Somewhere in middle England four awkward teenagers are preparing for judgement day with ladders, Elvis and Forest Fruits squash - Stokely’s annual talent competition is nigh. With a stage full of instruments and an eclectic mix of live music, Little Bulb Theatre captures the confusing, awkward and beautifully naïve time of adolescence. The time when the once simple beliefs you held dear need re-adjusting to face the complexities of adulthood.

Commissioned by and developed at BAC, Operation Greenfield was the winner of a prestigious Herald Angel Award at Edinburgh Festival 2010, as well as receiving Total Theatre, Holden Street and Stage Acting Excellence Award nominations. Returning to the theme of growing up as explored in their Fringe First and Herald Angel Award winning Crocosmia, and demonstrating their great skill as musicians, Little Bulb presents a funny and touching study of faith and friendship. The show also represents their most ambitious exploration so far of the interplay of music and theatre.

 

World-class athletics coach and award-winning writer Tom McNab depicts the lead-up to one of the most controversial sporting events in history. 1936 conjures up the conversations and conflicts leading up to the Berlin Olympics, as seen through the eyes of American journalist William Shirer. Juxtaposing scenes between Hitler and Goebbels with the discussions taking place in the International Olympic Committee and the American Amateur Athletics Union, the play reveals the political and cultural tensions surrounding the event and highlights the stories of the athletes involved, with Jesse Owens at the centre.  

The Berlin Games were the first time that the Olympics were used as a powerful political tool for propaganda. In spite of Hitler’s treatment of the Jews and Jewish athletes, and lengthy debates amongst influential figures surrounding the Games, no boycott took place. Could the cancellation of the Games have changed world history? 1936 is a pertinent reminder of the political dimension of the Olympics, as the London 2012 Olympic and Paralympic Games begin.   

Every performance of the play is followed by short film excerpts from Leni Riefenstahl’s Olympia (1936) and a discussion chaired by Tom McNab with a panel drawn from cast members, historians and ex-Olympians such as Peter Radford and Geoff Capes.