Author: Solar Wind
MAKE A SCENE YOUNG WRITERS’ SHOWCASE: I.R.L. – July 2026
Over two evenings we presented 12 original scripts written by young playwrights aged 18-30, based in SE London. Performed script in hand by a professional cast of Spontaneous ‘regulars’, themes were diverse, intriguing and all the pieces highly entertaining.
6 plays were presented each evening, all approximately 10-15 mins long and with only three days’ rehearsal in total to stage all 12 pieces. Themes included father/son relationships, language censorship, love in the era of Chatbots and AI avatars, the pressures of modern living on young people and even ancient Indian medicine!
A Long Way From Home – Friday 19 June 2026
2-year funding from London Borough of Lewisham enabled us to stage the third in our series of events marking Lewisham’s becoming Borough of Sanctuary. Partnering this time with Compass Collective, we worked with a very small group of mostly younger refugees, who wrote and performed their own true stories of courage and change, in June 2026.
A mix of theatre, storytelling, music, spoken word and poetry – a wide range of stories explored themes including father-son relationships, immigration battles, personal loss, memory, growth and survival.
The PIED PIPER of Sydenhamelin – Saturday 30 May 2026
With 3-year funding from Postcode Society Trust we created the first of two free events in the Summer of 202: a one-off performance of the classic fairytale featuring local families taking part – children playing the rats and parents playing townspeople.
It was wonderful to see so many families attend the free performance, and references to local shops Wellbeing Healthfood shop and Blackbird Bakery got the desired reaction! The finale with everyone singing and dancing to Pharrell’s Happy as the town celebrated a big party won’t soon be forgotten!
600 Seconds: 7 DEADLY SINS – February 2025
Our Spring season 2025 kicked off with a sell-out scratch night: original playlets set in Purgatory and written by members of our advanced scriptwriting workshop.
- Nurturing new writing and showcasing new voices
- Exploring themes related to the seven deadly sins, including hatred, forgiveness, betrayal, animosity, jealousy, truth and desire
- Featured regular Spontaneous performers
- Audiences and performers love the variety of ‘scratch nights’ – like a box of chocolates you never know what you’re going to get!
Thumbelina: TINY BUT MIGHTY – March 2026
Our first family show of the year was a reimagining of the classic fairy tale, with the heroine transformed into the world’s smallest superhero by magical pollen. Battling a menacing spider, with the help of a hayfever-suffering honeybee, this was a wonderful mash-up of Hans Christian Andersen and the Marvel Universe.
It received some of our most positive audience feedback yet, with many describing it as our best show so far. It incorporated imaginative use of video effects and animation, and with help from Ravensbourne students we had one of the most impressive sets in many years.
Many sell-out performances, with audiences on their feet cheering and dancing at the end.
Many sell-out performances, with audiences on their feet cheering and dancing at the end
THE PRINCESS AND THE PEA / THE ENORMOUS TURNIP – March 2025
We transformed Upstairs at the Sydenham Centre into the Tokyo Museum of Vegetables as we presented our ‘very veggie double-bill’ of THE PRINCESS AND THE PEA & THE ENORMOUS TURNIP – featuring Spontaneous legend Hjalmar Nordén as a giant talking pea.
- Technically innovative – our staging including video projection effects and animation by Joe Kaufman of Red Kite Films
- Featured a special performance from our Japanese intern Hinako Nakamura as museum guard Midori
- First time staging a ‘two fairy tales for the price one’ show
ENDURANCE: THE ERNEST SHACKLETON STORY – April 2025
This was our biggest production to date, at St Bart’s Church. It was a hugely ambitious show about one of Sydenham’s most famous former residents, ERNEST SHACKLETON, and featured a special appearance by Mensun Bound, who led the 2022 expedition to find the Endurance in Antarctica.
- Funding from Backstage Trust enabled us to stage a more ambitious show
- Featured a cast of six Spontaneous regulars
- Was co-written by six members of our advanced ScriptHub scriptwriting workshop
The Three Billy Goats Gruff – May 2025
In June, we returned to Home Park for the first time in two years, for our madcap outdoor production of THE THREE BILLY GOATS GRUFF – featuring a rapping Troll and three very hungry goat siblings. Luckily the weather was on our side this summer – just – and we managed 12 rain free performances!
- Our tenth outdoor show since 2019 and our fourth in Home Park
- Saw us collaborating with puppet maker Adam Boyle and artists Mia Tofil and James Titchner
- Explored themes of redemption and learning empathy
No Place Like Home – June 2025
For Refugee Week in June, we staged the second of our events sharing the true stories of refugees and migrants in Lewisham. NO PLACE LIKE HOME featured folk singers from Ukraine, poets and singers from Lewisham Refugee & Migrant Network’s women’s group, on one of the hottest – sold out – nights of the summer!
- Involved some 30+ participants and four professional performers and creatives
- Was part funded by Lewisham’s NCIL initiative
- Included visual arts elements created by graffiti artist James Titchner