The Halfway House
The Halfway House was a site-specific, immersive theatre piece that was devised and staged by Persona Collective in the Old Central Saint Martins campus on Southampton Row, Holborn. The Koppel Project kindly invited Persona Collective – to develop and stage a theatre show at their Koppel Project Campus, which was conceived as an experimental, cross-disciplinary education and arts facility in the former Saint Martins. It has been vacant for many years and is eventually due to be redeveloped as a high-end hotel. The live show took place from 21st September to 4th October 2020.
The narrative revolved around three storylines, each unfolding in ‘The Halfway House’ - a fictional hotel. The building and its residents are stuck between two worlds, paralysed by nostalgia and slipping into real and fabricated versions of their past, but equally seduced by and drawn into this absurdly ill-fitting new reality of a ‘luxury’ hotel, which is in the process of being constructed but already feels extremely makeshift, seedy and tired.
The feature length film version of the performance is currently in film competitions and soon available online, which will open it up to a much bigger audience and also allow those who did attend, to see the show from the perspective of the other characters.
"I cannot tell you how much I enjoyed it. Snatches and glimpses still drift through my mind: a porter pulling a man to shore; clandestine talks in bedrooms and on doorsteps; a cardigan pulled on and off; flirtations and aggravations across space; an impressive thunderstorm..."
"The experience was something between watching a fragmented movie, being in a haunted house, and being in touch with your memories all at once, as the story that was being told was not in chronological order. The interactive way that we walked through the building added an extra element of voyeurism..."
"Persona Collective immersive theatre shows, are the most prolific and ambitious projects I have come across in the past two years. 'The Candidate' and 'The Halfway House', are undeniably pushing the boundaries of experimentation, constantly questioning what live performance means today. Their scenarios are visually and conceptually curated to the minimum detail, and yet they leave space to the audiences to be part of it. I truly believe Persona Collective artistic research will have a big impact on the theatre community and beyond." - Marcela Iriarte Villa Lobos
Documentation The Halfway House
Video 1 - 'Storm Room' installation by Jack Wates at The Lethaby building.
Video 2 - 'Blue Room' soundtrack by Finn Boxer with stills from The Halfway House.
Video 3 - Trailer Film 'The Halfway House'
"While working in the The Halfway House we were constantly responding and revealing alternative layers to the reality of the landscape, but making sure the particular environment of the building remains as part of the final show. The show’s narrative and scenography emerged from the place" - Satu Streatfield, Lighting Design director.
We invited two artists to work in the their
own art installations as part of the
'The Halfway House' show. Jack Wates created 'The Storm Room', inside the spectaular dome exhibition room at the listed W.Lethaby building and Charly Blackburn built 'The Lab' in the textiles room at the 1970's Tower Block.
Persona Collective seeks to involve local communities, including both amateur and professional performers, in
co-creating its shows, while also using buildings and spaces that are either overlooked or at risk of slipping from living memory. Shows and performances are developed using ‘devised theatre’ techniques. We run months of dance, improvisation, role-play workshops and theatre games
with performers in situ to gradually develop their characters and the narratives.
"Research into the history of the site, its urban context and past uses and users heavily influences the role-plays and the narratives" - Satu Streatfield, Lighting Design director.
"A team of scenographers worked together to transform some of the spaces into hotel rooms, a reception and a restaurant while some of the other rooms and corridors would remain original. We wanted to show to the audience what was really happening inside the building at that time. The space was already a building site and the iconic art school was in the process of being transformed into a high-end hotel" - Rocio Ayllon, Artistic Director.
Cast & Creators
Jean-Charles Wadja
Mélanie Gautier
Michael Hall
Emily George
Olga Lagun
Tom Kim
Francesca Costa
Georgia Leefe
Anna Fil
Valia Katsis
Cameron Lee-Allen
Charly Monreal
Sally Plowman
Daniel Seifu
Michael Sookhan
Host & Collaborator - The Koppel Project
Venue - The Old Central St. Martins
Special Thanks to -
Abigail Adams
Marcela Iriarte Villalobos
Directors
Rocío Ayllón - Artistic Director & Producer
Elina Akhmetova - Movement Director & Choreographer
Karolina Burlikowska - Photographer & Art Director
Satu Streatfield - Lighting Design Director
Finn Boxer - Sound Designer & Cinematographer
Sami Sabik - Creative Technologist
Assistant Directors
Elina Akhmetova
Michael Hall
Production Team
Alice Wilson
Clare McAndrew
Rocío Ayllón
Elina Akhmetova
Emma LD
Tom Kim
Tom Wheeler
Lighting Technicians
& programmers
Steve Lowe
Thomas Blackburn
Lighting Designers
Technicians & Operators
Laura Arroyo
Gaia Crocella
Steve Lowe
Luciana Martinez
Tom Wheeler
Alice Wilson
Art installations & Collaborations
Jack Wates - Storm Room
Charly Blackburn - The Lab
Will Langstone - Cello
Set Designers
Emma Wilson
Emily George
Clary Montero
Alice Wilson
Emma LD
Graphic Designers
Emily George
Emma LD
Sound Assistants
Waris Albakri
Femi Oriogun- Williams
Cinematographers
Finn Boxer
Olga Lagun
Hamish Nichols
Film Edition
Sinan Kinch - Film Editor
Junho Lee (Postino) - Colourist
Emma LD - Credits design
Location Sound Recordist
Florence Woolley
Alice Wilson
Research
Satu Streatfield, Emma LD, Karolina Burlicowska,
Clare McAndrew, Rocío Ayllón
Chaperones
Abigail Adams
Juan Sanchez Plaza
Rocio Chacon
Clary Montero
Femi Oriogun – Williams,
Anna Chiarin
Community
Holborn Association
Dragon Hall
Show - Preview Mentors
Jo Danzig
Vanya Gostev
Florence Greensmith
Sponsors Lighting & second hand equipment
White Light
Enliten Architectural Lighting
Mike Stoane Lighting
iGuzzini illuminazione
Lighting, Effects &
Logistics Equipment
Shakespeare’s Globe
Audio Equipment
Orbital Sound
Shakespeare’s Globe
Film Equipment
Direct Digital
Costumes
Putney Theatre
Props
Phoebe BP
Lobster Records
Prints
Duplikat Press
SPONSORS
