Tristan Bernays (OMT, 2003)
'Four Star Rating' at the Southwark Playhouse

Tristan Bernays, this years Duologue adjudicator  has scored a major hit on the off-West End theatre circuit with his creative mixture of performance piece and musical – Teddy.

Inspired by the 2011 riots, the piece evokes the “Rock Around the Clock” riots of 1956 at the Trocadero that followed screenings of A Blackboard Jungle. Set in the Elephant and Castle during the 1950s, Teddy tells the story of two teenage kids, Josie and Teddy to the soundtrack of “Johnny Valentine and the Broken Hearts” – a mythical rock ‘n roll band that in part acts as chorus. Tristan says, “They are part of the action, they weave in and out of it, and they’re engaged with the audience as well.”

Virtually every major London paper gave the piece a (much-coveted) “four star” rating and it has played to packed houses at the Southwark Playhouse. The British Theatre review described it as, “a punchy, lyrical ride though the dark and damaged world of 1950s London. Featuring a blistering live performance from Johnny Valentine and The Broken Hearts and an electrifying original score by Dougal Irvine”.

Tristan left MTS to graduate from Bristol and then trained at LAMDA. A recent article in ‘The Stage’ notes that his, writing is characterised by a willingness to experiment with verse, and that Teddy is much more free form, jazzy, and playful – all rather reminiscent of his winning duologues performance in 2002 with Raj Gathani.

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