A collection of online plays produced during the Covid-19 pandemic have shaken up the world of theatre and earned the company behind them a prestigious award. The Covid-19 Monologues, created by Elysium Theatre Company, have brought writers and actors from across the globe together – providing work, hope, and a much-needed morale boost.
They began in October last year and another five have just been released, on Elysium’s YouTube channel, here.
And the company has just been announced as Olwen Wymark Award-winners by the Writers’ Guild of Great Britain, for what it describes as ‘championing playwrights during a hugely challenging year for the theatre sector.’
Elysium’s pioneering approach involved commissioning writers to pen monologues on any subject, which were then rehearsed and directed over Zoom and filmed with social distancing measures in place.
The company, which has links across the North East and Manchester, was co-founded by Jake Murray, son of the late famous theatre director, Braham Murray, who was one of the founding Artistic Directors of the Royal Exchange in Manchester.
Speaking of the award, Jake said: “I was stunned and very honoured. New writing is the life blood of theatre. We’re all trying to find the Shakespeare of the future. People forget that the classics we have been watching for years were all new plays once.
“We have now produced the work of ten playwrights and have built a platform on which we can do more new writing going into the future. This new, hybrid art form has transformed the company and the idea of what we can do.
“Covid forced us online, and this whole process of the monologues is a prime case of ‘necessity is the mother of invention’. We’ve loved it – it’s a whole new medium. It’s not film and it’s not theatre, but somewhere in between.”
The latest releases, which cover some current trending topics, include ‘Fake’, written by former Emmerdale and Byker Grove writer, Chris Barlas, performed by Karren Winchester.
Newcastle-based playwright Janet Plater, has written another of the online plays – ‘One Small Globe’ – a comedy centred on a struggling actor who has been out of work since Covid-19 closed theatres and finds a new ‘out-of-this-world’ job.
The other plays just released include: ‘Blackmail: A Reiver Tale’, set in Northumberland in 1601, written by Newcastle-based Steve Byron and starring Dunston actor Micky Cochrane. Hannah Ellis Ryan played Liz McDonald’s fake daughter Hannah Gilmore in Coronation Street in 2018, and has written comedy ‘Oh By The Way I Hate Myself’.
The monologues range from 15 to 30 minutes long and are free to access on Elysium’s YouTube channel Elysium TC. To access them go to: https://youtube.com/playlist?list=PL2m5VY1oKaKZ4MkwgvORXIw2A0tOguh4W
