NEWS: Autumn through to Christmas at Tobacco Factories.

AUTUMN & CHRISTMAS AT TOBACCO FACTORY THEATRES

With autumn well under way, now is a great time to remind you of what is coming up at Tobacco Factory Theatres over the next couple of months! From political theatre to queer circus storytelling, magical children’s shows to gruesome gothic horror, choose what makes you happy, come on in, and celebrate life returning to some kind of normal with a good old night at the theatre!

Tickets for all of the following shows are now on general sale:

·        Wed 13 October: I Stand For What I Stand On from Strike a Light, made with a group of young climate activists from Gloucester.

·        Fri 15 & Sat 16 October: JD Broussé’s (le) Pain, part of Circus City 2021.

·        Wed 20 – Wed 27 October: For younger audiences at half term, Tessa Bide Productions’ The Selfish Giant, based on Oscar Wilde’s children’s story.

·        Thu 28 – Sun 31 October: Also at half term, Roustabout Theatre’s This Island’s Mine, a re-imagining of Shakespeare’s The Tempest. 

·        Tue 02 – Sat 13 November: Living Spit’s unique take on Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein.

·        Fri 19 & Sat 20 November: Red Ladder’s My Voice Was Heard But It Was Ignored – a new show interrogating racial identity and systemic power.

·        Fri 10 December – Sun 09 January: OZ - a brand new co-production from Tobacco Factory Theatres and Pins and Needles to bring unbridled joy to Christmas 2021!

·        Sat 18 – Thu 23 December: Douglas Walker’s Of Christmas Past, unwrapping the shocking true origins of Santa Claus.

 

Autumn Shows
On Wed 13 October, Strike a Light present I Stand For What I Stand On – a show created in collaboration with a group of striking young climate activists from Gloucester, which explores the reality of being a teenager and growing up in the shadow of the climate emergency.

Circus festival Circus City returns in 2021 and includes Tobacco Factory Theatres in its Bristol-wide programme on Fri 15 & Sat 16 October. (le) Pain is the debut solo show from Total Theatre award-winning artist, JD Broussé, about breadmaking, physical heroics, growing up queer in a boulangerie in the south of France, endings and new beginnings.

Tick off half term entertainment for children aged 3+ with Tessa Bide Productions’ The Selfish Giant on Wed 20 – Wed 27 October. Based on Oscar Wilde’s children’s story, this beautiful show has it all - powerful storytelling, captivating puppetry, and a sprinkling of theatre magic. And over in our Spielman Theatre at half term, Roustabout Theatre present This Island’s Mine for children aged 7+ on Thu 28 – Sun 31 October. Developed with support from Tobacco Factory Theatres and based on Shakespeare’s The Tempest, This Island’s Mine is a playful and daring exploration of the place we choose to call home, filled with magic, music and mayhem.

Howard and Stu are back for Living Spit’s unique take on Mary Shelley’s gruesome gothic horror, Frankenstein on Tue 02 – Sat 13 November. Living Spit’s Frankenstein: The Musical has original music, preposterous puppets, grotesque gags and diabolically desperate dance-moves. This rib-ticklingly raucous monster of a show will leave you in stitches.

Rounding off the autumn season, Red Ladder’s My Voice Was Heard But It Was Ignored depicts a gripping tussle for power and an urgent interrogation of racial identity. Written by emerging playwright Nana-Kofi Kufuor, it plays in Bristol on Fri 19 & Sat 20 November.

Christmas at Tobacco Factory Theatres
There is only ever one place to be at Christmas, and this year Tobacco Factory Theatres is excited to be presenting OZ - its brand new production with Pins and Needles, based on the original The Wizard of Oz books by L. Frank Baum. With imaginative storytelling, original live music and humour for all the family, OZ will transport audiences to lands both wicked and wonderful. OZ runs from Fri 10 December 2021 – Sun 09 January 2022.

Plus, completing the Christmas line up – and for a slightly older audience – Tobacco Factory Theatres is delighted to welcome back Douglas Walker with his one-man epic Of Christmas Past on Sat 18 – Thu 23 December. Treading a fine line between fact and fairy tale, comedy and conspiracy theory, Of Christmas Past is a funny, festive story for grown-ups spanning the entire 20th century, with a cast of characters including everyone from Rasputin to Pablo Escobar, Edward VIII to Elvis!

Opportunities for Artists – Resident Artists Scheme
Last month, Tobacco Factory Theatres announced its Resident Artists Scheme – the opportunity for four freelance theatre makers to join the theatre as Resident Artists for a 10 month-long collaboration starting in October 2021. Through this collaboration, both the artists and Tobacco Factory Theatres will learn, imagine and change in ways they couldn’t have done otherwise. Each Resident Artist will receive £2500 towards a project or their ongoing artistic development, at least one uninterrupted week of studio time and first priority in accessing other shorter studio slots, the chance to scratch or perform their work in front of an audience and lots of other opportunities to support and contribute to the work of the theatre. More than 70 applications were submitted for the 2021/22 scheme and Tobacco Factory Theatres looks forward to introducing its four new Resident Artists very soon!

For full details of Tobacco Factory Theatres’ autumn and Christmas programme, visit tobaccofactorytheatres.com/whats-on/

Finally, here’s a reminder of what Tobacco Factory Theatres is continuing to do to keep audiences safe this autumn and winter: For now, all Factory Theatre and Spielman Theatre performances are on sale with measures in place to maintain social distancing. Additionally, other modifications enable a safe journey through the rest of the building. Capacity may increase once it’s safe to do so, however at least one socially distanced performance per week will be guaranteed for all shows with a run of at least five performances. These performances are labelled Guaranteed Socially Distanced, and dates for them can be found on individual show webpages. Read more about the Covid safety measures at Tobacco Factory Theatres.