Bryony Kimmings captures the audience from the moment she walks on stage to kick off her musical masterpiece on cancer. This show is hard-hitting, yet sensitive. It is brutal yet touching. I have never seen anything quite like it.
Today, Rufus Norris, Artistic Director of the National Theatre, has announced what is coming up in the new season: Four world premieres, two European premieres and co-productions with Headlong, Fuel, West Yorkshire Playhouse, Out of Joint, and Improbable, featuring new work by Inua Ellams, Yaёl Farber, DC Moore, Lindsey Ferrentino and Nina Raine.
It’s safe to say that in 2015, we have moved on technologically, scientifically and socially in a lot of respects. However, with the latter, socially we are still behind in terms of the perception of mental illness. An issue that usually brushed under the carpet, there appears to be an attitude whereby if it can’t be seen then it doesn’t not exist, except, it does. Inspired to create a piece of theatre placing the issue of mental illness at the forefront, award winning performance artist, Bryony Kimmings speaks to Theatrefullstop about her autobiographical production, Fake It ‘Til You Make It!
‘Fake It ‘Til You Make It’ is an award winning show, having won the ‘Best Theatre Award’ at Perth’s Fringe World Festival and Adelaide Fringe Festival? How did it feel to win the awards?
To say that Bryony Kimmings and Taylor Houchen have impressed me with their work in That Catherine Bennet Show at the Southbank Centre is not saying nearly enough. This aunt and her 11-year-old niece are the responsible ones for the creation and development of Catherine Bennet, the new pop star alternative that offers teens a different option in the midst of the increasingly similar pop stars of these days that only sing about money, fame and lust.
