Scytheplays Ltd and Lass Productions are delighted to announce that their collaboration Together in Electric Dreams is to return for the fourth year in a row, this time touring a number of locations in the North West for eight performances during July as part of both the Greater Manchester and Buxton Fringe festivals.
Written by Daniel Thackeray from an idea by Gareth Kavanagh, the acclaimed comedy drama play is inspired by a remarkable true story. In 1983 computing pioneer Clive Sinclair was knighted for his services to the British electronics industry, but following a number of disastrous new products such as the infamous C5 electric car, by 1986 his company Sinclair Electronics was facing bankruptcy. Meanwhile the industry's new leading figure had arisen: a former East End trader named Alan Sugar, with his company Amstrad. The only hope for Sir Clive now is that he can negotiate a rescue deal with his arch-rival over dinner in Sugar's chosen venue - a Japanese karaoke restaurant.
Glowing with nostalgia for the music and technology of the 1980s, Together in Electric Dreams charts a comic and poignant encounter between two very different businessmen, as the gentlemanly Sir Clive must navigate the hostile waters of East End pragmatism and Eastern cuisine in a desperate bid to save his company. The Manchester Evening News praised the play's original production in 2012, and it has been a big success with critics and audiences ever since ("will leave you with a song in your heart" said the Fiction Stroker; "a brilliant sense of fun and intrigue" said The Public Reviews' Tracey Lowe). Last year it played to a delighted crowd at Blackpool's Play Expo Retro Gaming convention (you can see a video of the ersatz Alan and Sir Clive, in his C5 no less, investigating the rest of the convention here).
The show will be reuniting a tried and tested team with Matthew O'Neill playing Alan and Daniel Thackeray Sir Clive, as in all previous stagings. The Ray Harryhausen Skeleton Orchestra actor and playwright of 2013's Buxton Fringe hit Diabetic Penguins, Jess Lee, will play waitress Akiko, as she has since 2013. Scytheplays stalwart Peter M George will also be handling technical duties once again.
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| The Together in Electric Dreams team at last year's Play Expo in Blackpool: (clockwise L-R) producer Gareth Kavanagh, Jess Lee (Akiko), Matthew O'Neill (Alan) and in the C5, technician Peter M George sitting on Daniel Thackeray (Sir Clive). Photo: Sara Thornton |
The full programme of performances will be as follows:
Wednesday 1st July - The Swan, Dobcross, Saddleworth, 8pm (tickets bookable here)
Thursday 2nd July - Oldham Library Performance Space, Oldham, 7.30pm (booking information coming soon)
Thursday 9th July - The Pauper's Pit, Buxton, 10pm (booking information coming soon)
Tuesday 14th July - The Albert Square Chop House, Manchester, 6pm and 8pm (tickets bookable here)
Thursday 16th July - The Pauper's Pit, Buxton, 10pm (booking information coming soon)
Sunday 19th July - The Pauper's Pit, Buxton, 1.15pm (booking information coming soon)
Sunday 22nd July - The Pauper's Pit, Buxton, 1.15pm (booking information coming soon)
The Saddleworth and Manchester performances are part of the Greater Manchester Fringe Festival. The Buxton performances are part of the Buxton Festival Fringe and are produced with the cooperation of Underground Venues and Three's Company. Both festivals are packed with other exciting events and their full programmes are well worth checking out!
After a quiet year or so, Scytheplays Ltd are delighted to be returning to action... and hope to announce more projects later this year!
