The Little Prince (2016)

Devised by: The Chekhov Collective
Adapted from Antoine de Saint-Exupery by the company
Director: Cass Fleming
Lighting Designer: Dadiow Lin
Projection and Scenography: Francesca Castelbuono and the company
Sound Design by the company
Running time: 80 minutes

A story about love and loss.
A story about the extraordinary and funny business of being an adult.
Above all, a story about hope.

Image: Katerina Kotti

This surprisingly queer and delicately physical re-telling interweaves material from Saint Exupery’s well-loved novella The Little Prince with his writings on travel and war, and takes inspiration from the life of pilot Amelia Earhart.

Although The Little Prince is often framed as a children’s piece, our version is for adults, and the children they remember themselves to be.
Work-in-progress performances held in July and September 2016 at Goldsmiths Studio 3 and Queen Mary Studio 1.

All Images: Katerina Kotti

The Little Prince is created by the Chekhov Collective, an ensemble of experienced and emerging artists who have been training intensively together since 2013.

The Chekov Collective is unique in the UK for basing its devising practices purely in the use of Michael Chekhov technique (and has since evolved to TCCUK, the leading practice research centre exploring uses of Chekhov’s technique in the arts and beyond). We are particularly interested in visual, playful and imaginative methods of working that subvert traditional power-structures in the rehearsal room.

The ensemble was formed under the auspices of a research project examining the use of Chekhov technique in the 21^st century. We have been developing innovative contemporary practice by drawing on archival material from Chekhov’s work at Dartington in the 1930s. With growing popularity of Chekhov’s technique in the UK theatre landscape, the Chekhov Collective is now receiving keen interest from practitioners wishing to learn more about the work. The past year has seen members of the Collective leading workshops at the National Theatre Studio and for the Young Vic Genesis Project.

The Collective is comprised of director Cass Fleming, movement artist Roanna Mitchell, Gruff Theatre company’s performers Thomas Bostock, Alistair Foylan and Phoebe Naughton, performance art practitioners Sian Clark and Katja Hildevaara and actor Joshua MacLellan.

Image: Katerina Kotti

Reviews:

Here is a selection of reviews of work created by Chekhov Collective members:

Gruff Theatre:

7 Stars for Instructionally Invited at Vaults Festival: http://cultureortrash.com/2015/02/ct-review-instructionally-invited/
4 Stars for Instructionally Invited at Vaults Festival: www.thenewcurrent.co.uk/#!vault-review-2015-gruff-theatre-/cdbb

4 Stars for Styx with RIFT: www.timeout.com/london/theatre/styx

Roanna Mitchell (movement artist):

5 Stars in the New York Times for Imagining O at Peak Performances (US), directed by Richard Schechner and Benjamin Mosse: www.nytimes.com/2014/09/13/theater/richard-schechners-imagining-o-at-montclair-state.html?_r=1
Audience Feedback on Through The Grapevine: alliedproductions.co.uk/through-the-grapevine/

Roanna creates a great deal of work that by its nature does not attract traditional reviews. We invite you to take a look at her projects here: roannamitchell.com/?page_id=28

Katja Hilevaara (performance artist):

Katja creates a great deal of work that by its nature does not attract traditional reviews. We invite you to take a look at her projects here: