Vladimir Shcherban, (co-founder of Belarus Free Theatre) directs Pass the Hat, a new one-man show inspired by the book Farewell Leicester Square by Henry Hollis and co-devised with performer Oliver Bennett at Stone Nest, Shaftesbury Avenue.
This poignant work is an intimate exploration into the passion behind performance and how memory – real or imagined – can shape our lives.
Beneath the surface of every family there are mysteries. Actor Oliver Bennett embarks on a search for his family history that unexpectedly leads to the world of a busker arrested over 500 times, Soho gangsters and even the royal family.
Performed in an intimate room overlooking Shaftesbury Avenue in the heart of the West End, Pass the Hat is a unique mixture of documentary, street performance and self-reflection.
The show was commissioned by arts organisation and performance venue Stone Nest. A hidden gem nestled amidst the bright lights of theatreland, it offers a platform for bold, visionary artists and a space where audiences can encounter an eclectic programme of contemporary performance.
In the spirit of the great busking tradition of street entertainment, all tickets are ‘pay what you want’ before or after the show.
HUNCHtheatre is an internationally acclaimed company set up in 2018 by the multi award-winning director Vladimir Shcherban and writer and actor Oliver Bennett. In 4 years of existence HUNCHtheatre has established a reputation for producing cutting-edge and entertaining work uniting British and European theatre. Their show A Hero of Our Time began life in a living room performing for 10 people, then played at the Arcola Theatre and toured to St Petersburg and Cologne, all to great critical acclaim. Other credits include To See Salisbury at the RADA festival and The Legend of the Holy Drinker at VAULT festival.
