In the 22nd century, man has conquered space and, to be perfectly honest, he’s a little bit bored with it. Space is no longer the realm of heroes but of those who no longer feel comfortable in a wider society that views astronauts with some suspicion. Commander Lestor J Banks (Chaz Doyle) is one such individual.
A committed misanthrope, Banks has spent the last 10 years in space and has grown attached to life beyond Earth. However, he is forced to return when the ‘Agency’ becomes concerned with the data he transmitting from the north-east quadrant of the Oort cloud.
Back on Earth, Banks must face up to aspects of his life he thought he had left behind as well as some he never knew existed. Faced with these distressing events, Banks finds some comfort with his Agency-appointed counsellor, Fletcher (Helen Chadney).
“Banks is an anti-hero,” said author and director Simon Holland. “He’s not your typical romantic lead at all.”
“I started writing the script because I read about the Apollo astronauts and I was interested in how they coped when they returned to Earth,” said Simon.
“Banks is comfortable in space and spends his time on Earth focused on getting back there.”
Simon met the composer of the show’s music Tom Curtis through musical societies of which they are both members. “We got talking about musicals and about the sort of musical that we’d actually like to see. That’s where the idea for The Dust Collectors came from, we took the bits we liked and added them together.” That said, Tom has written and produced an entirely original, “synthetic pop” score for the show.
“There’s a mixture of musical styles in the show,” said Simon.
“There are some big chorus numbers, some more intimate songs and some ensemble pieces. We wanted to vary the pace so as not to tire out the audience with a lot of very big songs.”
All the action takes place back on an artificial island back on Earth where the astronauts are being held in quarantine and, although the piece is set 100 years hence, the look of the show is distinctly old school. “It’s sort of Open University meets Star Trek. It’s futuristic meets retro – we call it Futro,” said Simon. “The set is kind of industrial-looking with antique electronic equipment. It’s very 50s/60s-looking.”
THE DUST COLLECTORS is on at the Bell Theatre, South London Theatre, 2 Norwood High Road, West Norwood, London SE27 from September 5 – 9 at 8 pm and a matinee on the Saturday 9th 2pm. Box office number is 020 8670 3474. Tickets for non-members are £7.
South London Theatre is a non-professional repertory theatre. It is a members-only theatre, but you can become an audience member for just £10 per year, which includes a free ticket to a show and discount on further productions. Full membership is £30 (£15 concs), which allows you to take part in any of the theatre’s productions. It also has a bar with the lowest prices in the area. T find out more about the theatre visit their website.
South London Theatre is situated just three minutes walk from West Norwood BR where fast and frequent train services run to and from Victoria, London Bridge, East and West Croydon. Bus routes 2, 68, 196, 315, 322, 432 and 468 all stop within 20 yards of the front door.