JOLT International Theatre Festival: Gloriator

Gloriator

Spitz and Co.

Olympus Theatre

Cast:

Suzie Donkin - Josephine Cunningham

Pauline Morel - Gloria Delaneuf


After eighteen months of scratch performances, feedback nights and five weeks solid on polishing shows, Suzie Donkin and Pauline Morel, from Spitz and Co, took to the stage as Josephine Cunningham and Gloria Delaneuf in Gloriator, a lighthearted comedy loosely based on the minor female roles accounted for in Ridley Scotts 2000 movie epic Gladiator, and which won 'Wildfire Critics Choice Award' from Exeter Ignite 2014.

The performance took particular scenes from the well known movie, and took a spin to bring the perspective of the female roles. The aim that Suzie and Pauline wanted was for the audience to believe in the characters they were playing, so Josephine at the start would sell raffle tickets on stage to win a brooch, and would say they were £5 each, which the audience believed, but then by the end of the performance, everyone watching would understand that it is very much an act.

The comedy element of the show is spot on for what Gloucester needs in the theatre industry, and bringing two performers in as a double act, Suzie from Stroud and Pauline from France, just goes to show that this is what Gloucester needs, more international acts to come up and open our eyes to what is out there, away from the county, and beyond.

The show brought audience participation from the help of Mark, who was brought up from the audience to join Josephine and Gloria on stage. He felt very relaxed and mentioned he was a performer himself, and when it came to the kiss, it had the audience roaring with laughter, following into Josephine mimicking playing a keyboard over a backing track, singing a love song to Mark.

Gloriator was a rip roaring success at JOLT International Theatre, and proves to be a show for all ages, fans of the movie or not, this is a show not to be missed if you are looking for a night of comedy gold entertainment. Set to continue touring, you can find information about the show at http://www.spitzandco.com

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