EAT at the Lyric Theatre, Bridport, Saturday 8th November, 7pm
Hinterland present a rehearsed reading of a new play, EAT, by local writer and playwright, Kate Scott, directed by Sam Holland-Bunyan and starring Holly Cassidy, James Coward, Mel Hudson, Ashley O’Brien and Jay Villiers.
Tickets can be bought online or in person from the Bridport Tourist Information Centre and cost £10 (or £5 for the under 25s): https://bridportandwestbay.co.uk/product/eat-at-the-lyric-theatre-saturday-08-november/
The cast:
Holly Cassidy (Paper Cinema; Riding Lights Theatre; Bashstreet Theatre), James Coward (Sky Arts’ Urban Myths; Edinburgh Fringe), Mel Hudson (BBC; Manchester Library Theatre; television includes The Catherine Tate Show; Radio includes The Hudson and Pepperdine Show), Ashley O’Brien (Royal Exchange Theatre Manchester; The Lowry) and Jay Villiers (National Theatre; RSC; West End; films include Henry V and The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel).
The playwright, Kate Scott:
Kate Scott lives in Bridport. Her radio plays have been long- and shortlisted for various prizes, including the Nick Darke Award. Her stage plays have been performed at the Salisbury Fringe Festival, the Salisbury Playhouse Studio and the Pleasance Theatre, London. Kate is a children’s author of 37 books published by Bonnier, Oxford University Press, HarperCollins and Penguin Random House. Kate has written approximately 135 episodes of children’s television shows broadcast on CBeebies, C5, CITV, Disney, Netflix, Sky Kids and other platforms. Her script editor work includes the second series of The Hive (Disney), the live-action show Dog Years and the film The Christmas Letter (narrated by Kate Winslet). She is also a published poet whose work has been broadcast on BBC Radio 4 and ‘The Writer’s Almanac’ in the USA.
The director, Sam Holland-Bunyan:
Following a lengthy and successful career as a leading theatre actor (including National, Gate, Hampstead, Royal Court) in 2007 Sam pivoted to writing and directing. She has recently completed a master’s at Birkbeck graduating with distinction and winning the 2024 Peter Cheeseman Award for exceptional development and outstanding achievement as a theatre director. As a playwright and director her work is gaining recognition recently being awarded an Offies Assessors’ Choice ***** recommendation and a London Pub Theatre’s ***** Standing Ovation nomination for her 2025 revival of Am I Losing My Mind Or Just My Figure? at the Etcetera Theatre, London.
The play, EAT:
Carole sees food as art and validation. Peter sees it as an opportunity to indulge or to hold forth. Julia uses it as a means to fight the will of her mother while Keith sees it as a way to appease her. And Jean-Marc is just hungry for love. Eat is the story of a family over one table, three decades and many meals. This comedy-drama explores how family relationships settle into unhealthy patterns while delving into the themes of ageing, expectations of social care and what food can mean to us beyond nourishment. Above all, this play shows us how food is involved in our best – as well as our worst – moments. Bon appétit…
Hinterland Theatre CIC
Hinterland is a Hinterland is a newly formed theatre company and CIC who as a collective are equipped with the fortitude and lived experience to have the courage to break the rules. We take our subject matter which is often political with a small ‘p’ seriously whilst not taking ourselves too seriously and aim to make bold irreverent challenging theatre that is not afraid to ask difficult questions.
Our vision for future programming seasons includes one visual art form (installation, film, exhibition), a devised/verbatim based play, a new writing commission and a radical reimagining of a classic or historic text. We are democratic in the way in which we make work and the audiences we want to reach. At the core of our practice is a desire to reconnect with those that have taken pause or left the industry and to engage a strong sense of complicité and resonance with our audiences.
