Casting Announced for Greyhounds A/W 2019 Tour

Time & Again are incredibly excited to welcome five new company members! They’ll be joining us in heading back to the 1940s and performing in Greyhounds for our Autumn/Winter 2019 tour!

Greyhounds will be coming to Sheffield 9th – 12th October and Cambridge 9th & 16th November, with more dates to be added soon. You can book tickets here and here!

From left:
Samantha Vaughan – Ruby Winters
Katherine Reynolds  – Katherine Winters
Adam Martin-Brooks – Will Croft
Kendal Boardman – Nancy Wilde
Ben Hynes – Edward Holmes

We’re really excited to welcome to our new members to the company and to see them bring this story to life once again for brand new audiences.

Written by Laura Crow, Greyhounds entwines Shakespeare’s famous story of ‘warlike Harry’ with the everyday trials and tribulations of small village life during World War Two. Whilst the war rages above them, the residents of Shuttlefield village struggle to stage a production of Henry V to raise money for their local Spitfire fund.

The original cast, from the Edinburgh Festival Fringe 2018 run of Greyhounds, will also be performing for two nights of the tour.


From left:
Catherine Cowdrey – Ruby Winters
Laura Crow – Katherine Winters
Jacob Taylor – Will Croft
Fiona Primrose – Nancy Wilde
Tim Cooper – Edward Holmes

Greyhounds AW 2019 Touring Poster

Letters from the Home Front – Edinburgh Diary Day 11

Saturday 11th August 2018

Amazingly, given the fact that half the Greyhounds stayed up partying and singing Hey Mr Miller in the local takeaway until the small hours the night before, we actually managed to get out of bed on Saturday morning and have a somewhat productive day. I even met a friend for some much needed coffee and managed to have a full conversation with her like a functioning human being in what was a truly Oscar worthy performance. In other award worthy performances, apparently Catherine did a stunning rendition of Cool and the Gang’s ‘Celebrate’ in the shower, but sadly I was either out or dead to the world so missed it. Here’s hoping that there will be a reprise!

Most of the rest of our day was pretty much par for the course – flyering, flyering, eating, and more flyering. We managed to get another slot on the stage after a minor drama in which it appeared that a fire engine was going to attempt to drive up the Royal Mile – you know, that completely deserted and never at all busy road that doesn’t have 3 street stages on it. Once the stage had been moved a whole foot to the right (presumably to try and accommodate this fire engine that must have been lost), we treated the Mile to some jolly 40s tunes whilst Jac did a sterling job of rallying the crowds and throwing a few era-appropriate shapes with Tim and some eager spectators.

We didn’t have long to revel in the swing-dance spirit, as Jac, Paul, Laura and Tim headed off to catch a performance of the Dad’s Army Radio Show, accompanied by a spot of afternoon tea. Laura was very cynical going in as she’s a lifelong fan of the TV show. However, they perfectly captured the essence of the show from the incidental music used during the scene changes to the delivery of over 15 different characters between two actors (including the famous seven). David Benson’s Sergeant Wilson and Jack Lane’s Private Pike were absolutely spot on. The team were somewhat perturbed by the lack of cake but the scones were absolutely delightful.

cakes

Anthony’s last Edinburgh Fringe performance with us went down a treat with our lovely audience. We’re very grateful that he was able to step in and do such a cracking job with the part, even after we nearly broke him the night before by making him come to the Hive (til 5!) with us.

A few well-earned drinks in the bar later, and it was home time for some of us early birds (me, who’d been a little bit too much of a night owl the night before…). However, the Space launch party beckoned for those feeling rather more lively amongst us. Space lanyards proudly on display, the rest of team Greyhounds went to dance the night away to the marvellous live band and celebrated what has so far been a truly spiffing Fringe experience.

Until next time,

Fiona

(Nancy Wilde – Greyhounds)

 

Letters from the Home Front – Edinburgh Diary Day 10

Friday 10th August 2018

Friday dawned bright and clear. Possibly. We’ve been here for so long that we’ve lost all track of the concept of time and each day goes in a second, but also takes an eternity, and we can’t remember one from the next. However, I do remember this…

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We split off into two contingents: Jac, Paul, Fiona and Catherine went to watch Italia Conti’s The Dark Philosopher, who were performing at a fellow space venue, whilst Tim and I headed into town to sort out some admin. As the others were enjoying the play, we visited the printers to collect more posters and pull quotes. Whilst we waited we couldn’t resist popping up the road to our favourite shortbread shop to have a cheeky biscuit to keep us going (hazelnut and dark chocolate – yes please).

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We reconvened for lunch – big bowls of pasta and plates of pizza at Bella Italia, conveniently located right outside our venue. It was our final meal with Jacob (for the time being anyway) as he was leaving us to go gallivanting back to Crewe (in aid of the war effort of course). How would we cope? Who knows? Probably not very well.

We made our way to Princes Street to flyer outside the Virgin Money Half-Price Hut. 10 half price tickets were up for grabs! It was rather splendid to see our name in lights, up on the big screen. Definitely check out the Hut each day as it’s a great place to nab discount tickets to some really great shows (and I don’t just mean ours here, I’m being genuine. Really I am.) Whilst flyering, our eyes were drawn to the splendid market stalls that surrounded the National Gallery. Some marvellous insect brooches and Fringe inspired tote bags were particularly tempting.

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Afterwards we trooped back to the Royal Mile and did a spot of singing. The crowds seem to be drawn to the dulcet tones of Glenn Miller and the Andrew Sisters like a flock of seagulls to our bedroom window at 4am. They love it.

Then something very exciting happened. A new member of the company arrived in the land of Bagpipes; Anthony had arrived to take over the role of Will. He’d be filling in for the next two shows and we were delighted. To herald his grand arrival the heavens opened. Thank you weather. Love you.

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He swung by the apartment to catch up on some alterations we’ve made to the show and to collect his costume. Before he knew it, he was stood in a multi-storey car park space warming up like a professional. And then it was time for the show! Anthony hadn’t run through the show for over two weeks and yet he was word perfect and did us all proud.

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To celebrate, we decided to head to a Victorian séance at midnight. It was part of the Free Fringe. We collected Fiona from the Pleasance on the way. She’d gone for a few drinks with her friends and happened to see Dara O’Brien but was too shy to make contact. Better luck next time, Fiona.

The séance was an interesting hour where we were promised that the spirits would be crossing the veil tonight. They didn’t. But Catherine did have to go to the front and check that the rope was legitimate. To settle our nerves, we indulged in a little bottle of wine or two afterwards. Purely medicinal.

Night, night,
Laura (Katherine Winters)

Letters from the Home Front -Edinburgh Diary Day 9

Thursday 9th August 2018

We had a busy schedule planned with lots of shows to see. The day started with us hot-footing it down to theSpace on the Mile to try and grab some last minute tickets for Noel Coward’s Still Life. However, it was all sold out! It wasn’t a wasted trip into town though, as we decided to head into the heaving crowds up on and around the mile and hand some flyers out before our next show of the day.

boys

Next up was Dulce Et Decorum Est: The Unknown Soldiers at theSpace at Triplex. It transpires that the company are staying right next door to us so we thought it jolly good form to go catch our neighbours’ show, especially as it’s also set in World War II! There were some lovely parallels between The Unknown Soldiers and Greyhounds, right down to the vintage tea-chest that sits proudly in the set of both shows.

Coming out of the show, Fiona’s grumbling stomach reminded us that we’d been so enthralled in the day’s activities that we’d forgotten to factor in time for lunch. Laura and Tim dashed off to grab some pasta whilst Fiona, Jacob and I rushed to theSpace on Niddry Street for Dear Lucy. We enjoyed the WWI show but I do hope the performers weren’t put off by our vocal tummies desperate to make themselves known. When back out on the street, Jacob, Fiona and I were on the prowl for some fast and filling food. The golden arches were looming. We accepted our fate and joined Ronald in a triumphant feast of burgers and fries. Meanwhile, Laura and Tim found director Jac and techie Paul and went to a performance of Dick Barton: The Tango of Terror by the Television Workshop Salford. Always great to support a fellow Greater Manchester production!

We reconvened on the Royal Mile, where Laura whipped out her ukulele and we did some impromptu close harmony singing for those passing by. Pretending to be The Andrews Sisters is definitely one of my favourite pass-times. It’s a shame we’ve only got four songs down at the moment!

Then it was time for another performance of Greyhounds. We seem to be racing through this run of shows at an alarming rate, it seems only yesterday we had those first night jitters. Another appreciative audience greeted us which was so lovely. We’re ever so grateful for the reception we’re receiving at the Fringe!

One of the great things about the Fringe is being able to go see a plethora of shows at almost any hour of the day. Tonight was the turn of The House of Edgar – a deliciously dark musical about Edgar Alan Poe. Post-performance, we trooped up to Greenside @ Nicholson Square which was bathed in green light. Here’s a snap of Jacob and Fiona having an absolute whale of a time before it was time to go and take in the show.

best friends

The House of Edgar is an absolute must-see if you’re here at the festival. Such good music and physicality. We were riding high on the spirit of musical theatre and decided that when back at the apartment, we should pop a musical on the TV. We searched various streaming services to seek out a good musical. And there it was. Chicago. Amazingly, it was Tim’s first viewing of it (which makes me even more grateful for him putting up with our exuberant performances of the Chicago numbers on the way up). We sang and danced our way along, apart from Cell Block Tango, where Fiona hushed us all to take in the masterpiece. What a jolly lovely way to spend the hours after the show!

Letters from the Home Front -Edinburgh Diary Day 8

Wednesday 8th August 2018

Another day, another review waiting for us when we opened out eyes  – this time from The List! And what’s more another amazing 4 stars! We’re getting spoilt by the morning reviews rolling in. It’ll go to our heads. No really, it will.

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Fiona was out bright and early to catch her parents (devout and loyal Greyhounds fans) for coffee before they left our adopted Scottish homeland. The rest of us were rather slower on the wake up and departed midmorning after a leisurely munch of Cheerios and Wheetabix (other brands are available.)

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We decided that today would be the day we went to the Elephant House – the birthplace of Harry Potter. J K Rowling used to write there when she first moved to Edinburgh and the toilets are now a dedicated graffiti shrine. It’s a place of pilgrimage for any Potter fan.  I can also highly recommend their Hazelnut and Nutella cake which I nibbled (lol, wolfed down) alongside a big cup of coffee. We also had a wander around some of Edinburgh’s finest vintage shops, including the National Museum of Scotland, where we made a couple of new friends…

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Due to a stroke of good fortune (and someone else not showing up) we were able to perform another round of rousing 40s close-harmony tunes on the Street Stage. The crowds gathered again – singing really does seem to be like a magnet to crowds of people – and the boys flyered to their heart’s content as the girls warbled away.

Being a kind and generous person of the highest degree, I whipped up a big bowl of pasta for everyone to devour for din dins. We ate early so we could get back to the Mile in time to catch Mission: Her, a show written to remind those with mental health issues that they are not alone. “Her is twentysomething, she has a five-year plan in place but life events put a spanner in the works. As Her begins to drown in the pressures of past and present society, her friends go on a mission to help.” It was a sharp and thought provoking performance with well integrated tech and effects to highlight the looming presence of social media.

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We finished in perfect time to hit our empty car park space for the nightly warm up and prepare ourselves for the the show (recentre ourselves so we didn’t disturb our creative energy – thanks Ruby). The performance seemed to go well again. We’re getting very quick at setting up and packing down our WW2 set: folding chairs, moving tables, sticking up posters.

After drinks and a catch up with some of Tim’s friends, we headed back to the apartment for our beauty sleep. Now proud owners of Ridercards, we can bus back and forth to our heart’s desire. Just watch us go.

Goodnight folks,
Laura (Katherine Winters)

Letters from the Home Front – Edinburgh Diary Day 7

Tuesday 7th August 2018

Gosh, it was a real struggle to remember the date. Being at the Fringe is like living in a lovely bubble where days of the week don’t exist and time seems to be fluid as we try to cram as much as we can into each day.

The day started with our dear Laura thundering down the stairs in a flurry of excitement. We had received another 4* review, this time from Edinburgh Guide who described Greyhounds as ‘pretty much perfect’ with a cast who ‘nail it, and are as genuine as the people they play’. To get such a great reception from the critics is wonderful, especially after all the late nights we’ve spent in rehearsals going slightly mad! Our latest success was celebrated with breakfast-time bacon sandwiches for the meat eaters and lashings of tea and toast for everybody else.

reviews

We didn’t have long to bask in the glow though, as Jacob, Laura, Tim and myself were off to the Gilded Balloon to catch musical ‘Fall of Eagles’ by Green Ginger Productions. We’ve written a review of the show which you can read here, but to summarise – we thought it was jolly good fun! We caught the cast for a quick chat afterwards which was lovely, so great to talk to a fellow northern company. It was then time for some delicious lunch at veggie restaurant/bar Paradise Palms. This place has incredible eclectic decor, adorned with bright bunting, model pigs, a type-writer and vintage paraphernalia. We wolfed down our food with glee and chatted about the show we’d just taken in.

Meanwhile, Jac, Paul and Fiona took care of business on the home front. They gave the flat a much-needed spring clean and baked up some fresh bread. Paul, our techie, is not only a whizz with the sound and lights but also knows how to make a mean loaf! Whilst the bread was baking, admin was taken care of with Fiona taking to the blogosphere and updating you all on our comings and goings.

It was then time for Jacob, Laura, Tim and I to finally go see one of the shows right up there on our to watch list, ‘I, Sniper’ by Acting Coach Scotland. The play tells the true story of Lyudmila Pavlichenko – often called the deadliest female sniper in history. I came out itching to read more about her! We bussed it back to the apartment as director Jac was cooking up fajitas for dinner. We stuffed ourselves silly with the mexican deliciousness before rushing back out again to perform Greyhounds. We warmed up in our usual car park space and took to the stage. The audience seemed to enjoy the show again, which was great to see!

Back to the apartment again, this time for gin cocktails and board games. Fiona had bundled Articulate into the car at the very last minute on day one, and what a cracking call that turned out to be. The best moment had to Paul be trying to convey the word ‘horrifying’ to Jac, his description being ‘it’s like… a scary film but longer’. Laura, Tim and I were the eventual triumphant winners and reigning champions until the next board game night.

Until next time,

Catherine

(Greyhounds’ Ruby Winters)