Professional

Charlotte Cromie has written a new play, and I met up with her and the cast for a photoshoot at the Old Divinity School that has recently been renovated by St John’s College.

Half past five on a Friday evening, and a school’s electronic door-locking system shuts down for the weekend… with four teachers still in the staff room.
Claustrophobia sets in. Tea turns into alcohol. Ties, jackets and the ceremonies of the school day are shed, giving way to messy power plays, grievances and the desire to behave badly. But they are still haunted by the ultimate threat in their job that keeps their behaviour in check. And it isn’t the headmaster.

This brand new comic drama asks where the boundaries of professionalism lie, and how much pressure it takes to reveal the petty, paranoid, impulsive teenagers inside even the most polished individuals.

‘I have practically run the English department for the last three years, and you have bought me a bottle of wine with a screw cap.’

(Text from Camdram)

Grainne Dromgoole, Fran Davis, Eduardo Strike and Ed Paget. What do you do when you are locked into a room? Luckily they had lots of chalk and a bottle of wine. ‘Don, love, you can relax a little.’
Fran Davis and Eduardo Strike. ‘Right – that’s Miss gone. Let’s get the new boy’s lunch money.’
Fran Davis and Eduardo Strike. ‘It’s funny. As soon as she goes out, you’re back to your normal self.’
Ed Paget. ‘I seriously thought, “What would she do if a teacher stopped being a teacher and broke down in tears?”‘
Fran Davis and Eduardo Strike. ‘It’s a quarter to six. It’s a very responsible time to start drinking.’
Fran Davis. ‘You want to be a teacher and a human but it’s tricky being both.’
Grainne Dromgoole and Eduardo Strike. ‘Over years of hearing Robin say borderline-unacceptable things, I’ve built up some resistance.’
Eduardo Strike, Fran Davis and Grainne Dromgoole. ‘Not only are we backstage, we’re backstage when the audience has gone.’
Grainne Dromgoole and Fran Davis. ‘We have an entire weekend of games ahead of us.’
Black board art.
Fran Davis and Eduardo Strike
Charlotte wanted some flying papers, and on the first try one of the papers refused to fall to the floor and instead stuck under the blackboard in some magical way.
Eduardo Strike

For more theatre photos, see the theatre category on the blog.

Cast
Hattie – Grainne Dromgoole
Robin – Eduardo Strike
Mel – Fran Davis
Don – Ed Paget

Production Team
Producer – Gaia Fay Lambert
Writer / Director – Charlotte Cromie
Stage Manager – Izzy Herschmann
Associate Director – Russell Fancourt
Technical Director – Laura Wells
Publicity Designer – Ruby Douglass
Photographer – Johannes Hjorth
Carpenter – Anastasia Bruce-Jones
Assistant Stage Manager – Michaela Higham

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