it was the columns I really loved. My editor described my columns as comedic confessional and I thought I could bring that element into something people would want to not only read, but see brought to life. A collections of confessions on stage! Is ‘Would Like To Meet’ the first play you have written? Hilary has written plays before and collaborated with other writers. Years ago I wrote the first draft of a play called SOAP but this is my first proper play I’ve really put effort into and the first time I have written with someone else. It’s been good to have someone to bounce ideas off and we have both brought our own set of skills to the table. How did you come up with the idea for ‘Would Like To Meet? We wanted to write something that would resonate with a wide range of ages using a wide range of characters. I had just been in a play called Love, Loss and What I Wore by the Ephron sisters, which has a small cast of women, talking about items of clothing and the memories associated with them. It is a simple but effective premise and I thought we could do something similar but with internet dating. I hope we have captured the
zeitgeist and if we are anywhere near as funny as the Ephron sisters, we’ll be doing OK! Can you relate to any of the characters in the play? Absolutely. I think the audience will be able to find many of the characters relatable. We touch on what it’s like to be an older person looking for love online, for someone who has been married a long time and the challenges of keeping that relationship fresh and exciting. We talk about the different dating apps, like Tinder and Grindr, and the casual relationship reputation that goes with them. Plus we know many of the people who have given us their stories so we can definitely relate to them. We’ve mixed things up a bit too, some characters are an amalgamation of lots of different people. Have you got any upcoming events locally? We will be involved in the Brighton Fringe in May with a one act version of ‘Would Like To Meet’. We see this play as an organic entity which is constantly changing and adapting, depending on the stories we hear or receive. We will be encouraging audience members at the Rialto to leave their own dating stories
on our website www.christineandhilary. wix.com/wouldliketomeet so people will need to look out for our lips logo at the festival and come and see if their stories made the cut. What do you hope the future brings? For Would Like To Meet? A large tour of regional theatres followed by a stint in the West End of course! That’s how Hilary and I met and how it all started... Get tickets for the Brighton Festival 2016 here: www.brightonfestival.org Latest Music Bar from 22nd-25th May @ 7.30pm in the Fringe Festival
For more information contact: Christine Kempell christine.kempell@gmail.com Tel: 077 88 66 1876 Hilary Handel handel853@btinternet.com Tel: 07939 071039 Social media pages: L /WouldLike2Meet f /Would Like To Meet
Images from the ‘Would Like To Meet’ performance at Rialto Theatre in Brighton in February Taken by Summer Dean