There are many things that came out of the pandemic and when we look back at some of the more positive aspects, we have to put the latest from Cardiff based CHIPPY LANE PRODUCTIONS and COMPANY ONE right up there.
RIGHT WHERE WE LEFT US sees two alternating companies take to the stage, allowing different examinations of the script and the characters to come to life before the audience. The central characters, I, P and T, are not assigned a gender in the script and the team found that the play resonated differently depending on who the performers were. The power dynamics across age, gender and class all have the power to change the experience of watching the play and add nuance and detail to different elements of the story.
When an unexpected connection between two people is made, instant but fleeting, Right Where We Left Us asks if this connection can be rekindled successfully years later. For I and P, despite the years, the spark is still there, electric and dangerous. This moving play with alternating casts, from Papatango Prize short-listed Rebecca Jade Hammond, captures a feeling of frustration and longing for lost opportunities and lost love.
This lyrical and witty three-hander is a heartfelt examination of what happens instead of ‘happily ever after’. Directed by Chelsey Gillard (Antigone, online – National Theatre Wales/Theatre Genedlaethol Cymru/PowderHouse; The Invisible Woman, Welsh Tour/Wales Millennium Centre) this award-winning director has recently been appointed as the Artistic Director of the Torch Theatre, Milford Haven, making her the first Welsh female Artistic Director of a venue.
The cast is made up entirely of Welsh actors and Right Where We Left Us will reunite the creative team behind sell-out show BLUE, which The Guardian described as smart and superbly acted (4 stars), to form an all-Welsh and Wales-based creative team.
Company One is comprised of HANNAH DANIEL (Keeping Faith, S4C/BBC; Hinterland, S4C/BBC; For All I Care, TW/Edinburgh Festival; Love at First Light, Shock and Awe Productions) and JACOB IFAN (A Discovery of Witches, Sky; Bang, S4C), best known for his lead role as Jake Vickers in the BBC police drama series Cuffs and fresh from filming season two of BBC’s The Pact. They are joined by JONATHAN HAWKINS (The Corn is Green, National Theatre; Curtain Up, Theatr Clwyd; The Wheel of Time, Amazon Prime).
Jonathan will reprise the role of T in Company Two and is joined by RICK YALE (The Populars, Volcano Theatre/Edinburgh Festival; Involuntary Activist, Iris Films/BBC2 Wales; LOOT, Black RAT Productions/Welsh Tour) and FRANÇOIS PANDOLFO (Big Boys, Channel 4; The Rezort, E4; Lifted By Beauty: Adventures In Dreaming, National Theatre). Working with two companies also allows Chippy Lane Productions to offer employment to more actors, which aligns with their aim to champion Welsh and Wales-based voices.
Right Where We Left Us is a product of the Covid 19 pandemic, born from the shock of having everything put on hold. As the third wave of the pandemic made it seem impossible to ever get back to the stage, Rebecca wanted to write a love letter to creative collaboration and the great American memory plays.
The fast-flowing show, set in a space between Barry Island and Coney Island, and spanning 2012 to the present day, will be underscored with original music by BAFTA Cymru Award-winning composer Tic Ashfield. The bright lights and anticipation of Coney Island will be evoked through structural lighting design by Jane Lalljee.
RIGHT WHERE WE LEFT US gets to the Seligman Theatre at Cardiff’s Chapter from Wednesday 28th through to Wednesday 5th October. There is a BSL performance on Saturday 2nd October at 2:30pm. Tickets start at £10.
As we mentioned there are two companies of actors performing on different nights, more details below.
Company 1
- Hannah Daniel
- Jacob Ifan
- Jonathan Hawkins
Company 2
- Rick Yale
- François Pandolfo
- Jonathan Hawkins
- Wed 28 Sep: Company 1 @ 7:30pm
- Thur 29 Sep: Company 2 matinee @ 2:30pm, Company 1 (Press night) @ 7:30pm
- Fri 30 Sep: Company 2 (Press night) @ 7:30pm
- Sat 1 Oct: Company 2 @ 2:30pm *BSL Interpreted, Company 1 @ 7:30pm
- Mon 3 Oct: Company 2 @ 7:30pm
- Tues 4 Oct: Company 1 @ 7:30pm*
- Wed 5 Oct: Company 1 @ 2:30pm, Company 2 @ 7:30pm
There’ll also be a 30-minute post-show talk on the 4th October, 15 minutes after the performance finishes. The talk will be with a panel made up of the cast for that evening – Hannah Daniel, Jacob Ifan, Jonathan Hawkins and director Chelsey Gillard.
For ticket details and more on the production, go HERE.
Chippy Lane Productions was founded in 2016 by Rebecca Jade Hammond, a Cardiff born actor, writer and producer. Chippy Lane Productions’ primary mission is to promote Welsh and Wales-based theatre and talent, to audiences in and beyond Wales. Chippy Lane Productions are fast becoming one of Wales’ foremost new writing companies, championing underrepresented emerging talent.
The script has been honed throughout development periods with support from The Bush Theatre, Paines Plough, Theatre503, Sherman Theatre, Chapter Arts Centre and The Carne Trust. The play will be published by Methuen Dram.
