'To Whom It May Concern' is an emerging writers night produced and directed by Salt Circle Productions. The one-hour show consists of monologues around different themes. Tonight’s theme is 'Pride' and will be performed by brilliant London based actors.
This is an evening of letters that were never sent. A night of connection, revolution and power as we hear the voices of 'us', the general public that is often overlooked.
Writers:
Lucy Baylis
KT Miles
Michael Seabrook
Aaron Cawood
Santiago Guerra
Lydia Wainwright
Performed by Arno van Zelst, Erik Nordebrink Pihl,
Jimmy Roberts, Mireia Espluga, Freddie Haberfellner, El Simons
musical performer Sarah Carvalho
Directed by Tara Choudhary, Isabella Forshaw, Anna Wellman, Vittorio Pari, Izzy Carney and Al Hawkins
By purchasing a ticket you are supporting Salt Circle Production's future productions (as we are a self-funded company), BUT MOST IMPORTANTLY, raising money for 'The Outside Project' an LGBTQI+ shelter, centre and domestic abuse refuge. Read more about this wonderful charity via their website: https://lgbtiqoutside.org/ and if you want to donate more, please consider donating via the link below:
https://www.peoplesfundraising.com/donation/theoutsideproject-twimc
Meet us after the show in the bar and meet up with fellow creatives.
TO WHOM IT MAY CONCERN
27th of July 2023, 7:00pm at Etcetera Theatre, Camden
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CAST AND CREW
THE WRITERS
Michael Seabrook
Writer of 'A Queer Car Crash'
Having spent a year performing in a touring TIE company, Michael discovered the power that theatre has to change lives. Now as an actor and writer he creates work which explores the complexities of contemporary queerness drawing on the experiences of themself and others to remain honest in their storytelling. They love blending comedy with sincerity, the extraordinary with the mundane, and the provocative with the authentic.
Michael is currently writing a number of new plays which he plans to premiere to the world soon. In October, Michael will begin training at East15 Acting School to study a BA in Acting and Contemporary Theatre.
Lydia Wainwright
Writer of ‘Pride is a Rainbow'
Lydia Wainwright is a standup, writer and performer and is currently completing a Master's degree in Stage and Production Management at the Guildford School of Acting. She is delighted to be producing her writing work once again with Salt Circle for what is a very special evening of work. ‘Pride is a Rainbow’ was written two years ago when the word ‘Pride’ was described to her in an all-too-familiar tone that suggested it was a dirty word. It got her thinking about the word, more than usual, more than ever. 'Pride is a Rainbow’ is a spoken song for the weary hearts of our community and our allies. Lydia’s hope is that it gently sings to us to keep going, despite the hate that comes our way. The rainbow belongs to us, and it always will.
KT Miles
Writer 'If I Ever See Her Again'
KT is a playwright from the South of England who moved to London for their undergraduate degree in English Literature at King’s College London. They have since taken their show (In) Good Spirits to VAULT Festival 2023, a play which was written under mentorship of the National Theatre’s Writing for Stage. They were also longlisted for the 2022 Bruntwood Prize and have most recently been commissioned for Hive North’s OutStageUs, with a short piece being performed at The Lowry in July!
Santiago Guerra
Writer of ‘What If That's Not Me?'
Writer, daydreamer and creative. I’ve been writing stories since I was a kid, and have translated that passion by creating a short film and participating in the Act 2 Festival (2022 edition). This monologue’s very personal and close to my heart, and I’m so excited to see the final result!
Aaron Cawood
Writer of ‘Wine Drunk'
Aaron is a 23-year-old non-binary person (he/they) from Leeds, currently working on Social Media in regional theatres there. During their undergraduate study at Oxford University in English Literature, Aaron started to embrace their passion for writing, especially focused on the queer lived experience. After Oxford, Aaron went on to study for their Masters in Stage Management from Guildford School of Acting, as they refocused into theatre professionally. This is Aaron’s first venture into writing for stage, as he spends most of his time writing poetry or editing his novel ‘Dreaming Spires’, which is his biggest project to date. As it was years ago, Aaron’s writing remains focused on the experience of queer gender and sexuality, as well as personal relationships with trauma and recovery.
Lucy Baylis
Writer of ‘P.S I Love You'
Lucy (she/they) is a theatre professional who enjoys writing in their spare time. Originally from Dorset, they are currently travelling the county with The SpongeBob Musical and enjoy exploring the cities they visit to gain new inspiration. Their writing focuses predominantly on queer experiences. This is Lucy’s first public writing debut and she is excited to be part of this night of new emerging writers.
THE PERFORMERS
Erik Nordebank Pihl
Performer of 'A Queer Car Crash'
Erik Nordebrink Pihl (He/Him/They /Them) is a Swedish actor with a BA in European Theatre Arts awarded by Rose Bruford. During his studies Erik spent a term studying musical theatre and screen acting at Eolia in Barcelona.
Since graduating Erik have been seen in two Swedish commercials, one for a Swedish supermarket, and another for a Swedish electronic outlet store. They have also been seen performing in King Henry IV part 1 as King Henry with Prague Shakespeare Company, and as Gabriel at Lady Chastity's Reserve ( an immersive escape room experience) in Farringdon.
Mireia Espluga
Performer of 'P.S I Love You'
Mireia (she/her) is a Spanish and Korean actress who moved to London 5 years ago to pursue acting and filmmaking.
She studied at UAL for BA in VFX degree then joined the Bridge TTC to continue her acting path.
Her recent credits include: AMC Networks, Hanton Studios UK, WMA Company and the Criterion Theatre.
Freddie Haberfellner
Performer of 'Pride is a Rainbow'
Freddie (they/ he) was born and raised in Austria where they started performing at the age of seven. In 2015, they moved to London to study Creative Writing & Drama, followed by an MA in Musical Theatre. Since graduating, they’ve been gigging all over London as well as working abroad, most recently as a lead vocalist in a family hotel in Spain. They’re also writing a play called F*ckboy which explores bodily autonomy, gender dysphoria and celebrity crushes through a non-binary lens.
Jimmy Roberts
Performer of 'Wine Drunk'
Jimmy Roberts is a part time Dungeon Master and graduate from the Manchester School of Theatre. Since graduating, Jimmy has been involved in a variety of productions from absurdist comedy shows to Shakespeare classics. Most recently they have finished filming 'Once Upon a Time In Frickley' a wild western comedy series and a horror feature film adaptation of Goldilocks and The Three Bears, both due to be released later this year.
Instagram- @mr_jimmyboy
Spotlight- https://www.spotlight.com/7655-7834-5279
Arno van Zelst
Performer of 'What If That's Not Me?'
Arno van Zelst is an actor originally from the Netherlands, though people often ask him where in America he’s from. His credits range from opera to scare acting, with recent credits including Messengers at Mountview and Early Stages at the Lion & Unicorn. Some might call him a filthy foreigner that’s here to take your acting jobs, but they don’t need to worry, as he’s often out of work. Please hire me. I mean him.
El Simons
Performer of 'If I Ever See Her Again'
Originally from Belgium, El (they/them) studied at the Royal Institute for Theatre, Cinema & Sound in Brussels before moving to London to train in Musical Theatre at Mountview. Since then, they also became a NYT-member and have been trying to navigate what it means to be a non-binary performer within the musical theatre industry. Their credits while in training include Medium Alison in Fun Home and Charity in Sweet Charity.
Sarah Carvalho
Musical Performer
Sarah (they/them) is a queer and non-binary indie-folk artist. They are hugely inspired by artists such as Phoebe Bridgers, Kevin Atwater, and Leith Ross, with their intricate and poetic lyricism as well as delicate vocals. After starting their music career at the end of last year, Sarah has already started producing their music to be released, working alongside other writers in London, and working on their debut EP.
THE DIRECTORS
Izzy Carney
Director of 'If I Ever See Her Again'
Izzy (she/her) is a Queer, Wasian London based director, theatre maker, dramaturg and production manager. She is the co-founder of Happy Accident Theatre alongside Al Underwood since 2020, their debut show Don’t Ask Don’t Get, Baby premiered in London’s The Space and Edinburgh Fringe 2022, with multiple 4 star reviews and an OffComm Commendation.
Izzy has proven expertise in one person shows and devising, creating a safe and creative space for all to flourish. Her degree in English Literature and Theatre has been the backbone of her practice, as much of her work so far has centred around offering textual analysis form structure throughout the devising process. Izzy is open to all themes of work, but is especially interested in new writing. She is especially passionate about LGBTQIA+ focused work, Global Majority voices, comedies, and coming of age stories.
Professional credits include
- Rising (Director, Golden Goose, 2022)
- Don’t Ask Don’t Get, Baby (Director, Greenside @ Edinburgh Fringe, 2022),
- Eating Jeff (Dramaturg, No Table Prods, Camden People’s Theatre, 2021)
- broken english (Assistant Director for Toby Clarke, Bread and Roses, 2021)
- Don’t Ask Don’t Get, Baby (Director, The Space, 2021 - Short Run OffComm Commendation)
- Helium (Director, The Space, 2021)
Anna Wellman
Director of 'Pride is a Rainbow'
Anna (she/they) is a director based in London. She has worked on various directing projects at both the Windsor and Edinburgh Fringe and is the artistic director of Blah Blah Theatre. Anna is so excited to be working with the wonderful company of people involved in To Whom It May Concern!
Isabella Forshaw
Director of 'A Queer Car Crash'
Isabella (she/her) is a theatre director who is passionate about making making queer and female-led work that foregrounds joy in narratives that explore culturally marginalised perspectives. She is particularly interested in the politics of the domestic world, and seeks to engage with contemporary social discourse surrounding femininity, sexuality and mental health. Isabella also enjoys working with new writing in a dramaturgical role.
Credits as a director include: Boys (Assembly Roxy), Catching Up (Edinburgh Fringe), Consent (Bedlam Theatre), Mother and the Monster (Edinburgh Fringe). As assistant director: La Voisin (VAULT Festival).
Isabella is currently working with the Director’s Cut Theatre Company at the Southwark Playhouse to continually develop her practice.
Al Hawkins
Director of 'If I Ever See Her Again'
Al is a Political Theatre student at Goldsmiths, University of London, whose studies focus on applied theatre practice and facilitation. They are a director, writer and performer of new queer theatre and have an interest in performance’s potential for social change, particularly through empowerment and mobilisation. They are also a co-creator of creative arts festivals such as ‘Make Sense’ and ‘Old Grocery Takeover’. Having previously studied Creative Writing and Drama at the University of Winchester, they have a passion for experimenting with the physicalisation of spoken word and exploring the relationship between text and performance to create thoughtful and playful work. They’re very intrigued by the portrayal of queer relationships to and interactions with the body, particularly for gender-queer and gender-transcendent characters, so they are thrilled to be directing the wonderful monologue ‘Wine Drunk’!
Recent directing credits include: ‘Populus’ (a physical theatre piece exploring the poetry of Kae Tempest’s ‘Brand New Ancients’), ‘Operation Prick’ (a new queer fantasy comedy) and ‘Love Bites’ (a lesbian Twilight jukebox musical parody).
Tara Choudhary
Director of 'P.S I Love You'
Tara Choudhary (she/ her) is an actor, director and theatremaker from Mumbai, India. She graduated from King’s College London last year, where she spent the majority of her time procrastinating her Liberal Arts degree to be in the theatre instead. In her third year, as president of her university’s theatre society (King’s Players), she managed, directed and produced several student productions. In 2022, she acted in a devised show called Dreamliner, that had a run at the Act 2 Festival, the White Bear Theatre and finally at the Edinburgh Fringe (time of her life). Since graduating, she has been working towards her career and on developing her skills as a director. She most recently completed an evening course in Directing at the Royal Central School of Speech and Drama, and is currently working as the Assistant Director of Neverland, a show that will run at the Camden Fringe in early August.
Vittorio Pari
Director of 'What If That's Not Me?'
Vittorio Parri (He/Him) is a Swiss Italian theatre Director and Actor. Passionate about human nature, physical theatre, and mythology, he enjoys laying on the couch and watching the world upside-down, always seeking new perspectives to watch the world from. His previous work as a director includes "The Sea Between" (Camden Fringe Festival), "Out Of Love" (Baron's Court Theatre), and "Her Lady Of the Night" (Short Movie).
BEHIND THE SCENES PEOPLE:
Tech:
Lili Fuller
Producers:
Grainne Robson
Cat Addens
Special thanks to Etcetera Theatre and to everyone who has bought tickets to previous To Whom It May Concerns!