Philip Ridley’s two-hander, Vincent River, opens tonight at Greenwich Theater. Here’s some background to the production from the director, James Haddrell, Artistic Director of Greenwich Theatre, and the cast: Brandon Kimaryo, who plays Davey (Male, aged 17), and Kerrie Taylor who plays Anita (Female, aged 53).
A heartbreaking story about two people who think they need to hear something but who actually need to speak
James, Philip Ridley seems to be in fashion at the moment. This year we’ve had The Poltergeist (2020) at the Arcola, Leaves of Glass (2007) at the Park and now you are directing Vincent River (2000) at the Greenwich Theatre. What is it that appeals to you about Ridley’s writing and in particular the oldest of those plays, Vincent River?
I think you see it in varying degrees across his work, but Philip has an astonishing ability to combine storytelling styles with real, natural emotion - fairytale, symbolism, abstraction, whatever the style he’s playing with, the hearts at the centre of the stories are real. In Vincent River, I think the symbolism is muted - though he’s very clear on the way the passage of time should look - and the fairytale vocabulary is used sparingly (references to darkness and stars are certainly important) but it’s there, and within that frame is a heartbreaking story about two people who think they need to hear something but who actually need to speak. Philip’s understanding of human emotion and his ability to convert that into dialogue is amazing.
What's the storyline all of that is conveyed through?
Anita is struggling with the loss of her son - a young man who was murdered several months ago in a homophobic hate crime - and she is coming to terms with an identity that he hid from her. She only discovered his sexuality after the murder, and the killers were never caught. Davey, a teenage boy, has been watching her for weeks, and she is convinced that he must know something about the murder, or even have been involved. She welcomes him into her home to try and discover the truth.
And we need to see the play to find out what happens next. Do you think it’s in any way become dated since 2000 or is it still as relevant as ever?
There are certain things about the way the case was investigated in the play that may have changed between 2000 and today - there’s no mention of CCTV and mobile phones aren’t mentioned - but I guess the biggest question that we will be asked is whether hate crime is still as prevalent as it was two decades ago. However, last year’s report on hate crime statistics shows that police-reported hate crime in England and Wales has more than tripled in the last ten years, so for us, the issue is absolutely still live.
You’ve also heightened the contemporary tone of the play by going for an ethnic mix in the cast, which I don’t think Ridley suggests or requires.
In terms of casting, I think there’s something interesting about reinforcing the challenge to Anita in coming to terms with her son’s actions and the events that led to his death. She reveals her own low-level resentment of different cultures, so being forced to confront someone who she wouldn’t naturally feel an affinity with in any scenario, let alone this one, heightens the stakes in what is already going to be a volatile meeting.
You must have been very impressed with Brandon’s audition and confident about his ability to play the part, given that he's still at drama school? What makes him so well-suited to the role?
Brandon has a brilliant ability not only to connect with the emotional journey that Davey is on, but to share it. The best actors have to both share what the characters they’re playing are feeling, but also present that to an audience in a curated and directed way. He’s absolutely able to do that. He’s also fearless, and that’s important for a play that is so explosive.
Providing him with a potentially big break reminds me of how you were immediately outspoken about issues of funding, selection and opportunities for young people when ALRA closed last year. Presumably casting Brandon is all part of the same thinking?
Yes absolutely. When I’m programming I always have that at the back of my mind. Last year we revived Mike Bartlett’s An Intervention and cast Helen Ramsay, an actor just graduating from St Mary’s in Twickenham, to play one of the roles. After Vincent River, we move on to a revival of Sally Cookson and Adam Peck’s version of Cinderella, and we are doing the same again there. We also have an early career designer, Alice Carroll, and lighting designer, Daniel Maxted, on this show, as we did with the Pinter double-bill. Getting started in this industry is incredibly difficult, and the risk of losing talented individuals from the industry is at its highest in the first couple of years of their various careers, so finding strong opportunities early on is crucial and venues and producers should recognise their obligation to do that.
Kerrie, this probably fits in with your story, because you were only 18 when you joined the cast of Channel 4’s Hollyoaks in 1995 as Lucy Benson. Do you have any advice for Brandon about starting out young?
Stay open to everything. Acting, and the industry, in all its forms is interesting, and the best thing about this job is you learn something from everyone you meet in any area of the business. You can get quite inward-looking as an actor, so the trick is to keep being fascinated by the work and the potential work, and never give up.
There’s the advice, Brandon, but you are still studying at Guildford School of Acting, so tell us something about your background and what attracted you to acting.
When I was young I always liked watching films. If my mum would let me stay up I’d watch Film 4 at 9 o’clock – and it just made me want to do that, to be a part of that. GSA has changed how I think about acting though. I think when I started drama school I only really thought about TV and film, but now having trained I think I prefer the experience of working on theatre, working on character and spending the time to make a show.
Well, this is certainly the chance to do that. What was the process for securing this part?
I was lucky enough to secure an agent (Narrow Road) before finishing drama school, so they put me up for the part. I had a first audition with James who then did a recall. It was a fairly standard audition I think - we did a monologue and a scene from the play, and then at the recall we did the same but added an exercise exploring emotional range. Kerrie was supposed to be at the recall but somehow she got stuck in Mexico, although I did get the chance to meet her when I came to see her in the Pinter double-bill in Greenwich before we started work on this one.
Which is where we met and I had the idea to do his interview. Kerrie, you went on to appear in Crossroads, Clocking Off, Holby City and Fallen and more recently the ITV1 crime drama The Bay amongst others. Did you fit much stage work in amongst that schedule or is your recent appearance in Pinter’s A Slight Ache that Brandon just mentioned, here at the Greenwich Theatre, something of a new move?
I went to drama school at 18 and trained entirely in stage acting so that’s where I started out. I left drama school a month early to go on a theatre tour, and then I got the part in Brookside for a few months, then I did a play in Southampton, To Catch A Nightingale, and only then did I join Hollyoaks. From then I was in TV for a really long time. TV work kept coming up, and I also think that it’s sometimes quite hard when people see you as a soap actor to get seen for theatre, so it was quite a tough battle to convince everyone that actually I’m a trained stage actress. I didn’t do theatre for 23 years, and then about 4 years ago I went for my first theatre audition for 23 years – to star in A Taste Of Honey at Oldham Coliseum. I got the job and although I suffered the most crippling stage fright I knew I had been missing theatre a lot. Then I did the Caryl Churchill collection at Greenwich, about two years ago, and then the Pinter and now this. So really, I’ve now gone back to my first love.
At least you had the chance to perform at the Coliseum before it closed down. James, Kerrie clearly convinced you of her stage credentials, as this production follows on from the recent Pinter she performed in. How did that partnership come about?
I first met Kerrie at an audition for our Caryl Churchill collection, Bad Nights and Odd Days, a couple of years ago. I tend to cast drama quite instinctively - I’ll take actors through the usual monologue or duologue, but I’m more interested in how quickly I can access their emotional centre, their heart. That sounds quite pretentious, but everything else is technique and can be learnt if it’s not already there. If an actor can feel, is in touch with their ability to feel, and if I can see that near the surface, then I know they’ll be brilliant. They’ll love rehearsal, they’ll be a great company member, they’ll embrace the journey of making a show and they’ll find a love for their character. Kerrie has all of that, and I could see it very quickly. We have now developed a nice shorthand in rehearsal, a mutual trust (I think!) and I love working with her. Hopefully, I’ll get to do it again before too long.
Meanwhile, Kerrie you’re playing Anita in Vincent River who is specifically listed by Ridley as being aged 53, which you haven’t quite reached yet. What’s the attraction of the part?
I’ve never been more excited to undertake a part – it’s quite seriously the best part I’ve ever been offered. She’s been played previously by Linda Bellingham and Louise Jameson - I’m just glad I can’t see those performances and be overwhelmed by seeing such amazing actresses take on the role. There’s a lot in her character and in the story about ships that have sailed and choices that have been made – looking to a future that may contain elements of emptiness – which is surely something that a lot of people in their middle age will experience.
Brandon, you are nowhere near middle age, what appeals to you about performing Vincent River and the character of Davey, who is specifically aged 17?
I’ve realized over the past few years that I really like playing emotionally complex characters. Davey for example is struggling with his identity, his mum is dying, his dad is awful and he’s gone through a major trauma. When I play those sort of characters, exploring their emotional journey, it works as some kind of release and helps me to explore my own emotions; sort of like therapy, I guess. Although Davey is younger than me, the emotions he’s experiencing are no different to those that someone my age might go through. His relationships with other people and how he wants to be seen are all as relevant to me as they could be to a 17-year-old.
Kerrie, it’s a play with an interesting age gap of precisely 36 years. Along with the sensitive issues in the play, what challenges does that pose?
We’ve actually worked out that I’m close in age to Brandon’s mum, but one of the nicest things about a rehearsal process is working out what unites rather than divides us and we’re coming to some major issues in this play from two different points of view, so it’s a pleasure and a privilege to work with a young actor starting his career – and one as good as Brandon – and I get to share the stage with him for his professional debut. What could be better than that?
I get the feeling that there is going to be some intense chemistry between the two of you, that gives this production massive appeal. James, just to wind up, The Greenwich Theatre is also doing funding-raising and bar/studio activities during the run. What are the details of those and how do they fit in with the production?
Yes, in parallel with the themes of the play, with our own commitment to young talent, and to Pride month, we are programming weekly post-show music in the theatre bar, performed by emerging LGBTQ+ artists, and we are raising money for AKT (The Albert Kennedy Trust), a charity working to support lgbtq+ young people aged 16-25 in the UK who are experiencing homelessness or living in a hostile environment.
More reasons to visit Greenwich Theate and to see this production. Many thanks to you all for your time and contributions. We wish you all every success with the production and I look forward to seeing it.
