The Reluctant Escapologist: Adventures in Alternative Theatre

A Maverick's Journey Through Britain's Fringe Theatre

Mike Bradwell's candid memoir of alternative theatre-making

About the Ebook

An unrivalled unofficial history of the rise – and partial fall – of fringe theatre, Mike Bradwell's deadpan account of his adventures is one of the funniest and angriest books to come out of theatre today. Winner of the 2010 Theatre Book Prize awarded by the Society for Theatre Research.

As he travels through a counterculture peopled by nutters, chancers, dreamers and prophets, Bradwell makes us marvel at his resilience and creativity, captured in a succession of vivid – and often laugh-out- loud – episodes such as: creating a character with Mike Leigh; enjoying the onstage mass orgasms of The Living Theatre; eating fire with Bob Hoskins; becoming an underwater escapologist (reluctantly) in the Ken Campbell Roadshow; creating Hull Truck; and doing battle with the Health and Safety brigade, the funding bodies and a Polish heavy-metal disco during his ten years running the famous Bush Theatre in West London.

Bradwell was a passionate champion of the alternative as well as an admired and successful director. In this book, he makes a compelling – and urgent – case for preserving the true and subversive spirit of theatre from castration at the hands of bankers, consultants, stakeholders, cultural-diversity compliance monitors and the Arts Council. 

'Towards the end of this brilliant account of his epic forty-year journey, Mike tells us, 'I don't believe that theatre is safe in the hands of grown-ups', and it is his healthy, eternal youthfulness that makes the book so inspiring' Mike Leigh, from his Foreword

Why You'll Love This Ebook

• Experience the wild creative energy of British alternative theatre history
• Discover the founding principles of fringe and devised performance
• Learn from a director who shaped Hull Truck and the Bush Theatre
• Read Nick Hern Books' celebrated history of unconventional theatre-makers

Reviews

'A practical, accessible, friendly book with the potential to support anyone whose emotional health could, potentially, be challenged' Ink Pellet magazine

'A refreshing look at how to sustain mind, body and brain… this handy pocket guide offers great insight into the modem creative industries… It is grounded in real-life experience and offers many active exercises for the reader… actively useful with real world application… it's a highly engaging and soothing balm to ensure that we start to take seriously the craft of looking after ourselves' Drama & Theatre Magazine

'Invaluable advice and support... This is the first book, to my knowledge, that looks specifically at how people who work in the creative industries can develop and support their own mental health... It is a timely book, as it explores the triggers for mental health issues, such as unstable work, low pay and lack of support... It is well structured and easy to navigate, and being pocket sized makes it an ideal travelling companion... Each chapter begins with a slice of learning and is strongly evidenced by science... The accompanying online recordings are soothing, relaxing and insightful, and fully complement the exercises in the book. I was impressed with how they engage the reader with the topics it covers... Developing Your Emotional Health should be given to all students at the end of their training as an arts practitioner' Word Matters (Journal of the Society of Teachers of Speech & Drama)

About the Author

Mike Bradwell (1948-2025) was a leading theatre director. He founded Hull Truck Theatre Company in 1971, was Artistic Director of the Bush Theatre from 1996 until 2007, and subsequently worked widely as a freelance director. His book on alternative theatre, The Reluctant Escapologist, won the Society for Theatre Research's Theatre Book Prize for 2010.

Publication Details

ISBN (EPUB): 9781788502252
Publication Date: 22 August 2019
Pages: 336
Format: Ebook (EPUB)
Publisher: Nick Hern Books

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