A saleswoman I shall be

June 8th, 2009 by Frances Loy

Part of the trials and triumphs of being an Artistic Director of any fringe company is you are not just a director - you must suit your talents to all other areas that are required in putting on a show. One day we will be funded and pay lackies to do this work for us, but the truth is by doing literally EVERYTHING (yes, even clearing up the green room everyday seeing as actors are unable to clear up after themselves!), we have a greater understanding and appreciation of the sheer effort that goes into creating a company, running a space and somehow, somewhere, putting on 4 shows a year. Pedal Pusher is well underway and my role this time alongside that of Associate Director, is Press&Marketing. To be honest this show is in many ways easier to market than others as we have a key target audience we've never approached before, and the show itself is throwing up inventive ways of marketing beyond that of the usual fringe flyer run and listings in Time Out - though can't say I'm particularly looking forward getting up at 8am on a Sunday morning to flyer Richmond cycling club. The cycling community is mahoosive, and we've had a great response so far. As ever, the theatre press have remained stoically silent and I assume will do before the inundation of forced friendly phonecalls commences...

Pedal Pusher Tickets Now On Sale!

June 8th, 2009 by admin

Tickets can now be bought here for our current production of Pedal Pusher. Through the mountains, the crashes, the sprints to the streets of Paris, Pedal Pusher captures the excitement, intrigue and danger of one of the most gruelling sporting events known to man. After all, to put yourself through all this for the sake of a bicycle race you'd have to be crazy... ...Or on drugs. Pedal Pusher follows three cyclists — Jan Ullrich, Marco Pantani and Lance Armstrong — through the five years that changed sporting history forever. From Jan Ullrich winning the Tour de France in 1997, through the near-collapse of the Tour de France in 1998, Armstrong's battle with cancer and the allegations of drug abuse that have dogged cycling for so long.

Pedal Pusher :: A Week in

May 31st, 2009 by Roland Smith

They say a picture tells a thousand stories...


Announcing our Summer Production PEDAL PUSHER – a story of the Tour de France

May 24th, 2009 by admin

It doesn't get easier. You just go faster 7th July - 1st August 2009 Tickets available online soon The Tour De France will come to London's West End this summer thanks to theatredelicatessen's continued residency at Cavendish Gate. Drawing on interviews, archive footage and news reports, Pedal Pusher combines docu-drama and devised performance to tell the true story of the cyclists battling to become champion of the Tour de France. Through the mountains, the crashes, the sprints to the streets of Paris, Pedal Pusher captures the excitement, intrigue and danger of one of the most gruelling sporting events known to man. After all, to put yourself through all this for the sake of a bicycle race you'd have to be crazy... ...Or on drugs. Pedal Pusher follows three cyclists – Jan Ullrich, Marco Pantani and Lance Armstrong – through the five years that changed sporting history forever. From Jan Ullrich winning the Tour de France in 1997, through the near-collapse of the Tour de France in 1998, Armstrong's battle with cancer and the allegations of drug abuse that have dogged cycling for so long. By interweaving the biographical stories with recreations of the Tour de France onstage, the play tells the difficult but up-lifting story of their lives through excitement and energy of the race itself.

Pedal Pusher :: Inspirations

May 11th, 2009 by Roland Smith

The initial conception for Pedal Pusher came from my interest in depicting a sport, a race on stage. In a sense, the drama of the days racing, the exhaustion, the passion, the tragedy is extremely theatrical - almost melodramatic. Where the interest lies is the physicality - the simplicity of the body in space. Breathtaking. Here is a slideshow of photographs I took whilst watching the Tour de France on Alpe d'Huez a couple of years back. These may be of interest to anyone coming to audition at the weekend. (and watch out for a cameo from theatredelicatessen artistic director, Jessica Brewster!)