When Alan’s car crashes in the middle of nowhere, he hopes his bad day (which started with his wife leaving him) can’t get any worse… and of course it does.
After trudging through the muddy countryside, he comes across a campsite run by the rather eccentric Virgil. With no other options and no signal on his phone, he has no choice but to stay the night. Unfortunately for Alan, there’s only one plot left, situated in between a doggy-poo bin and the rather annoying Justin.
Justin is everything Alan despises – a positive family man with his life completely in control… or is he? Because things are not what they seem and as the tension builds between the men, they start to reveal their true selves with hilarious and rather unfortunate consequences.
Past Tents is the story of two desperate people at the end of their tent ropes, forced into each other’s company. It’s about life, death and how people really need to talk more about the things they are going through.
‘Past Tents is the third play we’ve written together,’ said Seth Jones and David J. Keogh. ‘ The other plays include ‘Welcome to the Fringe’ a live mocumentary about fringe theatre life, and ‘Someone Like You’, the first in the series of six plays about characters stuck in a situation they can’t get out of, with people they don’t want to be with. But not all is ever what it seems and each story contains twists and turns.
‘We like our plays to come under the genre of “Dramedy” – hilarious silly and sometimes slapstick comedy, but with a heart and a deep meaning – dealing with real issues such as mental health, grief and depression. Our plays surprise audiences and challenge them not only to face their own prejudices but also not to wet themselves with laughter.
‘The intent of this play is to use comedy to help spread the message of men’s (and others) mental health issues and help people with issues such as suicide/grief/depression/neurodivergence and illness, and is dedicated to the memory of fellow Actor and Writer, Sean Smith, who sadly took his own life in 2022’.
Brockley Jack Studio Theatre, 410 Brockley Road, London, SE4 2DH from Tues 26 to Sat 30 September. Time: 7.30pm. Admission: £17, £15 concessions.
Booking: www.brockleyjack.co.uk or 0333 666 3366 (£1.80 fee for phone bookings only)
