Lancaster University alumni bring award-winning ‘anti-panto’ to city theatre

New Lancaster-based theatre company Pint Glass Theatre are bringing their slap-dash original musical, described as ‘drag Into The Woods’, to The Dukes this October.

The show, 'Nowhere', follows a washed-up pantomime dame named Denise who chokes on stage and is transported to a topsy turvy world. On a mission to get back home and save her career, Denise and her newly-formed crew of ragtag rejects must uncover the evil force plaguing this world.

Described by the group as an ‘anti-panto’ due to its messing with pantomime tropes, the show has all original music, played live on stage.

'Nowhere' was originally created on Lancaster University’s theatre course three years ago.

“After uni there was a bit of a ‘what now’ moment - there weren’t any opportunities locally to perform," said Archie Verhoest, part of that original team and a founder of Pint Glass Theatre.

"So, we started running scratch nights at The Gregson Centre. Being surrounded by so many creative people was incredibly inspiring, and it really put a fire in me to take the initiative and get my work out there.”

On a whim, Archie submitted 'Nowhere' to NSDF in Leicester - a festival for young theatre makers. The show was unexpectedly accepted, and Archie had to rope in some friends to rework and improve the show in just six weeks and with no budget.

Despite the time crunch, 'Nowhere' received rave reviews, earning the Buzz Goodbody Directors Award, and a £1000 grant from NSDF.

Archie, who also wrote the music for 'Nowhere', saw this as a huge motivator to take the show forward.

“For me, this is proof that there’s no use in talking about doing things," he said.

"If you want to create and share what you create with people, you just have to do it - but talking yourself into that decision is the hardest part.”

Off the back of this, the show is returning to Lancaster this autumn, before heading to Liverpool and Salford.

Pint Glass Theatre consists of Archie and fellow Lancaster University Alumni Corrin Benham, Henry Blackburn, and Catherine Brabin.

All four perform in the show, sharing Nowhere’s myriad characters - from a ballerina with a broken leg, to a vaudeville cow - between themselves.

They describe the Pint Glass Theatre style as "bold, bright and - before all else - fun".

“There’s a lot of doom and gloom around, and lots of creative people quite rightly want to create work that reflects and responds to that," said Archie.

"But we want to create work that is a remedy to the gloom. Nowhere is the story of hitting rock bottom and clawing your way back. It’s unashamedly silly - and creating that sort of work, providing an hour of respite from everything else, feels incredibly important right now.”

You can see Nowhere at the Dukes Theatre, Lancaster on Saturday October 18, before it barrels across the north west to Arts Bar Liverpool on November 7 and The Kings Arms Salford on November 28.

You can get tickets for the Lancaster show HERE.