeys. Work over four sessions culminating in a showcase in the Tristan Bates Theatre. 9-12 Feb, 1.30pm-5.30pm. £115 (AC members £90).

SOLO AND SINGULAR: CREATING A FORM AS UNIQUE AS YOUR STORIES with Nick Field. Exploring personal experience and stories in your work. 22 Feb, 1.30pm-5.30pm. £30 (AC members £20).Book at actorscentre.co.uk / non-members email tbt@actorscentre.co.uk

Tristan Bates TheatreThe Actors Centre, 1a Tower St, London WC2H 9NP Covent Garden / Leicester Sq / Tottenham Ct Rd

Book now: 020 7240 6283 www.tristanbatestheatre.co.uk

THE ACTORS CENTREThe UK’s leading organisation which supportsactors throughout their professional careers.A central London venue and hub for actors to network,share and create with their peers. We provide direct opportunitiesand links with the creative industries and present a year-round professional development programme of workshops and masterclasses.If you are a professional actor then find out what becoming a member can do for you and your career at www.actorscentre.co.uk.

An intimate studio in the West End, the TBT has won acclaim for its dedication to showcasing and supporting the best new theatre, emerging artists and companies. Thanks to The Foyle Foundation, we’ve also recently upgraded the theatre with more comfortable seats, flexible configurations, better tech and soundproofing!

TRISTAN BATES THEATRE

Naming a seat is a unique way to support us and help invest in the TBT and AC. In your name, in memory of a loved one, or as a gift, your donation will enable us to continue supporting exciting and dynamic artists and help fellow theatre-lovers enjoy shows in the comfort of our new seats!For more information, call 020 7632 8007 or email development@actorscentre.co.uk.

NAME A SEAT

PATRONS David Harewood MBE, Joely Richardson & Rafe Spall