Theatre / bristol old vic theatre school
Preview: Kiss Me, Wardrobe Theatre
For Bristol Old Vic Theatre School’s annual Directors’ Cuts season (May 1-26, Wardrobe Theatre), the school’s four graduating directors each choose a contemporary script in which to direct their acting colleagues.
Third in the season is director Katharine Farmer, who has chosen Richard Bean’s Kiss Me. Here’s Katharine to tell us more about the play – and her time at BOVTS.
Kiss Me is an intimate story based on true events that took place in the wake of World War 1. After the war, a doctor with clinics in Kensington and Notting Hill recognised that many of the two million women left single or widowed wanted a child. This doctor made it possible for hundreds of women to start a family – and her solution was Dennis.
is needed now More than ever
Rehearsal pics: Craig Fuller
The play imagines one of Dennis’ encounters with a young widow – and how it changes the course of their lives forever.
Written by Richard Bean (One Man, Two Guvnors), Kiss Me is both nostalgic and modern: it captures early feminist thinking on motherhood and sexuality, as well as the societal pressures of post-war life. It questions conventions of marriage and what it means to be a single mother. Directing this play provides a wonderful opportunity to explore the origins of IVF – and the social impact that this fledgling procedure had on modern science.
But at its core, Kiss Me is a love story about overcoming prejudice and finding peace. The feisty dynamic between Stephanie and Dennis was what most attracted me to directing the play, and this May the star-crossed lovers will be brought to life by Stephanie Booth and George Readshaw, who like me will be graduating from Bristol Old Vic Theatre School this year.
Director Katharine Farmer
After graduation, I’ll be continuing my trend of directing love stories when I return to Rubicon Theatre in California to direct Rogers and Hammerstein’s South Pacific and Simon Stephens’ Heisenberg in their 2018/2019 season. In addition to my work in the States, I’ll be back in the UK developing plays and finding new stories to tell.
Kiss Me is at the Wardrobe Theatre from Tue, May 15 to Sat, May 19. For more info and to book tickets, visit thewardrobetheatre.com/livetheatre/kiss-me
Read more: Preview: Directors’ Cuts season
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