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chris durnall posted a blog post

Souvenirs of a Killing Company of Sirens

"The heatwave continued and it became clear she had been taken away, against her will.There is a purity to friendship not found with lovers.With lovers we edit. We cut out what we don’t wish to see and add what we wish to be there. And so we build a lie.True friends have no need for that. They need to be as honest and pure as possible.We spoke the truth through our eyes, words often sounded cheap and contrived.We climbed a dusty hill, both nursing a hangover. It was the morning after the night…See More

Jun 16, 2020

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chris durnall posted a blog post

Sovenirs of a KIlling

We at Company of Sirens are excited by the developing online possibilities emerging by sharing the development of our new piece Souvenirs of a Killing. Working with Angharad Matthews in Berlin and members of Sightlife Wales are proving to be unique and thrilling collaborations.Look out for the online material to appear. The piece is the second of our explorations into the the nature of grief and its connections to art. It follows on from last years production of Twelve Cabins Twelve Vacancies…See More

May 12, 2020

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chris durnall posted an event

The Creature by Lucy Gough at Chapter

October 1, 2019 at 8pm to October 10, 2019 at 9pm

COMPANY OF SIRENSWith the assistance of the Arts Council of Wales,The National Lottery and ChapterpresentThe premier of a new play THE CREATURE by Lucy Gough Directed by Chris Durnall ‘Misery has made me a fiend’ When someone kills, when their crime is so terrible, so incomprehensible, can we still call them human? Who is to blame? Who and what creates monsters? Taking Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein as inspiration, THE CREATURE takes place in the mind and the prison cell of a young boy in a…See More

Jul 17, 2019

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chris durnall posted an event

Company of Sirens at Chapter

June 11, 2019 at 8pm to June 12, 2019 at 9pm

NORMAN BATES IS INNOCENT! How much do we really know each other, even those we love? TWELVE CABINS TWELVE VACANCIES interlinks personal tragedy with the events of Alfred Hitchcock’s seminal sixties horror classic PSYCHO. “Dad died during the first broadcast of Psycho on network TV. Earlier that evening it had been scorching hot in the back yard. There was no breeze. I was 12. And I knew.” At the same time Marion stepped into the shower. This is the moment” Blending memory with poetic imagery…See More

Apr 26, 2019

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Profile Information

What I do:: theatre director

A little more about me:: Artistic Director Company of Sirens and founder Winterlight productions.Also freelance director. Acting tutor and workshop leader

Location:: Cardiff

Projects I’m working on:: COMPANY OF SIRENS
With the assistance of the Arts Council of Wales,The National Lottery and Chapter
present
The premier of a new play

THE CREATURE by Lucy Gough

Directed by Chris Durnall

‘Misery has made me a fiend’

When someone kills, when their crime is so terrible, so incomprehensible, can we still call them human? Who is to blame? Who and what creates monsters?

Taking Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein as inspiration, THE CREATURE takes place in the mind and the prison cell of a young boy in a secure unit, as he attempts to avoid taking responsibility for what he has done, but also tries to understand it.

Following last years acclaimed production of THE WOLF TATTOO by Lucy Gough, COMPANY OF SIRENS present a specially commissioned play from the same award winning author that explores the origins of criminal behaviour and asks what it is that makes us monsters.

Developed through work with young offenders in prisons and secure units. THE CREATURE is a powerful new play dealing with an issue central to our lives.

“It is this feel of almost continuing menace that holds us throughout the gripping story and the extraordinary performances of the cast that gives us such an amazing and satisfying theatre experience” (Theatre in Wales on The Wolf Tattoo)
“Gough’s text deftly shifts between the naturalistic and the surreal—the universe she creates encompasses not only lupine youths tearing people apart in forests, but also supermarkets and mobile phone signals” (Wales Arts Review on The Wolf Tattoo)

Chapter 30th September till 10th October at 8.00 Tickets £12.00/10.00 chapter.org companyofsirens.com

Company of Sirens

Present

Dark Vanilla Jungle
By Philip Ridley

Tour September/October 2015

With

Seren Vickers as Andrea

Directed by Chris Durnall

Following its acclaimed Welsh premier in March Company of Sirens are touring Philip Ridley’s extraordinary one woman play about a young girls search for love and home.
Seren Vickers plays Andrea a young girl abandoned by her family, groomed and abused by sexual preditors and rendered homeless. Depressing? In part , but Ridley allows her spirit and sense of hope and possibility to shine through in sections of Bleak Humour that are breathtakingly brilliant.
What critics said
"go and see this remarkable, unmissable performance now! Seren Vickers... gives the most, captivating, strong and charismatic performance" Theatre in Wales

“I am speechless after Dark Vanilla Jungle the best solo performance I've ever seen” New Welsh Review
“Committed performance, committed writing of the highest order. Relevant, topical, unbearable. Unmissable” Guardian

Astonishing Theatre. Vitally important work. All women should see this.Do yourself a favour..Go!” Big Issue
“Dark Vanilla Jungle is theatre with the additives taken out Company of Sirens make great theatre”
Supported by the Arts Council of Wales the National Lottery and Shelter Cymru
By kind permission of Knight Hall Agency, London

TOUR DATES

Old Red Lion
Islington
London
6th 7th September 8.00
08444124307
www.oldredliontheatre.co.uk

Riverfront Theatre
Newport
Gwent
11th 12th September 7.45
01633656757

Grand Theatre
Swansea
16th 17th 18th 8.00
01792475715
roselladalesio@yahoo.co.uk

Torch Theatre
St Peters Road
Milford Haven
19th September 8.00
01646695267
www.torchtheatre.co.uk

Aberystwyth Arts Centre
Aberystwyth
25th September 8.00
01970623232

Mumford Theatre
Cambridge
10th October
08451962320

About the Author
Playwright Philip Ridley was born in the East End of London, where he still lives and works. He is a contemporary artist, poet, novelist, film-maker and one of the country's most celebrated living playwrights. Ridley has been described as 'probably a genius' (Time Out), 'a visionary' (Rolling Stone), 'the master of modern myth' (Guardian) and 'the best British playwright of the last 20 years'.

About Company of Sirens
Company of Sirens was founded in 2009 to present productions of uncompromising contemporary texts to Welsh audiences for the first time. Recent productions are Anthony Neilson’s Stitching and The Censor, Sean Tyrone by Mark Ryan, Revelation by Patrick Jones and Troyanne by Ian Rowlands. Last year the company presented Welsh premiers of two Philip Ridley plays Tender Napalm and Mercury Fur

What the critics said about Company of Sirens production of Tender Napalm first premiered at Chapter in April 2014

“A mind blowing piece of writing”

“Clever, witty, poetic and emotive, this play has it all”

“Performed to perfection by Matthew Bulgo and Jannah Warlow”

“Takes your breath away and leaves the watcher stunned by the experience”

“Company of Sirens have produced an incredible piece of theatre”

“This is important theatre and feels like it, see it!”

Company of Sirens work is steely, unflinching and entirely unsentimental” New Welsh Review

Personal Website/CV:: http://companyofsirens.com

Twitter @username:: companyofsirens

Chris durnall's Blog

Souvenirs of a Killing Company of Sirens

"The heatwave continued and it became clear she had been taken away, against her will.

There is a purity to friendship not found with lovers.

With lovers we edit. We cut out what we don’t wish to see and add…

Continue

Posted on June 16, 2020 at 14:01

Sovenirs of a KIlling

Look out for the online material to appear. The piece is the second of our explorations into the the nature of grief and its connections to art. It follows on from last years…

Continue

Posted on May 12, 2020 at 9:54

THE WOLF TATTOO by LUCY GOUGH

Company of Sirens new production will be The Wolf Tattoo a new play by Lucy Gough. The production is supported by the Arts Council of Wales and Chapter and directed by Chris Durnall. It runs at Chapter Arts Centre Cardiff from 19^th to 30^th of June 2018 with further dates in…

Continue

Posted on March 29, 2018 at 10:00