About the Show

Stories to make you jump…tales to chill the blood…playlets to give you the fright of your life!

FRIGHTENERS came back once again to scare the living daylights out of south-east London.

Seven original short plays by playwrights including siblings Jonathan Kaufman, Julian Kaufman and Lucy Kaufman, and members of Jonathan’s advanced scriptwriting class, were staged over four nights Upstairs at the Sydenham Centre in November 2019.

Including adaptations of classic tales by Dickens and Poe, expect shocks galore, creepy atmospheres and a growing sense of menace…you have been warned!

The Plays

• Shall I Be Mother? by Darren Bird
• The Nightmare by Jonathan Kaufman
• Three Wise Monkeys adapted by Lucy Kaufman from a story by Chris Murray
• Waiting Room by Julian Kaufman
• The Puppet Master by Lucy Kaufman
• The Strange Tale of W. W. by Jane Walker, inspired by Edgar Allan Poe’s short story
• The Signalman adapted by Ida Tidy from the short story by Charles Dickens

The Cast

The Audience Reviews

What audiences have said about our previous shows:

• “Spontaneous Productions is the National Theatre of SE26. Always surprising, always impressive, always entertaining.’ Matthew Sweet, author and broadcaster
• “Brilliant – heart-rending. What a fabulous production” (Audience comment for Eye of Day: The Mata Hari Story)
• “Huge congratulations to the mega talented Lucy Kaufman for writing, and Jonathan Kaufman for directing such an emotional and timely homage to the incredible woman …. I had shivers…Incredible cast. Mind blowing acting. Simply set; ever affecting.” (Audience comment for Eleanor Marx: The Jewess of Jews Walk)

The Gallery