THE MP, AUNTY MANDY & ME
The MP, Aunty Mandy & Me is a new one-man play written and performed by Rob Ward. It was produced by Emmerson & Ward in association with Curve, Leicester and presented as part of De Montfort University Pride 2020.
A bittersweet and darkly comic tale of political campaigns, coercive abuse and steam trains. The MP, Aunty Mandy & Me explores power and manipulation through a queer voice from the #MeToo movement.
Meet Dom. He is trying to live his best instagay life but it isn’t easy living with his drug addict mum in a small rural town in the North of England, where the nearest gay is 10 miles away. He goes to the gym but never gets laid in the shower, he uses all the right hashtags but can’t top 100 likes and while he really wants a boyfriend, he just can’t find a gay man that shares his love of trains.
But a chance meeting leads Dom into the world of the local Labour MP who becomes Dom’s mentor and confidant. The MP makes Dom feel good. He makes him feel very good. And for all the confidence this unusual new friendship gives him, surely its worth giving certain things back in return? Even if these are certain things that he doesn’t really want to give.
I created the sound design entirely from recordings of steam trains, the central character Dom’s passion, interwoven with the music of Simply Red, his mother’s favourite band. The steam train sounds become scene transitions, character themes, underscore and aural metaphors for panic attacks, dog fetish role-play and sexual encounters. The music is distorted and transformed to immerse the audience in the MDMA fueled word of Dom’s mother’s addiction and his own experiences of fetish clubs and coercive sex.
The MP, Aunty Mandy & Me premiered at Curve Studio, Leicester on 3rd and 4th March 2020. Restaged at 10 Dome – Pleasance Dome, Edinburgh Festival Fringe 3-21 August 2022. English tour Autumn 2022: Curve Leicester, Birmigham Rep, Hope Mill Theatre Manchester, Staffordshire University, Blackpool Grand, York Theatre Royal, Hull Truck Theatre, Sheffield Theatres, Norwich Theatre Royal, Yvonne Arnaud Theatre, Harrogate Theatre, and Dukes Theatre Lancaster. 2023: International Dublin Gay Theatre Festival, Crewe Lyceum and Kings Head Theatre. London.
THE MP, AUNTY MANDY & ME
The MP, Aunty Mandy & Me is a new one-man play written and performed by Rob Ward. It was produced by Emmerson & Ward in association with Curve, Leicester and presented as part of De Montfort University Pride 2020.
A bittersweet and darkly comic tale of political campaigns, coercive abuse and steam trains. The MP, Aunty Mandy & Me explores power and manipulation through a queer voice from the #MeToo movement.
Meet Dom. He is trying to live his best instagay life but it isn’t easy living with his drug addict mum in a small rural town in the North of England, where the nearest gay is 10 miles away. He goes to the gym but never gets laid in the shower, he uses all the right hashtags but can’t top 100 likes and while he really wants a boyfriend, he just can’t find a gay man that shares his love of trains.
But a chance meeting leads Dom into the world of the local Labour MP who becomes Dom’s mentor and confidant. The MP makes Dom feel good. He makes him feel very good. And for all the confidence this unusual new friendship gives him, surely its worth giving certain things back in return? Even if these are certain things that he doesn’t really want to give.
I created the sound design entirely from recordings of steam trains, the central character Dom’s passion, interwoven with the music of Simply Red, his mother’s favourite band. The steam train sounds become scene transitions, character themes, underscore and aural metaphors for panic attacks, dog fetish role-play and sexual encounters. The music is distorted and transformed to immerse the audience in the MDMA fueled word of Dom’s mother’s addiction and his own experiences of fetish clubs and coercive sex.
The MP, Aunty Mandy & Me premiered at Curve Studio, Leicester on 3rd and 4th March 2020. Restaged at 10 Dome – Pleasance Dome, Edinburgh Festival Fringe 3-21 August 2022. English tour Autumn 2022: Curve Leicester, Birmigham Rep, Hope Mill Theatre Manchester, Staffordshire University, Blackpool Grand, York Theatre Royal, Hull Truck Theatre, Sheffield Theatres, Norwich Theatre Royal, Yvonne Arnaud Theatre, Harrogate Theatre, and Dukes Theatre Lancaster. 2023: International Dublin Gay Theatre Festival, Crewe Lyceum and Kings Head Theatre. London.
Writer & Performer: Rob Ward
Director: Clive Judd
Sound Design: Iain Armstrong
Lighting Design: Will Monks
Dramaturg: Beth Shouler
Stage Manager: Joe Colgan
Producer: Emmerson & Ward
Photography: Pamela Raith
Steam train sounds: David Bailey
Direction by Clive Judd and a very apposite soundtrack designed by Iain Armstrong it all comes together to highlight some of the pitfalls of modern gay youth. This should be required viewing for all LGBT youngsters today.
Iain Armstrong’s sound and Will Monks’ design add significantly to Clive Judd’s fluid and sharp direction. It’s a slick presentation of innocence, exploitation, revenge and some resolution.
The play, and perhaps more pointedly Clive Judd’s glib direction, excels in portraying the lurid, queasy, mind-bending highs (and lows) of Dom’s MDMA trips.
The MP, Aunty Mandy and Me is fluent and slick, and the writing has a light touch.
There is much to enjoy in this hugely thought-provoking, funny, sexy and entertaining play. And if you’re in the gay train enthusiast target audience, it’s dynamite!
* * * *
The pounding roar and whistle of a steam train soundtracks Dom’s all-consuming panic attacks with an overwhelming urgency.
* * * *
The staging has a great variety in tone, pace and emotions with impressive lighting, sound and movement recreations of being inside an ecstasy trip and trying to make sense of things.
Will Monks’ lighting design is outstanding. Alongside … Iain Armstrong’s sound design, it creatively depicts many different locations. … The sequence set in a nightclub adds a huge amount of energy to the production and the lighting and sound design really heightens the intensity and uncomfortable nature of some of the later scenes at the climax of the play.
* * * *
It is brutal, yet beautiful. Hilarious and heartbreaking. If you are queer, political and looking to open your eyes and find them filled with both tears of laughter and sadness – this is a must watch.
This thought-provoking production addresses sensitive subjects such as coercive control, grooming and consent in a clever and engaging way.
* * * * *
A stand-out piece of the production is the use of sound. When Dom feels panic attacks coming on, you start to hear the sound of a steam train gathering speed which effectively builds not only the tension on stage and with the audience, but also perfectly represents the tightening sensation of how a panic attack feels.
Writer & Performer: Rob Ward
Director: Clive Judd
Sound Design: Iain Armstrong
Lighting Design: Will Monks
Dramaturg: Beth Shouler
Stage Manager: Joe Colgan
Producer: Emmerson & Ward
Photography: Pamela Raith
Steam train sounds: David Bailey
Direction by Clive Judd and a very apposite soundtrack designed by Iain Armstrong it all comes together to highlight some of the pitfalls of modern gay youth. This should be required viewing for all LGBT youngsters today.
Iain Armstrong’s sound and Will Monks’ design add significantly to Clive Judd’s fluid and sharp direction. It’s a slick presentation of innocence, exploitation, revenge and some resolution.
The play, and perhaps more pointedly Clive Judd’s glib direction, excels in portraying the lurid, queasy, mind-bending highs (and lows) of Dom’s MDMA trips.
The MP, Aunty Mandy and Me is fluent and slick, and the writing has a light touch.
There is much to enjoy in this hugely thought-provoking, funny, sexy and entertaining play. And if you’re in the gay train enthusiast target audience, it’s dynamite!
* * * *
The pounding roar and whistle of a steam train soundtracks Dom’s all-consuming panic attacks with an overwhelming urgency.
* * * *
The staging has a great variety in tone, pace and emotions with impressive lighting, sound and movement recreations of being inside an ecstasy trip and trying to make sense of things.
Will Monks’ lighting design is outstanding. Alongside … Iain Armstrong’s sound design, it creatively depicts many different locations. … The sequence set in a nightclub adds a huge amount of energy to the production and the lighting and sound design really heightens the intensity and uncomfortable nature of some of the later scenes at the climax of the play.
* * * *
It is brutal, yet beautiful. Hilarious and heartbreaking. If you are queer, political and looking to open your eyes and find them filled with both tears of laughter and sadness – this is a must watch.
This thought-provoking production addresses sensitive subjects such as coercive control, grooming and consent in a clever and engaging way.
* * * * *
A stand-out piece of the production is the use of sound. When Dom feels panic attacks coming on, you start to hear the sound of a steam train gathering speed which effectively builds not only the tension on stage and with the audience, but also perfectly represents the tightening sensation of how a panic attack feels.
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