Jake Mace
We’re counting down to Prague Fringe by shining a light on a number of shows headed to the festival next week. Sean Denyer is the writer of Stealing Stories, a piece exploring who has the right to tell someone else’s story through the lens of queerness. We caught up with Sean for a pixelated pint to dive into the show and its themes.
Catch Stealing Stories at A Studio Rubín from May 29th-31st at various times (60mins). Tickets are available through the Prague Fringe Online Box Office.
Jake: Hi Sean! We last caught up with you to talk about Acting Out’s Prague Fringe production last year. Tell us about what you’ve been up to since then.
Sean: After Prague last year, we started working on a show called Iceland. I had won a competition for a short play on a Eurovision related theme when Liverpool hosted the conference there, where it was performed. I thought it had the potential to be extended so we did it as a full length show in May with a large cast. At the same time, I started work on Stealing Stories with another cast. Doing two shows at once was a bit mad, but in an enjoyable way!
Jake: Your new show Stealing Stories is inspired by a conversation you had with a close friend. Can you tell us about what it’s brought to the show.
Sean: This friend and I are both theatre-heads! There had been much talk about casting and whether, for example, straight men should play gay men, but not much about writing. They asked whether there were any stories I felt I would be uncomfortable telling. Initially, I said no but when I thought about it later, I wasn’t sure that that was true! So I started having conversations with other writers about this, and it was really interesting to hear a whole range of views on the subject, and that was then I thought I would write a play about it. An interview I saw, with Nicola Dinan, a writer who is trans, was also an important kickstarter to the project.
Jake: Tell us about the cast and crew in the show and how the process of developing it has been.
Sean: There is a cast of four, three of whom have been in shows in Prague before. They are a great bunch, and as always have really shaped the characters and story, finding humour in unexpected places. We had the usual panic about length that you get before any festival outing! Two weeks before its premiere at the International Dublin Gay Theatre Festival it was still ten minutes too long! I managed to cut two scenes which were fun but did not propel the story and it did make it tighter.
Jake: What are you hoping the audience might take away from the experience, if anything?
Sean: I hope they are entertained, but that it provokes a conversation after. I always try to use comedy to explore serious issues!
Jake: Tell us about how the show has ended up being performed at Prague Fringe, and what you’re most excited for about the festival.
Sean: This is our fifth time at Prague, so it will nice to reconnect with old friends and make some new ones. There’s a significant queer presence at the festival this year, so I’m hoping to catch a lot of those shows.
Jake: Given the themes of Binge Fringe, if your show was a beverage of any kind (alcoholic, non-alcoholic – be as creative as you like!), what would it be and why?
Sean: A Martini – it’s a drink that can be made in many different ways, and which people have strong opinions about!
A reminder – you can catch Stealing Stories at A Studio Rubín from May 29th-31st at various times (60mins). Tickets are available through the Prague Fringe Online Box Office.
Elisabeth Flett
Freddie Haberfellner
