We chatted to the playwright about This Little Earth playing at the Arcola Theatre until the 15th November.
Hi Jessica, how does it feel to see ‘This Little Earth’ taking to the stage? Hello! It’s been a brilliant experience. We have a fantastic team bringing it to life – with two
phenomenal actors Fanta Barrie and Ross O’Donnellan playing Honey and Christopher.
When I was writing the script, there was so much about the setting in Antarctica that I
couldn’t imagine on stage. Director Imy Wyatt Corner and the design team have created a really beautiful production, which takes you on an epic journey to Antarctica with Honey and Christopher.
Can you tell us a bit about what we can expect from the play? It’s an unconventional love story as well as a gripping tale of adventure – but I would also say, expect the unexpected. It is a play that questions the nature of truth in our post-truth
age, which aims to surprise and entertain. And there’s a penguin…
How did the idea for the play come about? I first started thinking about the play around the time of Covid and of Trump’s first election. The world felt scary and increasingly polarised, and I was looking for an extreme belief to write about, which wouldn’t alienate members of the audience – so I settled on Flat Earth.
There’s something completely absurd about believing a theory that has been disproved for thousands of years. But as a writer I’m always interested to ask the question: why is this belief now on the rise? And what are the dangers of people believing it?
How has it been seeing the show develop? I’ve been really involved in the process – when you’re working at the scale we are, there is a lot of multi-jobbing and myself, Imy and our brilliant producers have worked really closely together to make it happen. What has been particularly satisfying is handing it over to Imy and the actors in the last few weeks – to see the play, that has been in my head for so long, existing outside of me and sustained by their brilliant work and performances.
How does it feel that ‘This Little Earth’ is going to be performed at the Arcola
Theatre? It actually started life as a short play which was performed at the Arcola, so there is a really nice circularity to it getting its premiere at the theatre – it feels like it’s coming home. Arcola Studio 2 is also one of my favourite studio spaces in London. I have seen a lot of very exciting new work by debut playwrights, so I feel very proud to be in their company!
What is next in store for you? I’m working on a few TV projects which are currently in development and also a novel, which I really need to get back to now that This Little Earth is up and running.
By Emma Clarendon
To book tickets visit: https://www.arcolatheatre.com/event/thislittleearth/