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Snapdragon Productions with Damian Arnold presents
Thark
by Ben Travers, adapted by Clive Francis
Lucy May Barker | Cherry Buck
Richard Beanland | Lionel Frush
Sarah-Jayne Butler | Warner
Claire Cartwright | Kitty Statton
Clive Francis | Sir Hector Benbow
James Dutton | Ronny Gamble
Andrew Jarvis | Jones
Mary Keegan | Lady Benbow
Joanna Wake | Mrs Frush
John Wark | Hook
Clive Francis | Sir Hector Benbow
Clive Francis’ first engagement was in 1966 in There’s a Girl in My Soup at the Globe (Gielgud) Theatre. Over the years he has appeared in a number of West End plays including The Servant of Two Masters, The Return of A. J. Raffles, The Circle, Look After Lulu, The Rear Column, The School for Scandal, The Importance of Being Earnest, Benefactors, What the Butler Saw, Single Spies, An Absolute Turkey, Entertaining Mr Sloane, Enron and most recently The Madness of George III at the Apollo Theatre.
In 1987 Clive Francis joined the National Theatre, appearing in ‘Tis Pity She’s a Whore and A Small Family Business (for which he won the Clarence Derwent award) and in 2010 in Howard Brenton’s Never So Good. He has also appeared in two seasons for the Royal Shakespeare Company, performing in Three Hours after Marriage, Troilus and Cressida and A Christmas Carol.
Over the past four years Clive has toured in Travels with My Aunt, The Dresser, The Hypochondriac, The Reluctant Debutante and in his own adaptations of Three Men in a Boat and Our Man in Havana.
His numerous television appearances include David Copperfield, Entertaining Mr Sloane, Poldark, The Critic, The Far Pavilions, Yes, Prime Minister, Oedipus at Colonus, The Rear Column, Quartermaine’s Terms, The Piglet Files, Lipstick on Your Collar, The 10%ers, Longitude, Pierrepoint, New Tricks and The Queen.
Earlier this year Clive filmed a project for Mike Leigh about the life of Turner.
James Dutton | Ronny Gamble
James trained at LAMDA and the New York Conservatory for Dramatic Arts.
His theatre credits include Other Hands (Riverside Studios), Mrs Warren’s Profession (Off-Broadway), Posh (Duke of York’s), Who Killed ‘Agatha’ Christie? (UK Tour), A Christmas Carol (UK Tour), Noises Off (New York Tour), Brit Bits and Homecoming (MTG Theatre Company, New York).
Film credits include Tourniquet, Depravity and She Said.
Rehearsed readings in New York include Mercury Fur and Beat Generation.
Lucy May Barker | Cherry Buck
Lucy May made her professional debut in 2001 at the age of nine with the UK and International tours of Annie playing the title role.
She made her West End debut at sixteen in the four-time Olivier Award-winning musical Spring Awakening, at the Lyric Hammersmith and the Novello Theatre.
Her most recent work in theatre includes Johanna in Sweeney Todd (Adelphi Theatre and Chichester Festival Theatre), The Crucible (Regents Park Open Air Theatre), Really Old, Like Forty Five and Earthquakes in London (National Theatre) and The Reluctant Debutante (UK Tour).
TV and Film credits include The Impressions Show with Culshaw and Stephenson, Doctors and Scoop! for the BBC, and the feature film The Woman in Black.
Radio includes the dramas Two Girls and The Russian Gambler which she has recently recorded for BBC Radio 4.
Richard Beanland | Lionel Frush
Richard trained at LAMDA. His theatre credits include Dances of Death (Gate Theatre), Flarepath (Theatre Royal Haymarket), Deathtrap (Noel Coward), Bent (Landor Theatre), Generous (Finborough Theatre, directed by Eleanor Rhode), Eyes (New End), Hydriothaphia (Linbury Studuio), The Recruiting Officer (National Tour) and The Gypsy Thread (National Theatre Studio).
His film credits include Steamboat. Rehearsed Readings include Carthage, Photos of You Sleeping and The December Man (L’homme de décembre), (Finborough Theatre).
Sarah-Jayne Butler | Warner
Sarah-Jayne trained at LAMDA. Her theatre credits include This House (National Theatre), The Judas Kiss (Theatre Royal Bath / UK Tour), Summer and Smoke (Southwark Playhouse), The Pitmen Painters (Duchess Theatre), Tim and Light (Lyric Hammersmith and UK Tour), The Wind in the Willows (Theatre503), Enter the Spokeswoman, Gently (UK Premiere for Nabokov), Jackajack (UK Tour), Miss Dorothy.com (Lyric Studio and UK Tour), The Master and Margarita (Lyric Hammersmith) and Murder in the Cathedral (Westminster Cathedral).
Workshops for the National Theatre Studio include Edward II, Mary Rose and From Morning to Midnight.
Film credits include Sherlock Holmes: A Game of Shadows, A Foreplay, Love Me ‘til Monday and Great Expectations.
Television credits include Ashes to Ashes and Downton Abbey.
Claire Cartwright | Kitty Stratton
Claire trained at the Academy of Live and Recorded Arts.
Her theatre credits include Orion’s Hat (Tristan Bates Theatre), Henna Night (Pleasance), The Alchemist (White Bear), The Pitmen Painters (National Tour and the Duchess Theatre) and After Liverpool (The Unicorn Theatre). Film credits include Souljacker.
Andrew Jarvis | Jones
Andrew’s recent theatre credits include The Lord of The Rings (Theatre Royal Drury Lane), The Woman In Black (Fortune Theatre), The Only True History of Lizzie Finn (Southwark Playhouse), Macbeth (Sheffield Crucible), Rosencrantz and Guildenstern Are Dead and The Tempest (Theatre Royal Haymarket). Andrew’s extensive theatre credits includes nine years with the Royal Shakespeare Company including Henry IV Parts 1&2, Henry V, Richard III, Love’s Labour’s Lost, As You Like It, A Midsummer Night’s Dream, The Merry Wives of Windsor, The Winter’s Tale, Antony and Cleopatra, The Accrington Pals, Peter Pan, Our Friends In The North, The Twin Rivals, The Witch Of Edmonton, Money and Camille.
Andrew has completed many years of repertory seasons with Phoenix Theatre Leicester, Castle Theatre Farnham, Leeds Playhouse, Ipswich Theatre, Royal Lyceum Theatre Edinburgh, Harrogate Theatre, Birmingham Rep, Bristol Old Vic, Stephen Joseph Theatre Scarborough, Haymarket Theatre Leicester and the Sheffield Crucible.
Andrew was with the English Shakespeare Company for six years, during which time he performed in Henry IV Parts 1 & 2, Henry V, Henry VI Parts 1, 2 & 3, Richard II, Richard III (for which he won Best Actor in the Manchester Evening News Theatre Awards), Coriolanus, The Winter’s Tale and A Midsummer Night’s Dream. Credits with the National Theatre include The Alchemist and The Merry Wives of Windsor.
Mary Keegan | Lady Benbow
Mary’s theatre credits include The Last Confession (So and So Arts Club), The Girls of Slender Means (Edinburgh Festival), Shakespeare Review (The Waterside), Saturday Night (White Bear), Noises Off (The Torch Theatre), Perfect Pie (Stellar Quines Theatre), Memory of Water (Stellar Quines Theatre, Tron, Traverse and Kilkenny Festival), Habeas Corpus, Measure for Measure, Little Malcolm, Mary Rose, The Lion in Winter and You Never Can Tell (Salisbury Playhouse), Top Dogs (UK Tour) The Merchant of Venice (Cheltenham Everyman), Once a Catholic, Whose Life is it Anyway?, Dusa, Fish, Stas and Vi, Sisterly Feelings (Westcliffe), Macbeth, Coming Ashore in Guadaloupe, Twelfth Night, Cyrano de Bergerac, Hamlet, Duchess of Malfi, As You Like It, (Cherub Theatre Company), Live Like Pigs (Royal Court) and Eyes in the Big City /Just Brecht (Edinburgh Festival, King’s Head, New End, Covent Garden Festival and Dublin Festival).
Radio and voice over credits include The Last Dare (BBC Radio 4), Talking Notes (Coliseum) and The Nutcracker (Royal Opera House).
Audio descriptions for the National Theatre include The Birthday Party, The Wind in the Willows, La Grande Magia and An Inspector Calls.
Joanna Wake | Mrs Frush
After her training at RADA, Joanna worked in repertory theatre all over the UK, and was then invited to work with Jaques Tati in Paris. Returning to England she worked with Pop Theatre, Prospect Theatre Company and the Cambridge Theatre company among others.
In 1971 she joined the Young Vic as a founding member. Her television credits at that time included Separate Tables, The Girl Opposite and The Avengers.
West End and Broadway theatre credits include Bible One (Albery Theatre), A Winter’s Tale (Cambridge Theatre), The Shot in Question (Duchess Theatre), Getting Married (Strand), Dangerous Corner (Ambassadors) and Tom’s Midnight Garden (Victoria Theatre, New York).
Joanna is an experienced voice artist and was a member of the BBC Drama Company. Her recent television work includes Grafters, The Vet, The Chase, Family Affairs, Doctors and Hustle.
Most recent theatre includes The Marrying of Ann Leete (Orange Tree), Unless (Stephen Joseph Theatre Scarborough) and The Holly and the Ivy (UK Tour).
Earlier this year she took part in ‘Equal Writes’ at the Tristan Bates Theatre, working towards better writing for women performers.
John Wark | Hook
John trained at RADA.
His theatre credits include The Winter Guest (West Yorkshire Playhouse/ Almeida Theatre), Nobody Will Ever Forgive Us (National Theatre of Scotland/Traverse Theatre), Dog in the Manger, Tamar’s Revenge and Pedro The Great Pretender (Royal Shakespeare Company), Tamburlaine (Bristol Old Vic/Barbican), The Fear of Breathing and Jamie the Saxt (Finborough Theatre), The Only Girl in The World (Arcola Theatre), The Torchsong Trilogy (Tron Theatre).
Television credits include The Ten Commandments, Robin Hood, Taggart and GForce.
Film credits include A Little Chaos, The Fitzroy, Within the Woods, The Oxford Murders, Late Night Shopping and Breaking the Waves.