Hi Chris,
Sorry we’ve not been in contact for a while, we haven’t managed much work of late because we’ve both been working conflicting schedules. We aim to have our first draft finished in the next few weeks although it is a very delicate process making sure that we tell the story in exactly the right way.
After that we will step away from it for a few days then come back and write a second draft. We’ll then arrange a read-through with some friends so we can hear the thing aloud, this will alert us to any changes that need to be made to dialogue. After that, we’ll come back and write our final draft which will be as near as dammit what we want to make and hopefully something you’ll sign off on as well!
When that’s all done, we’ll start consulting with various producers to see if we can get some funding. Our aim as it stands right now is to make it ourselves for as little or as much as we can drum up. Failing that we’ll try to sell the screenplay to a production house.
Hope all is well with you Chris!
Tom
Wednesday, 15 July 2015
Interview: Tom Hanson, starring in The Gathered Leaves at the Park Theatre
Tom Hanson is currently starring as Simon Pennington in the world
premiere of Andrew Keatley’s play The Gathered Leaves at the Park
Theatre.
Set over the over Easter weekend in 1997, The Gathered Leaves is described as a “moving, poignant and funny family drama”. The play is about the Pennington family who haven’t been in the same room for over 17 years. Three generations come together to celebrate an elderly family member’s birthday…
Tom is the son of Samantha Bond and Alex Hanson, the latter of whom is
also starring in the production as Simon’s father, Giles. The cast of
Antony Eden’s production also includes Jane Asher and her real-life
daughter, Katie Scarfe. Tom recently made his professional debut as Hugo
in Posh (Nottingham Playhouse/Salisbury Playhouse).
I recently spoke to Tom about what makes The Gathered Leaves such an interesting play, why he’s excited to be working alongside such a stellar cast and whether he always wanted to follow in his parents’ footsteps…
To work alongside your father is a very unique opportunity! What drew you to the project?
To be honest it was the play, it’s so well written. To have the
opportunity to work with a parent, or any actor of that calibre – this
cast is full of them – is fantastic. This is going to sound arrogant,
but I don’t mean this in an arrogant way at all; I read the whole thing
and I just felt like the writer sort of knew me. Simon, the role I play,
can just be a belligerent arse… and I think I probably can as well…
well not a belligerent arse, but his sense of humour is so similar to
mine and I was just like, ‘I have to do this’. I went and auditioned and
luckily got it. I thought it was a brilliant piece!
Family dramas are great because everyone can relate to them in some shape or form. This family haven’t been in the same room together for seventeen years! What can people expect?
I suppose there’s a reason family dramas have been around for as long as
theatre has really, it’s something everyone can relate to. It’s
incredibly funny, but also very, very moving and profound. It’s
testament to Andrew’s (Keatley) writing; the tiniest changes and shifts
happen in the writing, yet the consequences of those actions are life
changing for a lot of the characters. To be honest, when I read it I
thought ‘this is what a play should be’ because it just ticks all my
boxes… it’s really good… come and see it [laughs]!
Will different audience members relate to different characters from the three generations?
Definitely. I mean it’s set in 1997. Obviously in that time you have New
Labour coming in and a Conservative Government on their way out.
There’s definitely a part of the play which represents my character as
the kind of ‘new’ – whether that’s New Labour or modernism. Then there’s
my character’s grandfather’s point of view, played by Clive Francis,
who very much represents the old Conservative point of view. There’s
very much the young and the old, all the characters represent different
things. Then, with the siblings, it’s almost like intellect vs
‘cool-ness’. It’s interestingly written because all of the relationships
get explored in some way.
Tom in rehearsals
What has the atmosphere been like in rehearsals?
It’s been great! We haven’t had too long to rehearse this one, so it’s
been a bit of a baptism of fire but in the best possible way. This is my
second job out of drama school, my first one was Posh at the Nottingham
Playhouse and Salisbury Playhouse and pretty much all the cast were my
age. That was quite similar to drama school because you’re used to
everyone being twenty-something and sometimes we’d be playing great
uncles and so on. So this is extraordinary for me, because suddenly it
feels a lot more real… well obviously also because my dad is playing my
dad. Clive and Jane are both just unbelievable – they could be my
grandparents, so you don’t have to imagine that person who is twenty is
playing a character in their eighties. I don’t know Clive and Jane’s
ages – and I don’t think they would want me to tell you them – but they
absolutely could be those people so it’s amazing to do scenes with them.
Is it exciting or daunting to take on a brand new piece of theatre?
It’s exciting; I think it’s quite lovely, I suppose it could be daunting
if you allowed it to be. The nice thing is that you can completely
create your character and put yourself on it. I’ve enjoyed it and think
it’s going to be a really interesting piece. Because it has never been
done, it’s fascinating to have everyone’s take on it so fresh. It feels
like a classic though, like one of those pieces which will come back for
years and years to come.
Do you think the piece lends itself to the intimacy of the Park Theatre?
I personally love going to Upstairs at the Royal Court or the Donmar or
Park because you’ve got that intimacy. Especially a play like this which
is set in an old manor house in the country you need to feel like
you’re in the room with them. I feel that at the Park you absolutely
will be, because it’s that close, so yes it does lend itself. It’s such a
subtle piece as well; you can play it as truthfully and naturally as
you want. It’s just a buzzing place! Jez (Bond) has done such a good
job. I saw Dead Sheep which was brilliant, and to put on theatre like An
Audience With Jimmy Savile, which is that challenging, is really
testament to Jez and the whole team. I didn’t realise they’d only been
around for two years! They’ve really put their mark on the off-West End
map! It’s so commendable.
 |
| Samantha Bond and Alex Hanson |
You come from a family of actors, was there ever any doubt that you would follow in your parents’ footsteps?
Do you know what it was? All through my teens [laughs], whenever anybody
asked me what I wanted to do I said I wanted to be a rockstar. Now… I
don’t think I was ever quite cut out for that because I quite like
watching the telly with my cat [laughs]. When I was eighteen I was in
upper sixth at school and the UCAS deadline was much earlier… I could
have still applied but I didn’t. I thought, ‘oh it’s alright, I’ll take a
gap year’, but then the government announced that the fees were going
up to £9,000. I thought, ‘I’ve missed the uni boat, and now if I take a
gap year I’m going to be in three times as much debt – why don’t I apply
for drama school?’ …and I did!
Had you not considered applying before?
I’d always kicked against it because ‘it’s what your parents do’. It’s
always been a job, the glitz and the glamour side has never interested
me, it’s always been about the work. I’d done a lot of drama at school
and really enjoyed it, but always thought it was just a hobby. So
anyway, I applied and did my first audition which was at Bristol Old Vic
Theatre School, which my mum’s alumni of, and my sister actually! I did
my first audition and was just like, ‘I have to stop lying to myself –
of course this is what I need to be doing!’ My parents are actors; my
mum’s parents are actors so there’s obviously a gene. In fact my
grandmother, Pat Sandys, was the first ever Abigail in the UK production
of The Crucible in 1959!
Wow – it really is in your blood!
We’re not the Foxes by any stretch of the imagination, but I think there
is a certain amount of dynasty. Becoming an actor is nice, and being
around people who understand is nice. It’s a huge advantage for me that I
can come back from a crap audition and say “I mucked that one up” and
they’ll know exactly where I’m coming from because they’ve been there.
They’re also… like… brilliant, my parents, in my opinion. I think
they’re really, really good at what they do. It’s cool, it’s really
cool.
Interviewed by Andrew Tomlins (Editor)
The Gathered Leaves runs at the Park Theatre until 15th August 2015.
Please visit www.parktheatre.co.uk for further information and tickets.
Read our previous interviews with Alex Hanson and Samantha Bond
Photo Credit: 2&3: Mark Douet
Photo Credit 4: Piers Allardyce
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