All-female cast announced for Les Enfants Terribles' Inside Pussy Riot at the Saatchi Gallery
© Denis Sinyakov
The cast has been announced for immersive theatre show Inside Pussy Riot, produced by Les Enfants Terribles and founding Pussy Riot member Nadya Tolokonnikova.
The show's ensemble cast are Alex Gilbert, Alice Ivor, Asha Reid, Beatrice Scirocchi, Cassandra Hercules, Charlotte Newton John, Elena Voce, Emily Stott, Fleur Rooth, Jenny Horsthuis, Marah Stafford, Mollie Lambert, Rebecca Ward, Rosalind McAndrew, Rosie Brears, Sara Hooppell, Tamaira Hesson and Tamsin Dowsett.
Based on Tolokonnikova's incarceration and experiences in Russia, the show will take place at the Saatchi Gallery on the King's Road. The performance invites audience members to put on a balaclava and explore the theatre space, surrounded by the actors and set pieces. The show also marks the 100th anniversary of the Russian Revolution.
Director Christa Harris says: "As Pussy Riot are an all-female, punk, protest group, we felt that this story would best be served by reflecting this in the casting. Of course, being a female is not a prerequisite to being a feminist, but as our cast are playing Pussy Riot playing various roles in the experience (a la Pussy Riot's 2016 music video "Make America Great Again"), this felt like an important artistic and political decision to go forward with."
Olivier Award-nominated company Les Enfants Terribles recently completed a run of their show The Terrible Infants at Wilton's Music Hall. Before this, they also produced immersive production Alice's Adventures Underground.
In 2012, Tolokonnikova was imprisoned for two years for performing 35 seconds of a protest song inside Moscow's Cathedral of Christ the Saviour.
Inside Pussy Riot runs from 16 November to 24 December, with previews from 14 November.
