Written by award-winning writer and comedian Alison Spittle, dark comedy theatre show Glacier follows three women on Christmas day, all separately seeking solace at the tranquil Lake Foxleighmere. Lucy thinks it’s the perfect place for a good scream. Jools thinks it’s the perfect place to escape her family, just for an hour. Dawn thinks it’s the perfect place to become invisible. When all three create an unofficial tradition of swimming at the same place on Christmas Day every year, each character’s troubles bubble to the surface and friendships develop, with warmth, wit and the heartbreak of the festive season.
The world premiere of Glacier is the Old Fire Station’s sixth original Christmas production, with the company aiming to stray from the tradition of pantomime and create festive shows for adults, highlighting not just the joys of Christmas, but the messiness of it too. The arts venue shares its space with a homelessness centre, and clients of Crisis are encouraged to get involved creatively, become staff members and to come and see the shows free of charge. This collaboration demonstrates why festive shows that are fun, yet also poignant, are so important, they enable every audience member to relate to what they see on stage.
Writer Alison Spittle said “Never have I thought about Christmas so much all year round! I finished this play in a heatwave. With our director Madelaine Moore, our fantastic cast and the team at the Old Fire Station, I hope this play will make a splash. I am excited to see the new swimming groups pop up and the buzz around Oxford, it will be wonderful to see this play with a crowd. This show is an ode to the joyous, unkind and generally dull parts of adult friendships, especially around the festive season.”
Alison Spittle is an award-winning writer, actor and comedian. She is co-creator and co-presenter of the BBC Sounds podcast Wheel of Misfortune and is a regular co-host of The Guilty Feminist. She is the creator and star of the television series Nowhere Fast, which aired on RTÉ2, BBC America and Stan Australia to critical acclaim. Her first play, Starlet premiered to great acclaim, garnering five stars from The Sunday Times.
Clara Vaughan, CEO of Old Fire Station, Oxford, said “Glacier is the perfect blend of the two qualities we look for in an OFS Christmas show: it’s hilarious, and it’s poignant. Since 2016 we have built a yearly tradition of festive comedies for grown-ups and we’re thrilled to have Glacier as our 2023 show.”
The Old Fire Station is a centre for creativity in Oxford housing two organisations: the homelessness charity Crisis and Arts at the Old Fire Station (AOFS). AOFS encourages people from all backgrounds to understand and shape the world in which we live through stories, creativity and the arts, and by connecting with others.
The cast is Dawn-Debra Baker, Lucy- Emma Lau, Jools- Sophie Steer
Glacier is at The Old Fire Station 4 – 23 December 2023
