The Ovalhouse Summer Season - May to July 2014

The Ovalhouse Theatre in south London has announced its summer season May to July 2014, which includes:

in Theatre Downstairs...

O No! by Jamie Wood in collaboration with Wendy Hubbard and Dominic Kennedy, from 20 to 24 May 2014. Produced by Ovalhouse and Jamie Wood / FiRST BiTE work in development. Playing amongst the enigmatic instructions of Yoko Ono's art works, in the shadow of Lennon's death, O No! is a psychedelic ride, a wonky homage to the woman damned for destroying the Beatles.

Ten Women by Bethan Dear, from 27 to 31 May 2014. Produced by Ovalhouse and Jackdaw / FiRST BiTE work in development. The image of a hyper-sexualised, objectified woman's body is used to sell pretty much anything. We see it everywhere, all the time. What if the way women are portrayed, what we are associated with, is feeding a culture of critique and self-hatred? What if it's damaging men and women? This production invites everyone - men, women, young and old - to explore, remember and celebrate everything that makes us.

Heart by Steven Gaythorpe, from 3 to 7 June 2014. Directed by Nazli Tabatabai-Khatambakhsh, produced by Ovalhouse and Zendeh. Set in 1950s Durham and Tehran, as a British and American orchestrated coup destabilises a nation - a love triangle unravels. An Iranian woman, her English husband and her Syrian beau tell their stories amongst the insistent urgency of newsreel and the rhythmic wit of poetry. The play is inspired by the ancient Arabian love poem, Leili and Majnoun, and is a mix of political thriller and love story.

This Is How We Die written and performed by Christopher Brett Bailey, from 17 to 21 June 2014. Produced by Ovalhouse and Christopher Brett Bailey. Described as 'savage, surreal, hypnotic and apocalyptic', this production blends spoken word, storytelling, humour and philosophy into a world that is convinced it is dying. This Is How We Die is a 'prime slice of surrealist trash and a blood-soaked love letter to the depraved, the depressed and the death-obsessed'.

Fosterling by Zoe Palmer, from 1 to 5 July 2014. 1914. An orphan is delivered to a new life in a remote village in Yorkshire. With a 'haunting and powerful' vocal score for A cappella female voices, this is a story of love, loss and redemption based on true events in the lives of Mary Drysdale and Elsa, the child she chose to raise against all odds against the backdrop of impending war.

Chigger Foot Boys by Pat Cumper, from 8 to 12 July 2014. Produced by Ovalhouse and StrongBack Productions. Based on true events in the lives of Jamaicans who fought in World War One and set amid the banter in a rum bar near Kingston Harbour, three young men tell their stories of death and glory as the end of the British Empire looms.

in Theatre Upstairs...

Travesty by Alex Swift, from 11 to 14 June 2014. Directed by Jamie Wood and produced by Ovalhouse and permanent red / FiRST BiTE work in development. A 'punked-up, broken-down' drag show about man's inhumanity to woman. With a guitar and some dancing of sorts. Probably she'll make a scene. She'll try to tell some stories, but I imagine she won't get very far. As best we can, we'll try to meet without our weapons...

The Ted Bundy Project written and performed by Greg Wohead, from 17 to 21 June 2014. Produced by Ovalhouse and Greg Wohead. In November 2012, Greg stumbled upon the confession tapes of Ted Bundy, the American serial killer, rapist and necrophile. He then created The Ted Bundy Project, which is about the nature of charm, the label of 'monster' and the tension between attraction and repulsion. We are told that 'Greg has a wig and Bundy's confession tapes'.

Transforming Stories: A triple bill, from 25 to 28 June 2014. I'd like to tell you about this by Lucy Hutson: Lucy has been practicing breast binding for years. She's interested in its associations with sex, safety and secrecy. She's interested in how it affects people's lives, relationships and sense of self. .. And she'd like to talk to you about it. Café Salomé by DeNada Dance Theatre. Choreographer Carlos Pons Guerra. A fantasia of ham and sequins, Café Salomé is a dingy, Spanish Civil War cabaret, where a feisty troupe of female impersonators fight the advance of fascism through a seductive, riotous show of the kitschiest flamenco. ARtFUnSHACK (There be Dragons here but I carry something of you everywhere I go) by Evan Ifekoya. An interactive art show hosted by Evan. Expect 'eye-catching' visuals and tips for making fun stuff out of rubbish.

The Ayn Lady by Emma Kilbey, from 2 to 5 July 2014. Directed by Caroline Hunt, produced by Ovalhouse and Barker & Larkin in association with Tobacco Factory and Nightingale Theatre / FiRST BiTE work in development. Who was Ayn Rand - and why do her questionable beliefs still resonate so strongly today? What's the impact of a powerful life lived without empathy? Barker & Larkin attempt to crack through the Russian-doll layers of this self-styled individualist, author and philosopher. Expect thorny issues, heartbreak, humour and accents.

How To Win Against History by Seiriol Davies, from 9 to 12 July 2014. Produced by Ovalhouse and Seiriol Davies / FiRST BiTE work in development. The 5th Marquis of Anglesey burned brightly, briefly and transvestitely at the end of the 19th Century, blowing his family's colossal fortune on diamond frocks and lilac-dyed poodles. He died at 29; his family burned every record of him...as though he never was. This musical is about expectations, manliness and disappointment.

Fat Man written and performed by Martin Bonger, from 15 to 19 July 2014. Orpheus is doing stand-up for the gods. This is a 'bitterly funny' story of love, loss and eating your way out of grief. As the audience are transformed into the gods of legend, will Orpheus ever escape his past?