“Muscle” is the latest theatrical creation by award winning Welsh Playwright and Director Greg Cullen in collaboration with Movement Director Phil Williams. Billed as, “An all male fusion of theatre, dance, music and documentary” the piece is based upon interviews with males of all ages across Wales. Whilst most of the interviews were filmed for the show, some were too explosive and personal to be identifiable.
“People will talk to a playwright”, says Greg, “in ways they wouldn’t to a journalist. My job has been to interpret their stories and create drama from them. At other points I just leave the stories to be told pretty much as they were said to me”. The stories are sometimes heartbreaking, uplifting, celebratory, or hilarious, but all come from real voices. The aim of the project is to depict the lives of contemporary men and boys, to look at the changing nature of masculine expectations in a positive, questioning, but entertaining way.
The show is on at Chapter Arts Centre, Cardiff on Friday 15th and Saturday 16th at 8pm, with a special performance for funding organisations, professionals and venue managers at 2.30pm on Friday.
The cast comprises eleven of Wales’s finest actors and dancers, some such as Hugh Thomas, Gareth Potter and Jams Thomas are well known, if not legendary, performers, whilst others such as Jordan Bernade, Kyle Lima, Liam Harris and Greg’s son Tom Cullen are recent graduates of the Royal Welsh College of Music and Drama. The cast also includes two performers perhaps better known for their music skills, Sule Rimi and Imran Khan. Jake Ingram-Dodd and Phil Williams are dance specialists who complete this eclectic cast. Perhaps one of the most unusual aspects of the production is going to be seeing such a large, all male, cast onstage.
Another will be the use of the actual interviews cut into the live drama and dance with new music composed by dance music pioneer Gareth Evans.
“I wanted to make a piece of theatre, the like of which I haven’t seen before”, said Greg. “The rehearsals have been great fun, although at times we have all been profoundly moved by the testimony of these men of Wales. I hope both come across in performance”.
It is hoped that “Muscle” will be toured throughout Wales, but for now this is the only chance to see this revolutionary fusion approach to theatre making. Already being billed as a show not to be missed by national newspapers you best be quick to book by phoning Chapter Arts Centre on 02920 304400.
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