9th-31st December 2019
South Street Arts Centre
Written by: Anna Wheatley
Directed by: Hal Chambers
Sound design: Benjamin Hudson (AKA Brain Rays)
Designer: Bec Palmer
Movement Director: Rebecca Randall
Lighting Designer: Michael Brenkley
Costume Supervisor: Hannah Pearson
"High praise for the versatile cast. Hansel and Gretel is very touching, with its emphasis on creative breakthroughs and loving acceptance. It’s also very meaningful in the way it deconstructs some of the myths and assumptions that surround marginalised people. But most of all, it’s tremendous fun, a bumper evening, fizzing with life. Go and see it; take your friends and family.” - 5 Stars, Henley Standard
Hansel and Gretel were born holding hands, nothing can keep them apart. Until one day they are cast out into the forbidden woods with no way home. Will they ever find one another again? Can they survive the dark, twisting festival of the forest? And what is that powerful smell of candy floss that keeps catching on the wind?
Multi-award winning, Guardian Top 20, local theatre company RBL return to South Street with the same team who created the hugely successful 2018 adaptation of A Christmas Carol.
"Amazing and extraordinary play with some excellent actresses and actors. Ingenious playwriting."
Cast:
Daniel Creasey
I: Dan has built a diverse career across theatre, film and television, with stage credits including As You Like It and A Midsummer Night's Dream with Chapterhouse Theatre Company, Romeo and Juliet directed by Michael Bogdanov for The Wales Theatre Company, and leading roles in Twelfth Night and Hansel & Gretel for RABBLE Theatre. His screen work includes the feature films Rise of the Footsoldier 4 and On Hungry Hill, alongside television appearances in Genie in the House (Nickelodeon) and The Intern (Channel 4). Equally at home in comedy, classical theatre and character roles, Dan brings versatility, warmth and commanding stage presence to his performances.
Megan Treadway
i: Meghan Treadway is an accomplished screen and stage actor whose recent television work includes a series regular role in Murder Before Evensong (Channel 5/Acorn TV), alongside appearances in The Crown (Netflix), One Day (Netflix), Trying (Apple TV+), The Outlaws (BBC/Amazon), Dreaming Whilst Black (BBC) and Flack (Amazon). On stage she has performed in the acclaimed London production of Witness for the Prosecution, War Horse at the National Theatre, Simon McBurney's The Magic Flute for Complicité, and Alice's Adventures Underground with Les Enfants Terribles, demonstrating an impressive range across classical, contemporary and devised theatre. (AHA)
Oriana Charles: Gretel
i: Graduating from The Court Theatre Training Company, Oriana became a member of The Rubiks comedy improvisation group and The Directors’ Cut Theatre Company.
Stage includes: The Eden Effect (Curve, Leicester); It Rains Diamonds on Jupiter (Drayton Arms); Very Blue Peter (Edinburgh Fringe) and Polyamory? (Hastings Festival).
She originated the role of Eliana in Bump! and has subsequently performed it in London, Prague, Texas and Florida (where she was voted Best Actress in the ACCT World Festival).
Oriana has recently completed filming on the feature film Pandamonium.
Oscar Porter: Hansel
i: Oscar graduated from Bristol Old Vic Theatre School in 2019.
Theatre whilst training includes: The Life And Adventures Of Nicholas Nickleby (Jenny Stephens and Geoff Brumlik); Let The Right One In (Marcus Romer); The Comedy Of Errors (Toby Hulse) and Our Lady of 121st Street (Audrey Sheffield).
Theatre includes: Blue Stockings (National Youth Theatre and The Yard), Say Her Name (Royal Court/Open Court); Consensual (National Youth Theatre); Wuthering Heights (National Youth Theatre); Skint (Vault Festival) and Pope Joan (National Youth Theatre).
Radio includes: The Days Of Anna Madrigal (BBC Radio 4)
"We all loved Hansel & Gretel - in my daughters words, it was A-M-A-Z-I-N-G-!-!-!”
We’re absolutely delighted to welcome audiences to our take on Hansel and Gretel. Traditionally, it’s not exactly laugh-a-minute, what with the whole oven thing, so we’ve tried to give it a slightly more positive – joyous, even – twist, which we really hope that you approve of.
One of the key aims of this show is to create something that makes everyone feel welcome, understood and happy and that ethos is a massive part of what we as a company try to do. People come from far and wide to work with us here in Reading, often leaving loved ones at home for two to three months, so it’s important to us that they have a wonderful time with RBL/RABBLE and in the culturally-blossoming Reading as a whole.
"I just can't believe how brilliant Hansel & Gretel is. An ingenious script that was clearly enjoyed by the entire audience from teenagers to the elderly. Some totally raucous moments, superbly cast and top quality performances from all the actors. What a joy to be entertained in this wonderful adaptation and what a brilliant and unexpected twist to this classic tale. Another winner from RBL Rabble Theatre, bravo."
At RABBLE, we have an access fund which exists to ensure that anyone can access everything we do. Thankfully, we were able to support 30 children from Prospect School who, by all accounts, seemed to enjoy the show!
“It was probably the first time the majority of the students had seen a live theatre performance and they were captivated. They now want more, which is brilliant! You will appreciate how much it means to have local events for kids who cannot afford expensive trips to London” English Teacher, Prospect School
