Les Enfants Terribles Announce Casting For THE TRENCH At Southwark Playhouse

Les Enfants Terribles announce casting for World War One drama "THE TRENCH" which will have a strictly limited run at Southwark Playhouse from Wednesday 10 October to Saturday 17 November 2018. Press Night is Tuesday 16 October 2018.

"THE TRENCH" is inspired by the true story of a miner, 'Burt' who became entombed in a tunnel during World War One. The full cast is Oliver Lansley as 'Burt'; Edward Cartwright, Kadell Herida and James Hastings with live music from Alexander Wolfe.

As the horror threatens to engulf him, Burt discovers another world beneath the mud and death. Setting off on an epic journey of salvation, the boundaries between reality and fantasy blur as he questions what's real, what's not and whether it even matters?

The play is making its London debut as the country commemorates the First World War Centenary. On Sunday 11 November there will be a special performance at 3.00pm.

Written by Oliver Lansley (Les Enfants Terribles' Artistic Director), "THE TRENCH" blends physical storytelling, verse, puppetry and live music. The play is Co-Directed by Oliver Lansley and James Seager (Les Enfants Terribles' Producer) with designs by Samuel Wyer, Lighting Designs by Paul Green and original soundtrack written and performed live by Alexander Wolfe.

Oliver Lansley is the founder and Artistic Director of Les Enfants Terribles and writes nearly all of their productions. Work includes: "The Game's Afoot", "Alice's Adventures Underground", "The Terrible Infants", "The Trench" and "The Vaudevillains". Oliver has worked across film, television and theatre, as an actor, writer and director. As an actor he notably played Kenny Everett in the BAFTA-winning "The Best Possible Taste" for which he was nominated as Best Actor award at the RTS awards. Other credits include:" Dr Who"; "Vanity Fair" and "Sherlock". Theatre credits include: "The Quiet House" (Birmingham Rep); "The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance" (Park Theatre); and lead roles in many productions with Les Enfants Terribles. A past winner of Channel Four's Multi-Talented Award and a Broadcast Magazine Hotshot, Oliver is an accomplished film and television writer, co-creating BBC2 series "Whites", and ITV2 series "FM". His new television show "Flack", which his has written and created stars Anna Paquin, Sophie Okenado and Lydia Wilson and will air in the U.K. and USA in January 2019.

Edward Cartwright returns to The Trench having previously appeared in the production at the Edinburgh Fringe Festival in 2012. He has previously performed at the Southwark Playhouse as 'Dr. Watson' in "A Study In Scarlet" with Tacit Theatre Company. His other theatre credits include: 'Laertes' in "Hamlet" for Backstroke Theatre, in a solo clown show for Familia Del La Noche's "Beadledom: Alpha at the Fringe" and as 'God' in the "Celestial Ape" at the Vaults festival. He has also played 'Sherlock Holmes' in "How Sherlock Changed The World" for Love Productions and PBS on American Netflix. Closer to home, he appeared in Julian Fellows' "Dr. Thorne" on ITV.

James Hastings graduated from Rose Bruford College this year. His theatre credits whilst training include Chazz in "Wondertown"; The Proprietor & Lee Harvey Oswald in "Assassins"; Misha in "Children of the Sun"; "Sunday in the Park with George" (The Other Palace, NYMT); and Antonio in "The Merchant of Venice".

Kadell Herida trained at the BRIT School and Rose Bruford College, graduating in 2016. He is making his theatrical debut in "The Trench" and will soon appear on TV screens in the popular BBC1 soap "Eastenders".

Alexander Wolfe is a songwriter, composer, artist and long-time collaborator of Les Enfants Terribles. To date he has released three solo albums, a critically-acclaimed debut (Morning Brings a Flood), an intimate follow-up (Skeletons) & his recent & most ambitious work, 2015's From The Shallows. The Sunday Times declared his albums 'Beautiful', Q and Uncut awarding them 4 stars and The New York Post was evangelical in its praise, stating that his debut was 'The most beautiful album heard in years, Period'. He has shared stages with illustrious names such as Paul Weller, Feist, Jamie Cullum and Vampire Weekend as well as writing scores for television and film. His previous work with Les Enfant Terribles includes "Alice's Adventures Underground" for which he composed and performed 'The Mock Turtles Lament'. Alexander returns to "The Trench" having previously performed in Edinburgh Fringe Festival in 2012 and 2014.

James Seager is Les Enfants Terrible's Producer and Director. Involved initially as an actor, he moved to producing and directing shows in 2005. He has produced many award-winning shows for the company including "The Infant" and "Immaculate", and "The Terrible Infants" which he also directed and returned for a sell out last year. In 2009 he produced "Ernest and the Pale Moon" for its UK tour. In 2010 he directed the award winning "The Vaudevillains" which returned in 2016. In 2015 he co-directed and produced Les Enfants Terribles most successful show to date, "Alice's Adventures Underground" which was seen by over 95,000 people and was nominated for an Olivier award. It returned to London in 2017 in London and opened in Shanghai this year. Other immersive shows include directing" The Game's Afoot" and producing "Dinner at the Twits".

Les Enfants Terribles' work includes award-winning, international stage shows such as "The Trench", "The Terrible Infants" and "The Vaudevillians"; ground-breaking immersive work including Olivier-nominated "Alice's Adventures Underground", "Dinner at the Twits" and "Inside Pussy Riot"; innovative outdoor family touring work such as "The Marvellous Imaginary Menagerie" and "The Fantastical Flying Exploratory Laboratory"; and large-scale public events and installations in the corporate and cultural sectors for the likes of The British Library and the V&A. Run by Oliver Lansley and James Seager the company is dedicated to creating original, innovative and exciting theatre.