Production photos by Bec Austin

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Set and Costume Design for a Play | White Bear Theatre

Directed by Harry Burton
Written by Harold Pinter
Adaptation by Kerry Lee Crabbe
Lighting Design by Chuma Emembolu
Composition & Sound by Julian Starr

Cast: Ossian Perret, Denise Laniyan, Joseph Potter, Charlie MacGechan

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Set in 1950s Hackney, post-war East End young men, the first generation to have not fought in WWII, battle with their youth, Jewish identities and troubled mental health against a brave new world. Juxtaposed with Virginia, whose calm presence brings a balance to their lives.

One of Pinter’s earliest plays, loosely based on Pinter’s own youth, The Dwafs went through various iterations and in it’s nature doesn’t sit in a traditional play format. I was able to take a huge amount of influence from my own family’s heritage, with my Granfather being of almost the exact age of these characters, as an Eastern European immigrant working in the ‘rag trade’ in Hackney. So I was able to pull on influences including photos and stories of his friends alongside photos of Pinter and the real ‘Dwarfs’.

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“This is pub theatre at its most atmospheric and designer Isabella Van Braeckel has run with that too. ‘Scene changes’ from one room to another elide effortlessly […] an arresting and insightful evening”

Judi Herman, Jewish Renaissance

“The fifties  music adds to the period feeling, as does the fact that the men wear suits and proper leather shoes. Costume design by Isabella van Braeckel who has also designed the set. – a seedy room in  Notting Hill Gate. before it got posh. ”

Aline Waites, Pyekan

Nominated for 5 Offie awards in 2022, including Best Production
2x Winner of Best Ensemble – Broadway World, Standing Ovation
Top 10 Shows of the Year – London Pub Theatre Magazine

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