THE LAST CAN
June 27, 2023
"When the opportunity arose to direct a piece for a student performance, I wanted to something a little different. I like interesting spaces and a more immersive style. Fortunately, the school being as historic as it is, has a plethora of spaces to use.
So, the play: The Last Can, which is part of a bigger play about a couple who meet and end up in an air raid shelter during a nuclear war. The Last Can picks up there when they run out of food after a year in the shelter.
I happened upon the play whilst looking for a short piece to perform. I decided on showing the same play but performed in multiple different ways. I had looked at doing very different versions to make it more immersive but found that they were not going to be practicably possible this time around (something for next time!).
Once I had the play, I needed to find the space. Who better to talk to than resident school historian, Ady Marsham. What he doesn’t know about the school and its history, isn’t worth knowing. That’s when he took me to the old Jail cell beneath Bishops Parlour. The space was perfect; large enough to put on the performance and a great staircase for the performers to ascend at the climatic end of the play.
We auditioned for three sets of casts, one for each version; casting Beatrice Lockhart-Smith and Philippa White for an up and down friendship story; William Clarke, who performed solo, accompanied only by a deflated football with a face drawn on it, showing the story from a singular, solitary confined perspective.
These were our two performances fantastically performed live, each performance lasting around 15 minutes each. Olivia Massey and Darcy Wilkins will be performing our third and final performance which will be filmed!
With the space dressed to replicate a lived-in bunker, warm soft lighting and ambient music coupled with the fantastic performances by our cast.
Hopefully, our audiences felt suitably immersed in the situation!"







