SUNNYMEAD COURT Comes to the Tristan Bates Theatre

Following the announcement from government that indoor theatre can return with social distancing, Defibrillator, in association with The Actors Centre, today announces the cast for the world première of Gemma Lawrence's new play Sunnymead Court - the playwright Gemma Lawrence will play Marie, and will be joined by Remmie Milner as Stella in this uplifting and heart-warming queer romance. The production, generously supported by Arts Council England, continues the collaboration between Lawrence and Defibrillator's James Hillier following the critically acclaimed Not Talking at the Arcola Theatre.

The production opens at the Tristan Bates Theatre at The Actors Centre on 24 September, with previews from 22 September, and runs until 3 October. Social distancing measures will be in operation at the Tristan Bates Theatre and throughout The Actors Centre, with a maximum capacity of 28 seats for each performance, with tickets available in singles or pairs only. All patrons, unless they have a known medical condition, will be required to wear a mask at the venue, and for the duration of the 45minute performance.

For full details on the measures implemented to ensure audience safety and wellbeing, please see: https://www.actorscentre.co.uk/news/covid-19-safety-procedures-for-sunnymead-court.

Also, acknowledging the new normal, as of today tickets go on sale for the live stream of Sunnymead Court where audiences can catch the show on Thursday, Friday and Saturday evenings.

From her balcony, Marie blasts out the same tune, every day at 11am. On hers, Stella tends to red geraniums bursting with colour and life.

Sometimes the hardest thing is to say hello.

After a chance encounter in a hailstorm, they start to embark on a new relationship conducted from the safety of their balconies. But when a flurry of miscommunication jeopardises their relationship, will they have the courage to make it work in a world that is changing faster than ever?

Gemma Lawrence is a writer and actor, and plays Marie. Previous writing includes straight vodka for Theatre503's Rapid Write Response, Ribbons performed at Bloom Theatre's SAPLINGS, and REWILD, performed at Omnibus Theatre and now being developed into a full-length piece as part of the London Playwrights 2020 programme. Homecoming was commissioned for The Space's Locked Down Looking Up season, and starred Patsy Ferran. As an actor, her theatre work includes Not Talking (Arcola Theatre), Five Plays: Nuclear (Young Vic), Wasted (Orange Tree Theatre), All My Sons (Hong Kong Arts Festival), The Tempest (Southwark Playhouse), As You Like It, Children of the Sun (National Theatre), Much Ado About Nothing (Shakespeare's Globe), Gaslight (Salisbury Playhouse), Lee Harvey Oswald (Finborough Theatre), XY: Hopelessly Devoted To You (Theatre503), The Cherry Orchard (Bristol Tobacco Factory, Rose Theatre), Les Liaisons Dangereuses (Redgrave Theatre), The Wild Party (Bristol Tobacco Factory), and Rough Cuts: The Lion's Mouth (Royal Court Theatre). Her television credits include Shakespeare and Hathaway, 18 - Clash of Futures, Luther, Misfits, 1066, Waking the Dead, Time of Your Life, Stir it Up, All About George, and Ahead of the Class. For film, her credits include Frail, A Bunch of Amateurs, and Enlightenment.

Remmie Milner plays Stella. For theatre, her work includes Coriolanus, Chicken Soup. (Sheffield Theatres), Terror (Lyric Hammersmith), To Kill a Mockingbird, The Winter's Tale, #chipshopthemusical (Octagon Theatre, Bolton), Home Theatre (Theatre Royal Stratford East), I Started a Fire, Air Travel (Arcola Theatre), Melody Loses Her Mojo (Liverpool Playhouse), Contractions, Henry V (Trafalgar Studios) and Richard III (RSC Complete Works Festival). Her television work includes Save Me and Save Me Too (as series regular Daisy), A Christmas Carol, Philip K. Dick's Electric Dreams: The Hood Maker, Whitechapel, Trollied and The Hour.

James Hillier established Defibrillator Theatre Company in 2011. His directing credits include, most recently Jeffrey Bernard is Unwell (site specific production at Norman's Coach & Horses) , the world première of Mike Bartlett's Not Talking (Arcola Theatre - OFFIE Nomination for Best Director), A Lie of the Mind by Sam Shepard (Southwark Playhouse), Terry Johnson's Insignificance at Langham Place, New York, the Premiere production of Tennessee Williams' The Hotel Plays at the Grange Hotel in 2012 and The Langham, London in 2014. The Armour by Ben Ellis at The Langham in 2015 which won the Audience Experience Award at Le Miami Rebels, Doug Lucie's Hard Feelings at the Finborough in 2013. He has directed a number of short films, including How To Make A Good First Impression Part 1 went on to win awards at Tribecca Film Festival and Cannes. He was due to direct the world première of Dexter Flanders at Theatre503 when the Covid-19 lockdown was enforced. He trained as an actor at RADA. In theatre he has worked in the West End and Broadway, and venues including The National Theatre, Almeida Theatre, Bush Theatre, Young Vic, Manchester Royal Exchange and Traverse Theatre, Edinburgh. For television, he was a series regular in season 1 and 2 of The Crown for NETFLIX.

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