Review: Clown Funeral Collective: Fires (Drayton Arms Theatre)

Review By Oliver Briggs

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Born from the shared frustration of how difficult it can be to create and produce new writing, new theatre group The Clown Funeral Collective formed in 2023 and launched their inaugural new writing night at the Drayton Arms Theatre the following year with the theme of ‘Summer Nights’.

Their latest showcase, The Clown Funeral Collective: Fires, takes on the theme of, shock-horror, fires! Five writers were challenged to create brand-new short plays before swapping scripts and directing each other’s work. The result? Five distinct pieces, each bringing something fresh, bold, and genuinely exciting to the stage. Holding it all together was a wonderfully mischievous clown MC who kept the atmosphere lively, silly, and delightfully unpredictable between performances.

The night opened with Lava Light. Written by Kayleigh Mai Hinsley. Directed by Peter Barrett. Performed by Kritika Singh (Anjli), Polly Waring (Eva), and Keshav Shree (Vik).A warm, funny, and quietly emotional piece that eased the audience beautifully. Anjli, newly working in government, spends her day off watching a meteor shower with her close friend Eva, only for the sudden arrival of her estranged brother Vik to pull old wounds right back into the present.The performances were genuinely lovely. I particularly enjoyed the way the actors slipped between their grounded adult selves and their energetic childhood versions. These moments of playfulness made the more painful confrontations land with real weight. The lighting shift into a warmer palette during their memories helped build the sense of nostalgic glow, while the harsh red light and freeze frames in their arguments gave the piece a sharp, fiery edge.The theme of “fires” came through clearly here, first in the comforting warmth of shared memories, and later in the scorching intensity of unresolved anger.

Crash at Crush was performed next. Written by Charles Edward Pipe. Directed by Sam Smithson. Performed by Lotte Pearl (Ensemble), Harry J Taylor (Ensemble), and Django Beven (Ensemble). Based on the real life Crash at Crush tragedy of 1896, this piece dives into the pursuit of spectacle and profit with a wicked sense of irony. Three performers multitask wildly (switching accents, ages, and roles with flair) and create a fast, funny, deeply unsettling look at corporate ethics gone crazy. The costumes and props were cleverly designed, with period-accurate base layers and quick accessories to keep the constant multirolling clear and effective. The sound design was a standout. Steam engines roaring, crowds murmuring, all adding to the tension and world-building. The comedy is sharp and well-placed, making the sudden drops into darker territory feel jarring in exactly the right way. This was my favourite performance of the evening, smart, engaging, and filled with personality. Its links to “fires” might not be as immediate, but the burning drive for profit, the steam engine’s furnace, and the idea of ambition as fuel all fits the theme.

New writing number three was called Melting Apparent Surfaces Away. Written by Peter Barrett. Directed by Charles Edward Pipe. Performed by Henry Thorpe-Spinks (Theodore), Phoebe Bakker (Laurence), and Tom Terry (The Witness). This piece left me intrigued and quite unsettled in a good way. It seemed at first to be a kidnapping story, though the strange willingness of the characters made everything feel slippery and uncertain. The unmasking of the anonymous witness added to the confusion, and while I felt I was missing some context, the ambiguity created a palpable tension. The moment gasoline was poured over Theodore instantly tied the piece back to the theme of fire, echoed in the idea that flames only hurt at the surface, once past the nerves, pain softens into something else. Though this piece felt less developed than others, it contained strong poetic imagery and ideas worth sitting with: the pain we carry, the idea we die twice, and the power of revealing what is hidden. It’s brief, but it definitely lingers.

The fourth play was Phospherous.Written by Amy Martin. Directed by Kayleigh Mai Hinsley. Performed by Georgie Rodgers (Alice), Liv Koplick (Edith), and Tianna Williams-Powell (Hannah). A beautifully crafted look at 1913 Britain, Phosphorus examines the suffragette movement and the spark that turns peaceful protest toward something more forceful. The script feels grounded in history yet speaks sharply to today’s social climate. The performers handled the period accent and careful Edwardian poise with elegance, which contrasted powerfully with the fierce determination simmering beneath their words. The sound design helped mark time, build tension, and create space for reflection, all supporting the rich emotional landscape of the piece. The fire theme shows up through the phosphorus letters and through the burning anger behind them. The play’s reflections on sacrifice for future generations were particularly moving.

Sheets closed the evening on a deeply emotional note. This piece hit hard—sudden twists, smart foreshadowing, and a steady build toward a heartbreaking realisation all combined into a striking 15–20 minutes of theatre. Written by Sam Smithson. Directed by Amy Martin. Performed by Sam Glyde-Rees (Theo), Emily Hurst (Olivia), and Chloe Zurynski (Kerry). The use of voiceovers was inspired, shifting from gentle sentiment to something increasingly intrusive and overwhelming. The performances were incredibly strong, with Emily Hurst delivering a particularly affecting portrayal that made me genuinely ache for her character’s need for closure. The fire theme came through clearly in the setting of the crematorium at the bottom of the garden, adding a constant presence of loss, memory, and finality.

Overall this Clown Funeral Collective: Fires showcase is an amazing watch to get many different views on the word ‘Fires’ as I was left in awe about how many different stories there had been. It’s pay what you can and all proceedings go to the charity Medical Aid For Palestinians. Get sat on these flaming hot seats for amazing new writing before they burn out.

Clown Funeral Collective: Fires played at Drayton Arrns Theatre on 23rd and 24th November. https://www.thedraytonarmstheatre.co.uk/clown-funeral-collective-fires

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