Betti Brochure 23-24

ST JAMES’ BOULEVARD, NEWCASTLE, NE1 4HP

Cover Artist & Illustrations by Illustrations by @mckiejonluke Brochure design by @aimeej_design

Hello Access at Alphabetti Theatre

Alphabetti Theatre is committed to creating an environment where everyone can enjoy great art. This includes making our building as accessible as possible, making ticket prices affordable and adapting performances to suit different needs. We’re always looking to improve and encourage feedback, so please do get in touch if you think you can help us improve our access.

Here are some useful logos that you’ll see throughout the brochure:

Pay What You Feel

You pay what you feel you can afford.

Why? We believe everyone should be able to enjoy great art, no matter their financial situation.

You pay at the end of the show, it’s anonymous and you can pay with cash or card.

This system relies on your honesty, so thank you in advance. It is also vital that if you have booked a ticket but then cannot attend the performance that you tell us as soon as possible.

performance

What it means at Alphabetti: A space where there isn’t the pressure to sit still or stay quiet. House lights will be dimmed but kept on.

Music levels will be kept low with no sudden loud noises.

Theatrical lighting will not include flashing lights or sudden special effects.

Suitable for kids and families (and adults!)

Babes in arms welcome

Afternoon performances, usually relaxed

Audio described performance

Alphabetti will provide audio description for certain performances for blind/visually impaired audience members.

Captioned performance

Alphabetti will provide captions for certain performances during the run for D/deaf, hard of hearing audience members.

BSL British sign language

Alphabetti will provide British sign language performances for certain performances during the run.

Thanks for picking up this brochure, and welcome to Alphabetti Theatre. You’re in for a treat!

HOLY GUACAMOLE! WOWZERS TROUSERS! JEEPERS CREEPERS! We’ve made it to ten years old! We are The Stage’s 2023 Fringe Theatre of The Year, to the best of anyone’s knowledge we’re the first theatre outside of London to ever win this award.

This brochure is but a smattering of what we have to offer; over the next 7 months we have a planned 258 performances! We can’t fit it all in here, otherwise we’d be distributing an encyclopaedia. So, visit our website to keep up-to-date. We believe great art should be for everyone, regardless of financial situation. And that’s why – out of our 258 performances – 43% are being charged at Pay What You Feel, with the remaining 57% being ticketed. We have three price categories: General, Concession (Suitable for Over 65, Under 18, Student, Artist, Unemployment Benefit, Disability Benefit. Please note proof of concession eligibility may be asked for upon arrival at the box office. Complimentary tickets are available for PAs supporting those with access requirements, please contact the theatre) and No Questions (If you can’t afford any of the other tickets and cannot attend a pay what you feel performance – no questions will be asked).

As a small-scale arts organisation, we’re used to living on a financial knife edge; however, Covid-19 and now the cost of living crisis has seen the knife getting sharper. It has been a real balancing act and continues to be. So, thank you for giving us your hard-earned money we really appreciate it.

I would like to personally thank every artist, audience member and funder who has supported us. My biggest thanks go to the incredible team that keeps Alphabetti going. From our General Assistants all the way to the Trustees, everyone has gone above and beyond – to not just keep the theatre open – but to continue improving it, by sticking to our aims of entertaining, challenging, and improving lives for our artists, audiences and participants. If you would like to support the work we do then please see the back of this brochure or visit our website.

It’s about to get mighty cold out so we are now open 11am – 11pm Tuesday to Saturday, with free heat, wi-fi, pool table, darts and arts and crafts – with no pressure to spend any money – but if you can that would be lush.

I say this every season, but I think this is one of the best Alphabetti has ever put together! We hope to see you all very soon. You’re in for some real treats. Until then, you stay ‘Betti!

With Love and Thanks

Ali Pritchard Founder & Artistic / Executive Director since 2012.

Alphabetti Theatre, Danielle Burn & Stan Hodgson present a WORLD PREMIERE of RAVEN

by Danielle Burn

Directed by Stan Hodgson

TUES 15 TH AUGUST – SAT 2 ND SEPTEMBER

Time: 1:00pm plus additional 6:00pm Saturday performances

Tickets:

Pay What You Feel (15th – 19th Aug)

£15 – £3 (22nd Aug – 2nd Sep)

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Age Recommendation: 7+

Access performances:

Captioned, Wednesday 23rd August, Audio Described, Wednesday 30th August

All performances will be relaxed.

IT'S SAFE TO SAY YOU’VE NEVER BEEN TO A PLACE LIKE THIS BEFORE…

Raven Varmint has a wild heart. Her wild heart allows her to roar, explore, cry, get twigs stuck in her hair…but it also makes her complicated. And forbidden.

From the moment Raven was born, her family were forced to live as Shadows, never to be seen or heard again. She has never known why, but on the eve of her tenth birthday, strange feelings begin to bubble inside her, and she follows her wild heart away from the safety she has always known.

Join Raven on a journey of bravery and discovery as she begins to understand her feelings, learns how to regulate them, and breaks out of the shadows into the beauty and freedom of her wildhearted self.

A beautiful and mischievous show focused on children’s mental health for children and their adults, filled with live music, puppetry, and a talking gargoyle. Wild hearts encouraged.

Danielle Burn is a writer, theatre maker and facilitator living and working in the North East, predominantly Northumberland. Over the past 10+ years she has built up a portfolio of work with local communities and young people for organisations such as Northern Stage, New Writing North, Live Theatre, Bait (creative people and places) to name a few. In 2017, after working with so many young people who were suffering from low mental health, Danielle's largest writing achievement came from her play Melva (based around children's mental health). After a successful run of sold-out public performances over Christmas 2017 ,the production is now a creative digital tool and platform to support children (and the adults who support them) to understand more about worries and anxieties and learn tools for self-care.

ALPHABETTI SOUP

10 YEARS OF ALPHABETTI

TUES 15 TH AUGUST – SAT 2 ND SEPTEMBER

Time: 7:30pm (Tuesday-Friday) & 8.30pm (Saturday)

Tickets: Pay What You Feel

Age Recommendation: 12+

Access performances: All performances will be relaxed

tickets

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HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO US, LET’S CELEBRATE WITH A BIG BOWL OF ARTISTIC ALPHABETTI SOUP!

Over three weeks we’ll be welcoming back 45 different artists to perform. There’ll be a dash of theatre, a smattering of poetry, a sprinkle of comedy, a glug of music – creating a lip smacking Alphabetti Soup!

Hosted by Alphabetti’s associate artist Wilf Stone, this event will be part cabaret, part storytelling and a mega celebration! Wilf will be telling the story of Alphabetti (written by our artistic director Ali Pritchard), the evening will be peppered with 3 different guest performances each night, all from artists who have performed with us over the past decade.

GUEST ARTISTS

TUES 15TH AUGUST

Kerrin Tatman, Kylie Ann Ford & Audrey Cook

WED 16TH AUGUST

Paige Temperley, Steve Byron & Papi Jeovani

THURS 17TH AUGUST

Mixtape, Zoe Lambert & Hannah Walker

FRI 18TH AUGUST

Rosie Stancliffe, Mack Sproates & Micky Cochrane

SAT 19TH AUGUST

Jane Arnfield, Elijah Young & Kay Greyson

TUES 22ND AUGUST

Jacob Anderton, AJ McKenna & Sam Neale

WED 23RD AUGUST

Ceitidh Mac, Si Beckwith & Lisette Auton

THURS 24TH AUGUST

Matt Miller, Liberty Hodes & Diji Solanke

FRI 25TH AUGUST

Scott Tyrrell, Scott Turnbull & Zoe Murtagh

SAT 26TH AUGUST

Danny5, Sally Collett & Kirsten Luckins

TUES 29TH AUGUST

Sam Honour, Jude Nelson & Georgia May

WED 30TH AUGUST

Rowan McCabe, Christina Dawson & Rebecca Glendenning-Laycock

THURS 31ST AUGUST

Arabella Arnott, Agitated

Hodgeheg & Patti Boo Rae

FRI 1ST SEPTEMBER

Richard Boggie, Tommy Evans & Katie Doherty & Dave Gray

SAT 2ND SEPTEMBER

Dave Raynor, Carl Kennedy & Lauren Pattison

Alphabetti Theatre in association with The Worriers present a WORLD PREMIERE of

MR PUNCH

Written & Performed by Steve Byron & Joana Geronimo Directed by Paula Penman

TUES 12 TH – SAT 30 TH SEPTEMBER

Time: 7:30pm plus 1:00pm Saturday Matinees

Tickets: Pay What You Feel (12th – 16th September)

£15 - £3 (19th – 30th September)

Age Recommendation: 14+

Access performances: Captioned, Wednesday 20th, Audio described, Wednesday 27th, Relaxed, all Saturday Matinees.

A DARK AND PUNCHY COMEDY EXPLORING STUBBORN TRADITION AND THE SHINING LIGHT THAT ACCEPTANCE CAN BRING.

Mr Punch tells the story of Norman, a man with a dependence on drink, a long life of small-mindedness, and now his recently departed father’s life in a suitcase.

Norman blames his father for his actions, situations and what the world might call a ‘wasted life’, but when a faraway family move in next door, this solitary and now lonely figure of fun may have to question his attitudes, beliefs, even his own pity-party.

But there’s no show without Punch…

tickets

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Told against the backdrop of 21st Century Britain, featuring puppetry and extremely dark humour, Mr Punch is brought to you by a creative team with credits from smash-hit Alphabetti co-productions including Sucking Eggs, Bacon Knees and Sausage Fingers, Whale of a Time, No. 9, Pause, Tree, Out-Out!, Floorboards and more.

Praise for previous work:

“ENGAGING, FUNNY AND PROVOCATIVE”.

BRITISH THEATRE GUIDE, 2022, ABOUT OUT-OUT!

WRITTEN & PERFORMED BY JOANA GERONIMO

“A SMART AND SENSITIVE LOOK AT THE AFTERMATH OF AN ASSAULT…”

THE STAGE, 2021, ABOUT NO.9 DIRECTED BY PAULA PENMAN

“THERE’S MORE TO THE PLAY THAN JUST THE COMEDY, OFTEN HILARIOUS THOUGH IT IS. THESE ARE REAL PEOPLE”

PETER LATHAN FOR THE BRITISH THEATRE GUIDE, ABOUT FLOORBOARDS

FLIP!

Written by Racheal Ofori Directed by Emily Aboud

TUES 10 TH – SAT 28 TH OCTOBER 2023

Time: 7:30pm plus 1.00pm Saturday Matinees

Tickets: Pay What You Feel (10th – 14th October)

£15 – £3 (17th – 28th October)

Age Recommendation: 14+

Access performances: Captioned, Wednesday 19th, Audio described, Wednesday 25th, Relaxed, all Saturday Matinees.

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ARE WE AFRAID OF BEING CANCELLED?

WE EAT THAT SH*T FOR BREAKFAST!

Meet Carleen and Crystal. The influencers with cultural commentary that will have you in stitches! Love them or hate them, there’s no stopping their fast-growing online following.

Offline, Carleen has her reservations about their cyber personas, but she idolises Crystal and would follow her anywhere...even to FLIP!, the new social media giant that has everyone hooked – and Carleen and Crystal are no exception; especially when it seems that their videos could make them famous.

Praise for previous work:

“FEARLESS AND UPLIFTING”

THE SCOTSMAN, ON SO MANY REASONS

“EXUBERANT, SCATTERSHOT SOLO SHOW FROM A GENUINE TALENT”

THE GUARDIAN, ON PORTRAIT

Superstardom, followers, fame, influence, money: it’s all just one click away. FLIP! is the answer to everything they’ve ever dreamed of. But is it too good to be true?

Flip! is a powerful new satire from critically-acclaimed writer Racheal Ofori and director Emily Aboud (Evening Standard Future Theatre Award winner 2021) that probes what it means to live freely under the shadow of social media, encroaching on every aspect of our lives. How can we be our authentic selves in a world of algorithms intent on proving just how disposable we all are?

Co-commissioned by Fuel and Soho Theatre, as≈part of Soho Six. Supported by the Cockayne Foundation – Grants for the Arts and The London Community Foundation, Arts Council England, Fenton Arts Trust, the Noel Coward Foundation, and the Leche Trust.

in association with Alphabetti Theatre present the WORLD PREMIERE of

Written by Charlotte Small Directed by Ruth Mary Johnson

TUES 7 TH – SAT 25 TH NOVEMBER 2023

Time: 7:30pm plus 1.00pm Saturday Matinees

Tickets: Pay What You Feel

(7th – 11th November)

£15 – £3 (14th – 25th November)

Age Recommendation: 14+

Access performances:

Captioned, Wednesday 15th, Audio described, Wednesday 22nd, Relaxed, all Saturday Matinees

A DARKLY FUNNY JOURNEY TO THE EXTREME EDGE OF DISILLUSIONMENT.

24-year-old Angela is a Girl Guide leader. She’s got her sensible trousers, her beret at a jaunty angle, and is about to plunge head first into a particularly chaotic chapter in her life.

Right on the cusp of being an actual mentor to sweet, grateful children, Angela’s sense of self is thrown into disarray with a new arrival in her troupe: conceited, almost-12-year-old Nina.

F***ing Nina.

In the face of overwhelming self-confidence, can Angela learn to forge the deeper connections for which she longs, and ultimately realise her ambitions of inspiring the next generation? Even with a pep-talking poultry Simon Cowell, it won’t be easy. With so many bumps in the road, is it even possible to always ‘Be Prepared’?

Intriguing, relatable, and outright comical, ‘Angela’ was originally conceived by Charlotte Small through Alphabetti’s Response Writing programme, in response to ‘Sugar Baby’ by Alan Harris, produced October 2022. This full-length co-production is a development of the original script, written by Charlotte Small and produced by Alphabetti Theatre.

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Alphabetti Theatre in association with Hotspur Primary, West Jesmond Primary & Hawthorne Primary present the WORLD PREMIERE of

PUDDLE

Written & Directed by Ali Pritchard

TUES 5 TH DECEMBER 2023 – SAT 6 TH JANUARY 2024

Times: Varies, please visit website

Tickets: Pay What You Feel (28th November – 9th December)

£15 – £3 (12th December –6th January)

Age Recommendation: 4+

Access performances: Captioned, Saturday 23rd, Audio described, Wednesday 3rd All performances will be Relaxed.

“THE INFLUENCE OF THE YOUNGSTERS IS ENCHANTINGLY EVIDENT THROUGHOUT...

THIS REALLY IS A FAMILY SHOW WITH UNIVERSAL APPEAL.”

SAM WONFOR, CULTURED NORTH EAST, 2022 ABOUT SONG OF THE GOBLINS BY ALI PRITCHARD

Praise for previous work:

“THEY SAT TRANSFIXED FOR ABOUT AN HOUR. AND THERE WAS LAUGHTER TOO, NOT JUST FROM THE KIDS BUT FROM THE ADULTS AS WELL.”

PETER LATHAN, BRITISH THEATRE GUIDE, 2020 ABOUT ROCKET GIRL BY STEVE BYRON DIRECTED BY ALI PRITCHARD

A FANTASTICAL FAMILY ADVENTURE FEATURING LIVE MUSIC, FROM ALPHABETTI’S AWARD-WINNING ARTISTIC DIRECTOR.

“BEAUTIFULLY WRITTEN AND POWERFULLY PERFORMED, THIS ALTERNATIVE CHRISTMAS FABLE IS PACKED WITH HUMOUR AND HEART.”

TRACEY SINCLAIR, THE STAGE, 2019 ABOUT PRESENT BY ALI PRITCHARD

Water is the source of all life, the most important liquid in our ecosystem: plants, insects, and animals (including you!) all need it to survive. But how closely have you been paying attention to it? Have you ever strapped on your magnifying snorkel and plunged your head in a puddle?

We have, and do we have a story to tell you about the world that lives inside!

Puddle has been co-created by an award-winning professional creative team and pupils from Hotspur Primary School, West Jesmond Primary & Hawthorne Primary School. The pupils have co-written the script, co-composed the music, co-designed and co-built the set, and much more!

Alphabetti Theatre in association with gobscure and Christina Berriman Dawson present the WORLD PREMIERE of

HOPE IS A 4 LETTER WORD

Written by gobscure

TWISTED HUMOUR ABOUT FREEING YOURSELF FROM IMPRISONMENT, MIXED WITH EXPLOSIONS OF CHILDLIKE WONDER, BEAUTY AND FREEDOM – A MAGICAL, JOYOUS, AND LIKELY SNOWY CONCOCTION OF LOVE AND RAGE.

Directed

& Performed

by Christina Berriman Dawson & Scott Turnbull

TUES 20 TH FEBRUARY – SAT 9 TH MARCH

Times: 7:30pm plus 1.00pm Saturday Matinees

Tickets: Pay What You Feel (20th – 24th February)

£15 – £3 (27th February –9th March)

Age Recommendation: 16+

Access performances:

Captioned, Wednesday 28th, Audio described, Wednesday 6th, Relaxed, all Saturday Matinees

This is a unique production from an incredible award-winning creative team, two monologues intertwined investigating similar themes from opposite entities.

“I lost my way. Twelve years underground, isolation, different names, a lost self. I had arrived at a deeply wrong way of responding to social problems. Prison lies at the end of a road taken... now more than twenty years in prison, I share with other women daily issues of parenting, education, and health. I have turned sixty. I think about how do we protect our planet?” Words from Kathy Boudin, a convicted terrorist who was a founding member of the US militant Weather Underground organisation, which engaged in bombings of government buildings to express opposition to U.S. foreign policy and racism. The first piece builds on these words performed by Christina Berriman Dawson.

The second takes place following being victim of two serious crimes and given no support, our character ends in psych-ICU-prison and hears these words from Kathy Boudin. An unbelievable and true tale full of ridiculous and cruel stupidities. Starting in a psych-ICU-prison and ending in a river with the water cooling and drowning the insane narrative; liberating our character as a kingfisher flies past.

Praise for previous work:

“INTELLIGENT, UNSETTLING & ENTERTAINING IN EQUAL MEASURE.”

DISABILITY ARTS ONLINE, ABOUT GOBSCURE

“GOBSCURE WEAVES THE PERSONAL AND THE POLITICAL, THE WITTY AND THE RAGING INTO THE MOST FASCINATING MAP OF HOW ON EARTH WE GOT HERE. A MUST WATCH” SLUNGLOW, ABOUT GOBSCURE

Support Us

Like what we do? Put your money where your mouth is! If you can. If you can’t, please keep shouting about us.

Alphabetti Theatre is an award-winning independent 80 seat theatre in Newcastle upon Tyne. We believe great art should be for everyone, regardless of financial situation. We are a space to experiment, evolve and discover excellence for artist, audience and participant. Annually we average 300 performances, supporting 1,250 artists and welcoming 12,000 audience members.

We were built out of necessity by artists and the local community. We need your support to continue to develop the North East's performing arts ecology and to better the lives of the people we come into contact with.

Your monthly donation will keep the doors open and the lights on, allowing us to continue the work we do.

Our regular giving scheme is split into 3 tiers:

ALPHABUDDY: £7 per month

ALPHABESTIE: £25 per month

Regular Giving Benefits

Handwritten thank you letter from our Artistic/Executive Director when you first sign up

Quarterly exclusive emails

An invite to our Annual General Meeting

A drinks discount card (10% off our bar at all times*) *

Your name listed on the website

Exclusive seasonal pin badges, themed around our programme

An Alphabetti branded tote bag

Your own sponsored seat with a plaque on it

ALPHABOSS: £50 per month

Opening Hours: Tuesdays – Fridays 11am – 10pm Saturdays 11am – 11pm 0191 261 9125 enquiries@alphabettitheatre.co.uk alphabettitheatre.co.uk

DONATE VIA TEXT

To donate £10: Text 10BETTI to 70470 (or 10BETTINOINFO to opt out of marketing)

To donate £20: Text 20BETTI to 70470 (or 20BETTINOINFO to opt out of marketing) DONATE

Registered Charity: 1166449

Alphabuddy Alphabestie Alphaboss