Time Piece, Q&A with cast and crew

This September, the team behind the superb Fatal Floor and Four Funerals and a Wedding return to the Lambeth Fringe with Time Piece - a production that features four interlinked plays by four prize-winning writers. Each mini-show is connected by a pocket watch that passes from story to story in a seemingly endless continuum. Written by Sally Sheringham, Richard Fitchett, Liam O’Grady and Wally Sewell and directed by Anthony Shrubsall, Time Piece explores bold themes such as isolation and our collective desperation for human connection. As one story merges into the next, characters, situations and perspectives begin to connect in a myriad of interesting and unexpected ways. Ahead of its run, I spoke to the team behind Time Piece about the inspiration for the project, the challenges of bringing four separate plays together into one and what audiences can expect from a production where every story is connected and nothing is quite as distinct as it first appears…

What inspired you to create this production?

Having had a couple of previous, fun, successful outings at the Lambeth Fringe with ‘Fatal Floor’ and ‘Four Funerals and a Wedding’, as a group of writer-friends, Sally Sheringham, Richard Fitchett, Wally Sewell and myself, decided we would like to dip our toes into producing something again this year. So, over a few pints in our favourite local we brainstormed a few ideas…

We wanted to experiment with a continuous narrative structure where, distinct, independent plays don't just sit side-by-side, but actively feed into one another, and where, the whole is greater than the sum of the parts.

The central spark was exploring our collective interest in human connection - how people build their personal walls of defence (whether that's a rabbit disguise, a medium’s persona, or an obsession with clockwork) to survive the loneliness of the modern world, and what happens when those defences collide with someone else’s.

What appealed to you about using a physical object as the thread connecting the different characters and narratives? How important was it to make that transition feel natural and meaningful?

A pocket watch is such a rich theatrical device. It carries weight, history, and a literal measurement of time. Passing a physical object from hand to hand creates a tangible relay race between the stories. But more than just a relay baton, the watch carries different meanings for each character: for Colin it's an heirloom and an obsession with punctuality; for Cath and her mother Claudia, it's a mystery and a bridge between their fractured pasts; and for Morgan, it's a piece of clockwork waiting to be fixed. Making these transitions feel organic was essential so the handovers didn't feel like a gimmick, but rather a moment where one character's departure directly sets off the next person's journey.

Each mini-play merges into the next via the transition of the pocket watch. How did you develop that structure?

We were inspired by Escher’s mind-boggling picture, ‘Ascending and Descending’, of a never-ending staircase. We wanted to try and emulate that optical illusion in written, dramatic form, so we developed the piece as a circular, unbroken loop.  The show’s structure moves from an overgrown churchyard at dawn, to a psychic’s Zoom session in Clapham, to a surreal garden search for a lost python, to a late-night clockmaker's flat, and ultimately back to where it all began. By anchoring each play to a specific time on the eponymous time piece, we established a rhythmic structure where the end of one story literally unlocks the beginning of the next, creating a 'seemingly endless continuum' where time both moves forward and repeats itself. 

Well, that’s the theory at least! I guess it’s best to go see it for yourself to judge how well we succeeded!

Time Piece | Lambeth Fringe | Performing Arts Festival | Sept - Oct

What are the key themes that run through this play?

At its core, Time Piece explores isolation versus connection, identity and self-deception, and the cyclical nature of time.

Every character uses a mask for escapism to shield themselves from the vulnerability of real life, whether it’s Colin’s literal White Rabbit disguise, Claudia’s fraudulent clairvoyant persona, Cath’s devil horns, or Morgan’s obsession with all things clockwork.  

The play continuously questions whether we are trapped in an endless Escher-like staircase, repeating the same mistakes, or if we have the power to break the cycle and control our own destiny.

Each writer brings their own voice and perspective to the production. How did you balance these different writing styles whilst simultaneously making Time Piece feel like a coherent theatrical experience?

All four of us writers are close friends, who have worked together on previous collaborations, and know each other’s writing styles well.  We knew each of us would bring distinct comedic and dramatic sensibilities to the table. Moreover, it was important that each of us felt free to tell our own story in our own way.  However, at the same time, it was very important to us, that the four plays were interlinked enough to provide a coherent overall dramatic experience.  The question was, how to create a structure and process of working that would allow for this balance.  

To begin with we established shared motifs and themes from the start: Alice in Wonderland imagery, Escher’s endless staircases, and of course the Time piece being passed relay-like from play to play with one character from the preceding play carrying it across to the succeeding play.  We then collectively developed thumbnail character descriptions for each of the four characters that feature across the four plays. With these characters agreed, we each developed a brief outline for our own individual stories, which we shared amongst the group. With these outlines in place and agreed, we then all independently wrote our first drafts in parallel. We then collectively discussed the drafts to iron out any inconsistencies between them and make sure they added up to a coherent whole. This was a somewhat iterative process by its very nature, involving several face-to-face meetings.  This wasn’t too much of a burden, since we are all great mates, and the meetings usually took place in our favourite pub. 

Without giving too much away, can you give us a sense of the different worlds or situations audiences will encounter during the four plays?

In the first play written by Sally Sheringham and starring very talented actors Joanna Strafford as Cath, and Stephen Riddle as Colin, there is an early-morning encounter in a hallowed churchyard between a homeless woman in devil horns and a man dressed as the White Rabbit.

The second play written by Richard Fitchett and starring Joanna Strafford as Cath and the amazing Amanda Holt as Claudia, we find ourselves in an eerie, fraudulent online psychic session interrupted by family home-truths in Clapham.

A chaotic front garden search for a pet python named Escher who refuses to be found, is the location for Liam O’Grady’s (that’s me) third play starring the brilliant Billy Harris as Morgan and Amanda Holt as Claudia.

For the fourth and final play Wally Sewell works his magic in a tense, midnight encounter involving a broken watch, a loaded revolver, and a confrontation with time itself. This stars Billy Harris as Morgan and Stephen Riddle as Colin.

We are very lucky to have all four plays directed by award-winning director Anthony Shrubsall.

Your other plays have received stellar feedback and reviews. Is there anything you have learnt from those productions that you’ve brought into Time Piece?

From our previous shows, ‘Fatal Floor’ and ‘Four Funerals and a Wedding’, we learned that audiences love tight, high-stakes storytelling driven by sharp character interactions. We also learned the importance of pacing when managing ensemble or multi-part works -ensuring that comedic moments land cleanly without undercutting the underlying emotional payoff and tension. Time Piece refines that balance by pairing snappy, dialogue with genuine human vulnerability. 

With four plays, four writers and an interconnected structure, what have been the biggest challenges in bringing this elaborate production together?

The biggest challenge was narrative continuity - ensuring that every handover of the watch, every shared line of dialogue, and every character reference matched up seamlessly across the four distinct plays. Managing the tonal shifts from light-hearted absurdity to intense psychological drama to keep the overarching rhythm intact, required delicate orchestration, not to mention the occasional robust debate between friends!

The show is being performed at Clapham’s Bread & Roses Theatre. What does working in such an intimate Fringe venue offer this production?

The Bread & Roses Theatre is the ideal space for Time Piece because its intimacy forces the audience right into the room with these characters. When you are just feet away from someone confessing their deepest fears, putting on a rabbit mask, or handling a revolver, the tension and atmospheric shifts become immediate and tactile. It heightens both the claustrophobia of their isolation and the quiet beauty of their brief connections.

What do you hope audiences will be thinking about as they leave the theatre? Are there particular questions/ideas you would like Time Piece to leave them pondering over?

I hope audiences think, ‘Wow, that was an hour of my life well spent, watching a superb world premiere production by four amazing writers, with a stellar cast and director, and all at such a very modest price!! I must immediately tell all my friends about it.’

Beyond that, we hope audiences leave questioning the ‘masks’ they put on in their own daily lives. Are we actively shaping our futures, or are we just walking up and down an ascending/descending staircase without ever moving forward? Above all, we hope it prompts people to think about the fleeting opportunities we have to truly connect with others before time runs out.

What are the unique advantages of Fringe theatre for artists, performers and creatives like yourselves?

Fringe theatre, and the Lambeth Fringe in particular, offers total creative freedom. It gives us a platform to take narrative risks, experiment with non-linear structures, and put on ambitious four-writer productions, like Time Piece, without commercial artistic compromises. It is an essential incubator for bold storytelling and direct audience connection. The Lambeth Fringe allows this to happen within a very well organised, extremely supportive, and well promoted festival. Also, it’s very affordable!

Finally, what’s next for Time Piece? And what are your ambitions as a team going forward?

Our primary focus is giving Lambeth Fringe audiences an unforgettable run at the Bread & Roses Theatre. Beyond this festival, we would love to tour Time Piece to other fringe festivals and studio theatres across the UK. As a writing and creative collective, we plan to keep pushing the boundaries of collaborative storytelling and exploring new ways to interconnect independent plays into seamless theatrical events. Watch this space!