Naima Khan talks to theatre maker, actor, event organiser and Londoner Lennie Varvarides about this fine city.
Lennie Varvarides is the woman behind MSFT, a theatre company that eradicates the lines between the producer, the performer and the audience of a show. Don't expect to talk to Lennie without talking frankly. There are no bushes to beat around here, Lennie wants to get to the point, and get to the point she will. So, here's Lennie on London:
No other place to struggle
"North London is home. Like everyone who lives in London knows, it's really hard. It's really hard to work and to balance everything you love. There's always a sacrifice for living London but I don't think I could be anywhere else in the country. So as hard as it is being creative in this city, there's no other place I'd want to struggle.”
The lure of London
"It's something that London and New York have and it's romanticised through the film and music industries. The big city gives a sense of hope. I think that's what London is. As much as we all complain about it, it's also our heartbeat and you feel really alive when you're here. That's part of the addiction, getting that rush; it's what London offers, that constant adrenaline rush.”
A little bit skin and bone
"Passing Clouds in Dalston has its own open mic night and it's in this strange building that has no door and staircases that seem to keep on going. Seriously, you'll be looking for the door thinking 'how do I get in here?' It's not on top of a bar or anything; actually maybe it is on top of a bar. It's a little bit raw. Because I know how hard it is to put on an event, I like places that are a little bit skin and bone where there is nothing apart from the art.
Another place is the Troy Bar in Hoxton. They have a lot of open mic nights for singers and they've been on the circuit for a long time. People know to go there to find producers or meet other creatives. They also do the best Carribean food there. I've put on events there and I really like the guy who runs it. I don't think it gets visited enough 'cos it's not like the rest of glitzy Shoreditch."
London's collective unconscious
"The Collective Unconscious (in New York) was basically a shop front with a basement and an office and they just decked it out as a theatre and anything. And when I say anything, I mean anything happened there. From the most extreme form of performance art to regular fringe theatre. It was almost like everyone who was slightly odd in New York seemed to gather in this place and I feel really luck that I was part of that madness. So I became a member, and once you become a a member you can use the space as you wish. So every Monday I'd run my acting class – keep in mind I never studied acting.
"I haven't experienced anything as random as the The Collective Unconscious here but The Foundry had the energy of what it was about. Just any kind of person doing any kind of thing and it was a little run down but exciting at the same time."
Lennie's projects
MSFT hosts Sunday Surgery a workshop for directors, actors, and writers who want to work together on existing scripts. Lennie and MSFT are also responsible for SpeechMotion, a showcase of performance and film with an open mic section. DYS-PLA, a festival of theatre by dyslexic playwrights is her next big venture kicks off on November 2nd.
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