Contains strong language

About the Apothecary

With only seven lines, the Apothecary is more plot device than character.  He is a “necessary evil” to explain how Romeo gets the poison to make his exit, and beyond us learning that “times is hard” and it’s illegal to sell poison, his moral dilemma is brief: “My poverty but not my will consents”.  An actor would normally expect to “double” this part with, say, The Prince, and perhaps it’s only Smike’s twisted rendition of the role in “Nicholas Nickleby” that has made it more memorable. But what if The Apothecary had “previous”? A life before the play, or afterwards, even today?  

About the writer

Chris learned to write at an embarrassingly late age. His career peaked when he won a competition for the Spectator magazine to write an article without using the letter “e” (as a nod to the French novel La Disparition by Georges Perec which managed to do the same – but over 300 pages). The prize was a delicious bottle of malt whisky. He has adapted poems and books for performance and written several sketches which have not yet seen the light of day. He normally finds performers and the interpreters of his work delightful and creative; this one was demanding and a right pain. As Perec might have said: “Jamais again”… 

Company

Biographies

Chris Hollis

Chris is an actor, writer, trainer and director who studied at Webber Douglas after reading English at St. Andrews. Theatre: MAMMA MIA!, RSC: Les Liaisons Dangereuses, Twelfth Night. What the Butler Saw, Ivanov, Much Ado About Nothing, Richard III, Murder in the Cathedral, The Nightingales, My Cousin Rachel. Chichester Festival Theatre: Translations, The Tempest, The Relapse, The Royal Baccarat Scandal. PSF: A Midsummer Night’s Dream, Macbeth, The Merry Wives of Windsor, Henry V, The Taming of the Shrew. Directing: West Side Story, Oh What a Lovely War!, Grease, Honk, Just So, Guys & Dolls. TV: Das Boot (Series 2), A Touch of Frost, EastEnders, The Bill, Life Begins, Brookside, A Serpent in Eden, Take A Girl Like You.

Freddie Hill

Freddie trained with the Chichester Festival Youth Theatre (2014-18) as well as receiving qualifications from LAMDA. He’s also a filmmaker, with his most recent short film, Unforgettable, on Amazon Prime. Recent theatre credits include Jordan (The Red Lion, Sean Turner, South East Tour), Peter (Peter Pan, Chichester Festival Theatre), Louis the Dauphin (Henry V, Petersfield Shakespeare Festival), Raleigh (Journey’s End, Priory Playhouse), Tink (Peter Pan, Capitol Theatre), Guildenstern and Gravedigger (Hamlet, Petersfield Shakespeare Festival & Brighton Open Air); Ray (Citizenship, The Capitol); Arthur (Return To Sender, Minerva, Chichester Festival Theatre). Screen work includes; Riz (High Water, Feature, Ewan Gorman); Arthur (Scouts Honour, TV Pilot), Tom (Ping Pong, Short, Gemma Norton) and Unforgettable, a short which he directed, now available to stream on Amazon Prime. Freddie is currently involved in the development of a drama based on Shakespeare and Marlowe, as well as the production of a new feature film.

Nicole Small

Nicole trained in Period Costume Making and Design in Liverpool. She is a costume cutter/maker,
supervisor and designer for film, theatre, opera and ballet both here and in the USA. Work includes principal costumes for all five Pirates of the Caribbean films, most of Tim Burton’s films including Dumbo, the Red and White Queens in Alice in Wonderland and Through the Looking Glass, Johnny Depp’s costumes in Dark Shadows, Men in Black:International and a new Netflix period drama. Theatre work includes Twelfth Night at the Royal National Theatre, Romeo & Juliet at The Globe. Earlier this year she worked on costumes for the Disney film The Little Mermaid and is currently
cutting costumes for one of the lead characters in the upcoming London stage musical of Frozen. 

Alastair Gavin

Alastair is a keyboardist, composer and arranger. He has composed for theatre, dance and TV/film. He has worked as a keyboardist for artists ranging from Mari Wilson to Michael Nyman and on various West End shows – until Aug 2016 he was assistant musical director for Mamma Mia! in the West End. In Nov 2018 Warner Chappells released his album Weathered Stone, ambient electronic music made with vintage analogue instruments. His next albums for this project, composed on two writing retreats in the Red House, Aldeburgh, awarded by the Britten Pears Foundation in 2019, are due for release later this year. With his wife poet Cheryl Moskowitz he runs the All Saints Sessions poetry & electronics performance series in North London. www.alastairgavin.com