Country Life's - Best of British Theatre Company, June 17th 2009
"Christopher Hart may not have a theatrical background but this did not deter him from forming a theatre company. It put on it's first production - The Rivals - at Wroxton Abbey last year, and when it was taken to the Henley Fringe Festival, both company and director earned a gold medal.
Mr Hart runs the eponymous company with his daughter, Tori, who is an actress. 'It was when Tori was at Central School of Speech and Drama that I had the idea. I was amazed at the talent there, but I was also conscious that a lot of these young people were finding it difficult to get work.' Mr. Hart hoped to achieve two things: 'Georgian and Restoration theatre is my interest. It was my wish to give young, talented actors some work and revive some of these old plays.' The company recently performed Colley Cibber's Love's Last Shift in London and will be taking it to various open-air venues in the summer. As Tori explains: 'Restoration comedies work so well outside. They have larger-than-life characters with big booming voices, and everything is big, bawdy and lots of fun.'
Mr. Hart is keen to play down his part in the operation: 'I'm the executive producer. I find the money to keep the whole thing going. It's not about me. It's about the very talented people we work with, and this includes the production team as well as the actors.' Nor is the company a vehicle for an actress daughter. Tori explains: 'if there isn't a part for me, there isn't a part for me, and I'll go into the production side. Dad has always been very strict about that. It's about helping lots of young actors.'
By Tessa Waugh.
Next Production
Mr. Hart's Theatrical Company have teamed up with Fizz and Ginger Films to produce the feature length film of Miss In Her Teens. Currently in Post-Production.
To see some of Mr.Hart's actors in the short film 'E'gad Zombies!' and to find out about the forthcoming feature film 'The Curse of The Buxom Strumpet' go to:
fizzandgingerfilms.co.uk
