Returning for a third year running, Theatre Peckham is delighted to present their brand-new lineup for Peckham Fringe this 2024! This inclusive and dynamic performing arts festival will showcase a lineup of over 20 outstanding artists and creatives from the local London community, with groundbreaking emerging writers, moving new musicals, clowning and spoken word, it’s the festival for everyone!
Kicking off on Wednesday 1st May, this is the first time that the festival has expanded beyond the Theatre Peckham building, truly embracing the local community and surrounding spaces including the Golden Goose Theatre. With diversity at the heart of their work, this year’s lineup will showcase a high number of women writers, global majority voices and neurodiverse stories to tell underrepresented stories of London community’s and beyond.
To celebrate this exciting news, we’ve spoken with Projects Producer/Programmer of Theatre Peckham Vikesh Godhwani.
Hi Vikesh! I just wanted to start today by asking how are you?
I have had such a fantastic year so far with so many fulfilling projects and opportunities that I am currently feeling grateful. It hasn’t always been like this so every day I am filled with gratitude.
For those who may not be familiar with your previous work, could you please introduce yourself?
Within Theatre Peckham I am the Projects Producer/Programmer which means that I oversee the artistic programme and produce all our major projects from Peckham Fringe, to Young Gifted & Black to NT Connections Festival to all our fantastic work in schoolsand within our community. I get to work with so many wonderful artists that come into our building every day; not one day is the same and it’s always a new adventure at TP.
I also work closely with our wonderful Artistic Director and CEO Suzann McLean in strategising for the future and building relationships and partnerships for the development of the organisation.
Outside of TP, I am the Co-Artistic Director of Chalk Line Theatre (Blanket Ban, Southwark Playhouse, New Diorama, Underbelly; The Nobodies, Vault Festival, UK Tour, Spazju Kreattiv, Malta), and a multi-award-winningfreelance director, producer, writer and workshop facilitator working across the UK and internationally.
This May Peckham Fringe will return for the third consecutive year. How does it feel to be bringing this exciting festival back to Peckham?
It feels more important than ever. We are living in a climate of funding cuts with less and less opportunities than ever for artists to break into the industry. Peckham Fringe offers minimal upfront costs, free rehearsal space, marketing support and a great financial deal; it truly is an opportunity for artists to experiment and to try new things in a supportive environment. It is really difficult tooffer this kind of package nowadays and it feels like such an honour to be a part of making it happen.
Why do you think Fringe festivals like this are so exciting for the theatre industry?
We must keep fighting for accessible Fringe festivals as it encourages work that is responsive. Unlike commercial runs that require years of development, Fringe work can respond to current social and political issues as they are happening. It is a direct way for artists to be in conversation with the world; it is crucial.
Fringe festivals are also a place for emerging artists to break into the industry. As an immigrant theatre maker, I do not know how I would have got to where I got to without participating in Fringe Festivals. In them I found a home, made friends and collaborators and really got to push myself as a theatre maker and producer.
Ultimately, the best fringe festivals encourage risk-taking and innovative new forms that often make it into the mainstream and really shape culture. Without space to make work in the fringe, the long-term effect on the cultural landscape of a country can be absolutely devastating so we must fight for it at all costs.
Are there any particular productions you’re looking forward to seeing?
We have such a great variety that it truly feels like there is something for everyone.
What I find particularly exciting is that we have so many shows that are tackling stories or themes I have never really seen explored before. For instance, Run Black Girl Run by Harmony Daniel, produced by Untapped winning No Table, deals with movement in relation to race. Barrier to Entry by Edward Oulton goes after the British Education System through the unique lens of Scouse lad sitting for his GCSE maths exam… again. Mandem byAmelia Michaels is a coming- of-age story told through the exciting devise of board games.
I am also really looking forward to the productions experimenting with form and pushing the boundaries of what live performance is. The Void by Theatre Amok is described as a guided meditation with a twist. Love Something by Georgie Lynch changes nightly based on audience suggestions, exploring loneliness and thirstiness by combining haunting poetry and self-deprecating humour. Word For An Eye by Alfiah Jade Brown is an intimate fusion of poetry and film, where words dance on screens, weaving tales that linger in the heart. So much interdisciplinary work in this year’s programme is perhaps its greatest strength!
This year the festival is expanding and embracing the local community and surrounding spaces. Can you tell us a little what this means for audiences and performers?
It feels so great to be able to expand to the Golden Goose Theatre this year with Hatch & Scratch. We truly believe that by collaborating with other venues in the Southwark area we can make a greater impact within our community. In order to serve as many artists as possible, I think it is so important for venues to work together as opposed to be in competition. This feels like such a fantastic win for TP, for the Southwark community and for artists.
What would you say is your favourite thing about the Fringe theatre?
The magic that comes from working withoutlimitations. Artists who make Fringe theatre are the most resourceful, multi-talented and creative people I know. The sheer invention that is required has made for some of the most boundary-pushing theatre I’ve watched.
Looking forward, what are your hopes for the future of the art industry?
More experimental theatre, more representation that is not stereotypical, and long-term opportunities for artists that allows them to build a sustainable career.
Peckham Fringe will run between Wednesday 1st May – Saturday 8th June 2024. For more information on this year’s line up, click here.
CentreStage 