Yet To Be: South West Artists Join Forces

New Exeter Theatre Company launches at this year’s Exeter Fringe Festival

Two South West based artists have come together to found a brand-new theatre company, Yet To Be, which will launch with two original shows, The Geneva Convention of Human F**ks and stories at the end of the world, at the Exeter Fringe Festival this October.

The driving aim for founding the company was born out of a desire to see more original work created here in the South West and to give more opportunities to artists based in the region. Something that is ever more relevant, after the year the arts industries have suffered.

Yet To Be brings together Charlie Whitworth and Marina O’Shea, both South West artists.
A theatre maker based in Exeter, Charlie’s prior work as a writer, director and dramaturg has seen him tour work across the UK. With his company Eager Spark (formerly Write By Numbers), he has written and directed work that aims to challenge, intrigue and entertain audiences in various theatre and non theatre spaces.

A performer, theatre maker and writer, Marina has worked extensively in theatre and film. She’s written for The What The Frock! Book of Funny Women and performed with various stage and screen companies including Screenbound Pictures/ Odeon Entertainment, Cineon Productions and Oceanallover in Scotland.

Marina’s previous company O&O, based in Exeter and Bristol, was a physical theatre ensemble whose ethos was one of collaboration, empowerment, and engagement – with a strong drive to make original written and devised work. They toured the UK extensively, delivering stage productions that were provocative, vigorously physical and highly entertaining.

They have co-founded Yet To Be in order to support their fellow artists, and to create work that provokes audiences, tackles issues and taps in to visceral emotions...whilst being damn entertaining to boot.

Their recently cast ensemble for one of their Exeter Fringe Festival shows ‘The Geneva Convention of Human F**ks’ is an entirely local team, helping to steer their aim of supporting South West based artists. Sally Geake, cast in the role of Michael in Geneva, is a Southwest based actress, who since graduating from Cygnet Theatre's Acting course has toured nationally, performing in film and radio. Sally has performed in Exeter Northcott's productions of The Railway Children and Turn of the Screw, as well as working with local company Four of Swords in productions such as Macbeth and Dr Dracula. She will also soon begin filming QLALO FILMS new feature ‘On The Line’.

Primrose Bigwood, who will be starring in Geneva as Liam, is a Devon and London based actress who studied performing arts at Exeter College before pursuing a career in acting. Alongside Geneva, Primrose can also be seen in the film ‘The Ghosts of Borley Rectory’ with Julian Sands and Colin Baker, and has recently finished filming on a new series for the BBC.

Sally said: “I am so excited to be a part of Yet To Be’s cast for Geneva. It’s especially exciting to see a new company emerge this year after such a difficult time for the arts, and with such an interesting play.

The play seems very special, crossing the line between comedy, as it has made me laugh out loud just reading it! But with topics of gravity that stay with you well after the end."

Charlie Whitworth, Yet To Be’s co-founder, also wrote Geneva and will direct both their shows at Exeter Fringe Festival:

“"I can't wait to get back in the rehearsal room again, working with actors so we can bring the script to life and make the best show possible for our audience.

I think ‘The Geneva Convention of Human F**ks’ explores an issue that is perhaps not normally tackled in theatres from this perspective. People should laugh. They should feel challenged. They should leave the show wondering how they feel about it all.

I can't wait to begin these conversations with audiences again."

Marina O’Shea will be starring alongside Sally and Primrose in ‘The Geneva Convention of Human F**ks’, and in their second show ‘stories at the end of the world’. Written by Corrine Furness, ‘stories at the end of the world’ is an innovative and urgent coming of age story about fear, best friends and growing up in a world of heightened terror alerts, cross-continental pandemics and climate change. Whilst ‘The Geneva Convention of Human F**ks’, which is performed entirely by female actors, follows three blokes Liam, Peter and Michael as they embark on an epic grand tour of Europe to sample all the forbidden and exploited delights that the continent has to offer.

Marina said: “The journey of creating theatre that makes your audience jump from laughter to a sharp intake of breath in a split moment is incredibly powerful.

Working on these shows, you can feel the weight and power of them; it demands intensity from its cast in order to commit to the intimate delivery these stories require. And it matters; each word of these scripts lands.

I am looking forward to bringing these two shows to the stage alongside a fantastic South West cast to launch Yet To Be, delivered by the brilliant initiative that is Exeter Fringe Festival.”

A theatre company that is geared towards supporting local and creating work that ignites curiosity and discussion, you can catch Yet To Be’s debut shows ‘The Geneva Convention of Human F**ks’ playing at Exeter Phoenix on Friday 15th October at 8:30pm, and ‘stories at the end of the world’ at Barnfield Theatre on Sunday 17th October 8:30pm. Head to www.yettobe.org to book.