Uncle Glen’s Menagerie takes place this Sunday at Arcola Theatre’s main stage – featuring and hosted by Funny Woman Awards finalist and acclaimed character comedian, actor and improviser, Alison Thea-Skot.
The show revolves around a simple premise: one performer in every scene has no knowledge of what they are stepping into, and must perform – alongside actors with scripts – as if they do. This generates funny, chaotic and wildly new versions of scenes that will never be seen again.
Uncle Glen’s has played regularly in London, and as a sell-out show at the Underbelly in Edinburgh, and has featured guest actors from theatre (The National Theatre, Donmar Warehouse, RSC, Out of Joint, Cheek by Jowl), West End shows (The Ferryman, 1984, The Donmar Shakespeare Trilogy, Austentatious) and TV hits (Game of Thrones, Dr Who, W1A, The Night Manager, Black Mirror, Downton Abbey, Humans). It sees iconic and obscure scenes transformed… Thea-Skot – who is part of the cast of improvisers – recently performed a tense (and hilarious) scene about two aristocratic Scottish colleagues in what would have otherwise been a love scene between John and Alma from Tennessee Williams’ Summer and Smoke. Later, the Coen Brothers’ spine-chilling coin-toss scene in No Country for Old Men was quickly reframed as a (no less intense) funny scene between a reunited teacher and her pupil in Illinois.
The show allows performers to step into scenes – serious, farcical, funny, tragic- fuelled by the language of some of the greatest contemporary playwrights and screenwriters, and to throw their own comedic spin onto it – keeping even the actor with the script on their feet. Every role and opportunity is up for grabs, within any scene or genre.
Sunday’s show will be a special one-off at the Arcola Theatre and sees comedians and improvisers alongside a host of acting talent from Guardians of the Galaxy, Assassins Creed, Black Mirror, Call the Midwife and series regulars from W1A, The Office, Elementary, Jamestown and The Crown.
We would love to hear from Funny Women performers and writers for future shows and are offering a special discount of 30% off for those booking for this show. For more information, and to get in contact here!
To book tickets for Sunday 13th using the discount code MENAGERIE7 here!
