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After the war, comes the war within
Interviews with the cast
Critical Acclaim
(Audience Club is a Theatre Membership organisation formed in 2007 to offer theatre tickets to London's key workers such as NHS Nurses, Police and Firefighters. In return for complimentary tickets, members leave verified reviews)
meet the Regulars
George 'Punchy' Armstrong
George (Robert Hook) is a lost soul, raised in a poor and volatile environment; his preferred coping mechanism is a mix of whiskey, arrogance and selfish behaviour. He is seldom at ease. Despite this, there is a spark of light in George in the form of musical talent that he discreetly administers - a balm for the wounds of his childhood. We witness his quest to find his authentic self, with guidance from his community and friends… (both mortal and unworldly!)
Robert Hook, originally from a small village in Kent, jumped the pond to train as an actor at the American Academy of Dramatic Arts (AADA) in Los Angeles, combining training from both the UK and the US. Having been back in London for a few years, recent credits include PEAKY BLINDERS (Season 5), THE MILKMAN’S ON HIS WAY (Brighton Fringe) and I LIVE FOR YOU (Indie Feature)
Edith Jameson
Edie (Lucy Penrose) Fiercely independent, self-assured and with a love of imported American R&B records, Edie is the graceful barmaid at her Mum's pub. Exuding wisdom and a fine singing voice, she encourages Olive to move with the times, introducing live music into their pub. Edith knows how capricious and bittersweet the world can be and thus remains guarded with Punchy despite holding a candle for him. Will they ever be compatible?
Hailing from the Isle of Man, Lucy Penrose attended Mountview Academy of Theatre Arts training in Acting. From there she has worked in all manner of productions, highlights include; her West End Debut in 2017, playing Young Judy Garland in 'Judy!' at the Arts Theatre, and playing Madge Hardwick, in 'Top Hat' with The Royal Court Theatre Company.
Soul
Soul (Peter Parker Mensah) is the playful voice of reason amidst the clamour for Punchy’s welfare and offers him a broader perspective than his Ego. Soul gracefully encourages Punchy to expand into his authentic self. His techniques in this matter range from his good sense of humour to other more esoteric means…
Peter Parker Mensah originally from Accra and currently living in London. Trained with New York acting coach Michael Duvall at the Instinctual Acting school. Credits include The Informer, Citadel(2022 AMAZON series) and Bolan’s shoes (Feature). This is Peter’s stage debut and he is delighted to be part of this wonderful production to give an innovative and exciting portrayal of the character Soul.
Ego
Ego (Jaymes Sygrove), the trickster! Initially an ardent inner critic of Punchy, Ego loves nothing more than to cajole, fret and berate him with diatribes of well-intended, yet, meaningless advice! Ego and Soul must reach a consensus, but can they align? Will Punchy see through Ego’s smokescreen of fearful hallucinations?
Jaymes can be seen in the role of Clarke Gable in the 2001 Edward Hall movie BLITHE SPIRIT starring Judi Dench. He premiered the lead role of Joseph Plunkett in OUR DAY WILL COME by Stephen Coll at the Golden Knight International Film Festival in Malta, and toured Europe in the coveted role of Paulina in Shakespeare's THE WINTERS TALE with The Festival Players Theatre Company.
The Band
Dance, bop and rock the night away with the local house band, who appear on-stage in the Jameson’s Arms amongst the regulars.
Olive Jameson
Olive (Fiona Kelly) embodies strength, courage and wisdom. Her hands are toughened with work as the resilient Matriarch of the community, and landlord of the Jameson's Arms. Olive's wish is to protect Edith from making similar mistakes with her life choices. This desire ,however, is outweighed only by Olive’s unwavering encouragement to help her daughter find real love and true fulfilment.
Fiona Maeve Kelly is an Irish actress and writer, living in the UK since 2016. Fiona trained at the Gaiety School of Acting, Ireland's National Theatre School, and completed a number of national tours with Mend & Makedo Theatre company, before making the move across the pond to the bright lights of London.
Doreen Lofthouse
Doreen (Eleanor Walsh) is somewhat of an ingenue, flattered and thirsty for attention. As her relationship with Punchy begins to strain, she can no longer contend with his drunken, unreliable antics and thus conceives dishonest plans to accomplish her dream of settling down.
Eleanor Walsh graduated from ArtsEd with a First in my BA Musical Theatre degree. She has worked in musical theatre and straight theatre in the West End, regional fringe venues and international tours. Industry awards: Offie Nominated for Best Supporting Actress in a Musical 2019
Frankie Brown
Frankie (Richie Brett) is the local Teddy Boy and leader of the pack. If he wants something, he takes it, no questions asked.
Richie recently graduated from the Courtyard Theatre Training Company with first class honours. In his most recent performance, he played the lead role of Hobson in Hobson’s Choice. He has a love for improv, modern and classical theatre, with a particular affection for comedic roles. Originally from South Shields, Richie spent much of his youth surfing the dark North Sea, binge watching sci fi-films, and playing the blues on his guitar.
Manny Cohen
Manny (Philip Gill) The kindly tailor in the local community, a man who has really known grief. Despite this, Manny understands that no matter how bad things look, you can always find love if you’re looking in the right places. Manny is just the right mentor for George, if only Punchy can heed his advice...
During Summer 2021 Philip Gill completed Eastern Angles tour of “Red Skies” in which he played author Arthur Ransome, before returning to London to play Jack in “Invisible Me” at the New Wimbledon Studio Theatre.
James Armstrong
James (Robert Allen) was born in 1899, his father served in WW1 and returned from the front as an emotional remote figure in James’ early life. Therefore, James grew up in a world lacking compassion. This was only compounded by the death of his wife Ava in childbirth, and his service in WW2. As a result, James adopts the drunken and brutal behaviours of his Father before him, and transfers the same abuse to Punchy, who, despite being a strapping young man, is simply petrified of his Dad. Can their relationship be redeemed?
Robert Allen is a Londoner, born and bred having lived in the same road in Finchley for nearly 50 years! From a very early age I was schooled in all aspects of theatre and have acted in over 200 productions from historical to hysterical, from serious to silly and everything in-between! I am honoured to part of the first showing of Punchy!
The Ethos of Punchy!
I didn’t set out to write a musical, I’ve always been put off by the thought of jazz hands and glitter! If I was writing one, I had to dispense with what I perceived as the outdated artifice of the genre, and shake things up into something real! ‘Punchy!’ was inspired by an actual account from my Mother’s working-class childhood in 1950s Islington. I was moved at how a young man with mental health challenges left home one day never to be seen again. ‘Punchy!’ imagines what could have been if he followed the voice of his Soul and asks you to be courageous enough to do the same.
The London Audience Members I met with after the show demonstrated beautifully the wholehearted willingness to subscribe to such a philosophy. One evening after a performance, I met a lady who was especially moved by the ethos of Punchy! She informed me that the soulfulness of the show's message had now led her to consider writing her late Grandma’s story after discovering a batch of letters just after her death. Her Grandma was of the Windrush generation, and although the lady informed me that she didn’t feel she had the right or confidence to write her story, thanks to seeing Punchy! she felt empowered.
There were many instances like this; another man tearfully described how he now felt responsible for repairing the rift in his relationship with his troubled son. I also encountered a senior citizen, Susan, who had walked in the pouring rain at the age of 85 from Tottenham to Old Street to attend a performance, simply because she felt inspired by Punchy's subject matter. After describing without any fuss how the painful and playful narrative had made her evening, with extraordinary grace, she quietly left our table and walked home ever the self-determined hero. These encounters were profoundly humbling.
In a world often driven by achievement and material possessions, it appears virtue is the only thing on this earth that can over-deliver.
The ego-centric tempations will banish into the abyss of time, however, our friendships endure, and I was deeply touched to have an audience share such personal disclosures with me. Punchy! demonstrates the potential for human flourishing is limitless if we can learn to align our Ego/Body with our Soul.
Joseph Campbell once said “We must be willing to get rid of the life we’ve planned, so as to have the life that is waiting for us.” I have come to see through time that the trauma I experienced in my early life was in many ways an intelligent design feature,(albeit a desperately painful one) serving as a bridge to a higher purpose. The songs in this musical bookend 16 years of my life, drawing from many exploratory musical and personal reincarnations. These experiments were either deeply blissful or left me quietly dissatisfied, until the day they inevitably wrapped themselves around a poignant story from my Mum’s childhood. The real ‘Punchy’ also suffered from his mental health, leaving home never to be seen by his family again.
However, through the grace of friendship and many beautiful souls, I have been fortunate
to live a different, triumphant story.
Punchy! is an evolutionary tale, a story I hope many can live out in their own way.
Love and Light
Jack x
Learning to love yourself, to see all of yourself in full technicolour focus and embrace every crease, line and flaw (no filters allowed!] doesn't always come easy but it is the greatest gift you can give yourself.
Punchy! is the perfect musical for this time we are living in. At a time when so much has changed and the world literally stopped, we all had an opportunity to pause, reflect and even heal.
Punchy's early life was defined by tragedy, circumstance and poor choices; painful snapshots of his life. It is easy to be so consumed by those snapshots, unable to zoom out to gain greater perspective that your life is not reduced to those moments alone. There is as much joy as there is sadness, as much laughter as there are tears. When you can take that step back, life seems to begin to make more sense. Those snapshots are part of a much bigger picture. Punchy's resilience is our joy. He is a man with a past but that does not define his future. Hope. Joy. Laughter.