Poison at C Venues

‘Ross Anderson is a young artist – writer, actor, director – of limitless talent.  It’s clear this is what he’s meant to be doing’ 

Robert Milazzo, film director and founder of the Modern School of Film (New York)

‘I was very involved and touched by the playwright’s ability to reveal the shocking truth about addiction and its consequences, admitting involuntarily the failures and flaws of human behaviour. Poison – a skillful and thought-provoking play. Hats off!’

Vahag Bagratuni, The Actors’ Studio, New York

Although Lohattan are based in London, much of their inspiration comes from the States. Ross Anderson - director and writer - met with the rest of the company while they were studying at together at the Lee Strasberg Theatre and Film Institute in New York. Their entry to the Fringe, Poison, is a dark look at the pressures on youth: the titular Poisons range from drug addiction, denial, jealousy, lust, selfishness, sibling rivalry and parental neglect.

Lee Strasbourg was famous for taking "method acting" from its European roots and lending it an intense, American dynamic: it has become the favoured technique for cinema actors hoping to inject authenticity into their performances. Ross Anderson explains a little more about how the technique has influenced Lohattan's Poison.

The method is all about tapping into past experiences and emotions “sensorially” and producing an organic and thus real and natural response whilst on stage. To do this we were trained to focus our attention specifically on the five senses (touch, taste, sight, smell and sound) to be able to reproduce the exact emotions that we felt at all different times in our lives, (such as when key events took place that made us laugh or cry) on stage. It really is an incredible feeling and makes the process of behaving onstage as our characters all the more enjoyable, vivid and real.

With that in mind, I wanted to write about experiences that I had witnessed as well as those of my closest friends. That’s not to say there isn’t any fiction in the play, but I felt that writing about the things I had experienced and seen my friends go through would make the play all the more moving to our audiences, as I am sure they will be able to relate to the circumstances and respective poisons of the play, whether they would like to admit it or not. Other than that, the method didn’t really play an enormous part in the writing. It was more significant in the directing exercises and rehearsal process. The technique enabled each actor to substitute the other actors they are working along side and their respective characters, with people of a similar stance in their own lives as well as personalizing the situations that take place. This means that they take a certain situation from their own lives, which enables them to feel and experience the same real emotions the characters in the play are feeling at certain points as the play develops.

Fringe 2012 seems to have enticed a great number of US companies across, yet Anderson suggests that there is something in the method that sets it apart.

 I wouldn’t say there is a vast difference between the New York style of theatre and that of Britain’s. However Lee Strasberg’s method is completely different than anything I have studied back home. As I outlined in the previous question, the sensorial technique really enables the actors to behave and live as the characters would but more importantly reveal real inner emotions. When actors apply the method technique the audience will see a little part of their soul, which in turn makes the actor more vulnerable, but if applied correctly, this truth and vulnerability will, in my opinion, fascinate any audience member’s mind.

From this, Anderson sees theatre as a vital part of contemporary culture, capable of raising issues and exploring them in a unique manner.

Yes. I feel drama, be it on the stage, on the big screen or our home TV sets is the perfect place to explore major issues such as that of neglect and drugs and the danger that lies within the two. Due to the fact that it is so accessible these days, especially when you take the internet into account, in my opinion drama can play a key part in educating and warning people of the dangers of any major issue we face as a society. Drama, if carried out well, encourages people to open their eyes a little more and think about things. This is what we hope to achieve with our Posion at the same time as entertaining our audiences.

C nova, venue 145, Edinburgh Festival Fringe
12–18 Aug
Time 14:00 (1hr00)
Ticket prices £8.50-£10.50 / concessions £6.50-£8.50