Gaslight Play Cast Programme Pembroke New Cellars

SHOW PROGRAMME - THE TAB

- MARK ASPEN REVIEWS

AN OFF-WEST END AWARD NOMINATED PLAY

BY SHAIRA BERG

7TH - 11TH OF NOVEMBER PEMBROKE NEW CELLARS

GASLIGHT BY SHAIRA BERG

ABOUT THE SHOW What would happen if we lived in a world where life-threatening physical wounds were treated the same as psychological trauma?

'Gaslight' is a powerful play exploring the impact of sexual assault on victims and society’s dismissive attitudes towards them. Written, produced and performed by Shaira Berg, a PhD in Psychology student at Trinity College, University of Cambridge, ‘Gaslight’ received an Off-West End Award nomination for its’ first run at Etcetera Theatre. The play has been selected to return for a run at prestigious venue Pembroke New Cellars at the University of Cambridge (notable alumni include Tom Hiddleston and Emma Corrin).

The play follows Scarlet, a university student in a seemingly loving relationship, who wakes up with a mysterious wound in the centre of her chest after a traumatic incident.

The play is set in a world where life-threatening injuries are treated in the same manner as mental health difficulties. As the bloodstain on her chest expands, her life crumbles around her. She tries to get help and is met with disbelief, betrayal and apathy, highlighting society’s dismissive attitudes towards survivors of sexual assault.

With over one in six women experiencing sexual assault in their lifetimes, the themes explored in ‘Gaslight’ are more relevant than ever.

PREVIOUS REVIEWS ‘The young cast work well on stage together – George Prentice (Tate) effectively conveys the misogynistic villain well, and Shaira Berg (Scarlet) cleverly showcases the confusion, distress and struggle of experiencing sexual assault within her character.’ - Rated Reviewed ‘Berg’s portrayal of Scarlet purposefully captures the emotion of the character and the anguish she is feeling. She manages to channel not only the pain but also the anger of each situation and you can clearly see the deterioration of Scarlet’s well-being as the play moves forward.’ - London Pub Theatres ‘Sarah Walton-Smith is clearly an extremely talented actress, and to an extent formed the core of the play, from which all key conversations extended.’ - The Tab Yet even with such a brilliant script, where Berg really shone was her acting. Her brilliant depiction of a troubled university student reminded me of many characters in my life. Her portrayal of the pain of suffering an assault, combined with the pain of not only being ignored, but actually betrayed by her friends, hurt me deeply just watching.’ - The Tab 'Shaira Berg (Scarlet) cleverly showcases the confusion, distress and struggle of experiencing sexual assault within her character.' - Rated Reviewed ‘Simon, played by Misha Koshutsky… formed the backbone of the play….’ - The Tab

CAST

SCARLET - SHAIRA BERG; ANGELA - SARAH WALTON-SMITH; TATE - RYAN KEYS; SIMON - MISHA KOSHUTSKYY; KATIE - LARA IBRAHIM; DR. CAMERON - MARK HAMPTON (LEFT TO RIGHT FROM TOP)

PLAYING 'SCARLET'

SHAIRA BERG Height 5' 4'' / 163 cm Hair Colour Brown Eye Colour Green Nationality British/German/ Swiss Native Accent RP

SHAIRABERG@GMAIL.COM 07481932123

RECENT PREVIOUS PRODUCTIONS Stage: Scarlet (Lead) - Gaslight - Etcetera Theatre - Arianna Muñoz Véronique Houllié (Lead) - God of Carnage - The Dryden Society Sophie Rayner, Alex Velody; Joanie (Lead) - The Affair - The Marlowe Society HATCH/ADC Theatre - Qawiiah Bisiriyu; A (Lead) - Underwater Pebbles - The Marlowe Society HATCH/ADC Theatre - Julia Jin Wang; Sophie (Lead) - The Pineapple (Monologue) - The Marlowe Society Cassia Thakkar, Jenny Cyffin-Jones; Writer/Performer - Second Generation: The Return of the Lemon and Herb - ADC Theatre - Diya Shah; Tiffany - Queer Street - ADC Theatre/Corpus Playroom - Ajay Gill; Messenger/Watchman/Ensemble - Much Ado About Nothing - ADC Theatre/The Marlowe Society - Hannah Samuel-Ogbu; Mother/Ensemble - Phaedra’s Love - Pembroke Players/Pembroke New Cellars - Ralph Jeffreys; Manager/Interviewer/Ensemble - Femme Fatale - Pembroke Players/Pembroke New Cellars - Shreya Ganesh Kumar; Vanda Jordan (Lead) - Fragments - The Lowry Theatre - Sue Jenkins Screen: Witness - The Feed - Amazon Studios - Carl Tibbetts; Elisha (Lead) - More Canals Than Venice - Last Light Productions James Taylor; Dancer - BBC Sport Relief - BBC Studios - Christopher Poole, Adam Finch, Kieron Schiff

SPOTLIGHT: WWW.SPOTLIGHT.COM/5099-7861-3395

ABOUT

Shaira Yasmin Berg is a British actress and writer. She is of Indian and European descent and has been cast in several film and television productions throughout her life. Born in England, she grew up between Switzerland and the United Kingdom. Berg made her professional writing debut in 2018 when she co-wrote and starred in the award-nominated film American Fantasy. Alongside acting and writing, she studied at The University of Manchester where she graduated with a bachelor's degree in Psychology (20172020) and is studying for a PhD in Psychology at the University of Cambridge, Trinity College (2021-). Shaira recently made her OffWest End writing and acting debut with her play 'Gaslight' which has been nominated for an Off-West End Award (Offies Awards).

SPECIAL SKILLS

Accents:

English-Standard, London, Midlands-East, RP, American-Standard, Leeds, Manchester, German (Language), Swiss-German, English

Music/Dance:

Ballet, Cheerleading

Other Skills:

Horse-riding, Running, Skiing, Swimming, Stand-Up Comedy, Writing, Producing

PLAYING 'TATE'

RYAN KEYS Height 6' 0'' / 182 cm Hair Colour Brown Eye Colour Blue Nationality British/Irish Native Accent RP

RYANKEYS02@YAHOO.COM 07908106592

RECENT PREVIOUS PRODUCTIONS Stage: Danny M1 - The Antipodes - Corpus Playroom - Viv Wang Richard - Playing Pretend - Corpus Playroom - Jake Fenton Inspector Colquhoun - Agatha Christie’s The Hollow - ADC Theatre - Izzy Colman, Pauline Eller Screen: Jamie - Silence in the Library - Isaac Laing, Charlie Butler

ABOUT

Originally from South-East London, Ryan is of British and Irish descent. He is currently in his fourth year of study at the University of Cambridge, following on from his English BA with a Master’s degree specialising in contemporary Irish theatre and film. During his time at Cambridge, Ryan has been involved in several productions at the Corpus Playroom and the ADC Theatre, as well a student-produced short film.

He is very excited to continue his acting career this year – in Cambridge and beyond.

SPECIAL SKILLS

Accents:

English-Standard, London, Midlands-West, RP, Heightened RP, American-Standard, Irish, Irish-Northern

Music/Dance:

Guitar, Piano, Singing (General)

Other Skills:

Running, Swimming, Football, Tennis, Bartender, Writing, Drawing, Spoken-Word Poetry

PLAYING 'ANGELA'

SARAH WALTON-SMITH Height 5' 8'' / 172 cm Hair Colour Brown Eye Colour Brown Nationality British Native Accent Cheshire, RP

SARAHMAYWALTONSMITH@GMAIL.COM 07752201679

RECENT PREVIOUS PRODUCTIONS Stage: Angela - Gaslight - Etcetera Theatre - Arianna Muñoz Writer/Performer - fruit(ful) - FUSEBOX - Grace Beckett Writer/Performer - fruit(ful) - The Corpus Playroom Grace Beckett Lancaster/Abbot - Edward II - Christ's College - Dan Pereira Mum - LOUD - Cambridge Creatives/The Corpus Playroom - Emma Robinson Linda/Mrs Basger/Mrs Rassek/Pupil - Life Before The Line - The Corpus Playroom - Amy Lever, Ben Phillips Jenny - The Shadows - WriteOn/Corpus Playroom Richard McNally Fate - Attempts On Her Life - The Corpus Playroom Jasmine Charles, Emma Robinson

ABOUT Sarah has just graduated from a History degree at the University of Cambridge, where she acted in, produced and wrote for multiple plays both inside and out of the student community. She is now training at the Manchester School of Acting under Mark Hudson. Sarah is so proud to see Gaslight receive its Off-West End award nomination, and is very excited to be reprising her role as Angela.

SPECIAL SKILLS Accents:

London, American - Standard, Northern, Manchester

Music/Dance:

Singing (Musical Theatre, General), Cheerleading, Modern/Lyrical Dance, Tap Dance, Irish Dance, Commercial Dance, Piano

Other Skills:

Writing (Stage, Fiction, Non-Fiction), Producing, Horse-Riding, Scuba Diving, Weightlifting, Running, Swimming, Climbing

PLAYING 'SIMON'

MISHA KOSHUTSKYY Height 6' 2'' / 188 cm Hair Colour Black Eye Colour Hazel Nationality British/Ukrainian Native Accent RP, London, Ukrainian

MISHA.KOSHUTSKIY@GMAIL.COM 07703620332

RECENT PREVIOUS PRODUCTIONS Stage: Simon - Gaslight - Etcetera Theatre Arianna Muñoz Aegisthus - Electra - ADC Theatre - Natina Rose Leonard Vole - A Witness for the Prosecution - Selwyn Chapel - Sam Bell

ABOUT Misha is a 3rd year engineering student at the University of Cambridge. Prior to this, he had performed with various youth theatre groups in London and co-facilitated creative workshops for children and seniors in the community. Misha made his Camden Fringe stage debut with 'Gaslight' and will be reprising his role as Simon.

SPECIAL SKILLS

Accents:

RP, London, Ukrainian

Music/Dance:

Guitar (Beginner), Piano (Beginner), Contemporary Dance

Other Skills:

Writing

PLAYING 'KATIE'

LARA IBRAHIM Height 5' 5'' / 165 cm Hair Colour Brown Eye Colour Brown Nationality British/ Turkish Native Accent RP

LARAIBRAHIM1@YAHOO.COM

RECENT PREVIOUS PRODUCTIONS Stage: Karina - #WomenSupportingWomen Pembroke New Cellars - Isabella Ren Writer/ Performer - fruit(ful) - FUSEBOX Grace Beckett Writer/Performer - fruit(ful) - The Corpus Playroom - Grace Beckett

ABOUT Lara is a final year law student at the University of Cambridge. Prior to this, she has been active in Cambridge Theatre and is currently working with Magdalene Dramatic Society. She made her writing debut in 2022 with fruit(ful) at Corpus Playroom and is an editor for Notes literary magazine. She is thrilled to be playing Katie in Shaira Berg's Gaslight.

SPECIAL SKILLS

Accents:

RP, General American, Southern American

Music/Dance:

Guitar

Other Skills:

Writing (Poetry, Script), Editing, Mock Trial

PLAYING 'DR. CAMERON'

MARK HAMPTON Height 5' 11'' / 180 cm Hair Colour Brown Eye Colour Brown Nationality British/New Zealand

Native Accent RP

SPOTLIGHT: WWW.SPOTLIGHT.COM/3618-1270-3728

RECENT PREVIOUS PRODUCTIONS Screen: CIA Briefer - Heads of State - Amazon Studios Ilya Naishuller Danny - Unlicensed - Unlicensed Film Ltd - Mark Hampton Agent Lamb - One More Shot - Signature Entertainment - James Nunn Prime Minister David Addams - Control Cupsogue Pictures Ltd - Gene Fallaize Raptor Pilot - Lift - Skyscraper Productions Ltd F. Gary Gray Interviewee - Ghost S5 - BBC Simon Hynd Dr. Eversley - Count Abdulla - Fudge Park for ITVX - Asim Abbasi Thames Barrier Head Technician - Liaison Brussels Productions Ltd - Stephen Hopkins

ABOUT

Mark Hampton, is a New Zealand-born actor and filmmaker. His career spans TV series like Comin' Atcha! (1999) and film roles in Lara Croft Tomb Raider: The Cradle of Life (2003) and World War Z (2013). As a filmmaker, he directed Top Gun in 60 Seconds (2010) and the acclaimed Town vs. Gown (2015). In 2020, he wrote, directed, and starred in Acceptance, earning Best Actor awards. Upcoming projects include Liaison (2023) and playing the British Prime Minister in Control (2023).

SPECIAL SKILLS

Accents:

American-Standard, Australian, London, New Zealand, RP, ScottishStandard

Music/Dance:

Guitar, Piano, Pop Singing

Other Skills:

Accountant (Chartered), Bartender, Director, Project Manager (experienced), Writer, Boxing, Running, Squash, Tae Kwon Do, Weight Training, APC Basic Gladius, APC Basic Staff