wake up, maggie

Wake Up, Maggie is All Things Considered Theatre’s second collaboration with writer and performer Stuart Crowther. Directed by Sarah Hogarth this autobiographical performance explores Emma and Stuart's reflections on their own class status. We had lots of discussions about what we could create together and the idea came from a photo Stuart had taken of an empty stage, a microphone and a chair. From the very start we wanted this to be a stripped down performance, ourselves laid bare on the stage sharing our stories about growing up in the late 80's in London and the early 90's in Rochdale.

The performance centres around Emma's attempts to try and join Stuart at the local working men's club for a pint and a karaoke song. Whilst Stuart is certain he belongs there, Emma is less clear. When creating the work we explored what it meant to 'belong' to a class and the impact it has to feel 'classless' in a culture which places us so firmly within these set definitions. Emma grew up with a working class father and an upper class mother. Her experiences of living on the dole, wearing second hand clothes yet holidaying in different properties owned by her mothers parents led to her lack of clearly defined class status and essentially a sense of belonging.

Using karaoke, spoken word, clowning and other silliness in the form of a duet with Tom Cruise the performance questions if class can be as easily defined as the quizes we see so often citing music taste or how many times you've been to the opera. It asks the audience to define their own class and begins to question ideas around social mobility. Within all of this we were determined that it would be a celebration of our working class experience and the people, places and experiences that defined our childood experiences. We had a ball and we are so pleased the audience did too!

written by emma bramley & stuart crowther

director : sarah hogarth

sound design & visuals : stephen Hull

This is a high energy celebration – and sometimes lamentation – for a past time, studded with Vaudevillian touches, pop karaoke, performance poetry, dance, monologue, flashback and (day) dream sequences, and references a dizzying kaleidoscope of familiar ‘80's images and sounds from TV adverts, soaps and political footage.

Number 9 Reviews

Wake Up, Maggie! is a delight of a show. It’s funny, authentic, affectionate, and one of the most nuanced takes on class identity I’ve seen for a long while

She Wolf Blog Review

This is a beautifully judged show that is nostalgic without rose tinting the reality. As the company strive to socially engage their audiences they will no doubt be aware that studies show that nostalgia can enhance feelings of social connectedness, something that is increasingly important in times of austerity, lit by smartphone lights with the ever present undercurrent of Brexit.

North West End *****