The Turbine Theatre in Battersea will present two musicals during the summer of 2023, beginning with Halls, a new piece directed by Andy Fickman (Heathers) and written by Jennifer Harrison and George Stroud, running from 7-30 July.
Having previously been performed at MTFest 2022 in workshop form, this summer will see the production in the next stage of its development.
The musical is centred around eight first-year, university students, from different backgrounds and upbringings, who are brought together when they’re all allocated the same flat in Halls of Residence, Flat 15B.
The show follows the characters over the course of the academic year, exploring the relationships they form, as they learn to live together whilst experiencing student life.
Freshers week, exam stress, the cost of student living, and romance, are all key themes in this coming-of age-story. Laugh, and cry, as the flatmates find their feet in a world where their decisions are now entirely their own. The upbeat, contemporary, pop-rock soundtrack mirrors the sense of nostalgia that the show evokes.
Jennifer Harrison (lyrics and book) is a writer and lyricist who is working in both the creative and corporate worlds. She has written lyrics for adverts, production music and artists, covering a range of genres including children’s TV, hip-hop and more traditional styles.
With George Stroud, Harrison co-owns Phoenix Youth Productions Ltd, a theatre school based in Guildford boasting over 80 students from ages 7-19.
George Stroud (music and book) has most recently worked on Disney’s Live Action remake of The Little Mermaid as additional orchestrator. At the start of 2022 he worked on Netflix’s We Lost Our Human, as programmer, orchestrator and assistant composer.
Ten years after the award-winning TV show, Breaking Bad, hit our screens comes Faking Bad – The Unauthorised Parody Methsical. Written by Rob Gathercole and directed by Andrew Beckett, the show arrives at the Turbine Theatre stage from 17 August-23 September 2023.
Breaking Bad is widely considered one of the best TV shows of the 21st century. Similarly this very unauthorised tribute to it, Faking Bad is (predicted) to be ‘one of the most stupid and best pieces of musical theatre to ever grace a stage’.
The production will feature actor-musicians who, against the backdrop of an old industrial tunnel, condense the epic story of a lost chemistry teacher into a one act musical comedy.
This all-singing, all-dancing methsical contains a ridiculous array of musical styles and theatrical tropes to speed through 62 hours of television in under 90 minutes.
Rob Gathercole is an actor, musician, composer and writer. His writing credits include the previous iteration of Faking Bad, Say My Name! – The Unauthorised Parody Musical, which is available to listen to on Spotify and all other streaming platforms. He also composes music for family musicals with Immersion Theatre.
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