Exciting times with Fevered Sleep

Theo Peters (c) Keith Pattison

Exciting times with Fevered Sleep. On Ageing opened last night. My goodness it’s an incredible project to be involved with. From the first technical rehearsal last Thursday where the seven children (aged 7 to 13) were ‘on their own’ for the first time with no prompting from the directors, to a high energy dress rehearsal on Saturday night to the first preview last night – it’s a risky old process to be involved in. The children are amazing. Their commitment to the show is a wonder. And the most exciting thing as an audience member (although not necessarily for the creative team!) is that you never know what they are going to do next. I can’t wait to see it again. Every night will be different and every show will give me a new and different perspective on what it is to be a living, growing and ageing human being.

Louise Blackwell
Producer, Fuel

On Ageing – News From the Front Line!

(Written 4 September)

We’ve just finished our fifth week of rehearsals, and the show is finally beginning to reveal itself.  I never cease to be surprised by how bonkers devising is.  It’s a bit like looking for something in the dark, and not knowing what you’re looking for, and certainly not knowing where the light-switch is.  All you can do is hold tight, keep your eyes open and hope that you’ll see it coming, the show, the thing you’re looking for.

Now that we can see what On Ageing might be, it’s turning into a very exciting time, every day discovering new possibilities in the material, and new directions to explore, and digging deeper and finding more.

Watch this space – and who knows, by the 27th September we might actually have discovered the full magic of what this show wants to be…

David Harradine (Director of On Ageing)

Why children?

Why create a show about ageing, performed by children?
Director David Harradine explains…

On Ageing is not a piece about ‘being old’, it is a piece about ageing, and as such it is about something that everybody, whether they’re six or sixty or ninety, can relate to.

After talking with a lot of older people, the same idea kept emerging… people continue to feel young even as they become old and that gives us the image of having a younger person’s or even a child’s outlook on life, at the same time as living with an ageing body.

Fevered Sleep has made a lot of work for children, in which we’ve involved children in our creative processes.  We wanted to take this one step further, and see if it was possible to create a show using all our usual approaches and ideas, only working with children.

Buy tickets / More info about the show >>

On Ageing rehearsals are under way!

Our Associate company Fevered Sleep’s latest show opens in four weeks.  For those who follow their works (or ours!), you’d know that Young Vic has only ever presented Fevered Sleep’s family works. Well you are in for a treat – this time, although it is a cast of children, the show is aimed at adults. And that’s what makes it more the interesting.

The concept is based on growing, changing and ageing – and those fleeting moments and memories that mark us throughout our lives.

The cast is working with hundreds of objects – it’s amazing they can remember where everything goes and that so many things can fit on a stage. Rehearsals are looking great. We can’t wait to see the finished work.  Georgie, Joe, Laroque, Madeleine, Theo, Tsipora, Vaughn – it’s been a delight to have you around.

Buy your tickets and more info about the production here >>

Check out some photos taken during/in between rehearsals…