HORNSEY - PENNELL PRODUCTIONS
Hornsey – Pennell Productions was launched in 2023 by Barnaby Tobias with the desire to reintroduce a sense of wonder to theatre. We are drawn to plays that trust silence, mystery and the power of language, and writers with a distinct voice and a clear sense of their place within theatrical lineage.Previous productions include a modern re-imagining of Plato’s Myth of Er, and a piece inspired by Rudolf Steiner’s Anthroposophy, both exploring mythic structures through contemporary human experience.
Pre-Birth
THE NAME - MAY 2026
A UK Premiere by 2023 Nobel Prize–winning author Jon Fosse.A family house by the sea. A young pregnant woman sits on a sofa.
Her partner enters.
Her sister returns.
Then her mother.
Then the father.
What should be a simple family gathering becomes something quietly unsettling. Questions circle. Silence lingers. The unborn child waits at the centre of the room. The question of its name is never answered. The question of its origin arises. When her partner speaks of reincarnation, the mood shifts. When her former lover is mentioned, it shifts again.The Name is a haunting and tender exploration of family, of communication withheld, and of the authority of silence.
Written during the period in which Jon Fosse received the Norwegian Ibsen Award, the play established him as one of Europe’s most distinctive dramatic voices.
Directed by Simon Usher, who’s work spans The National Theatre, The Royal Court and the West End, this production offers a rare opportunity to encounter Fosse’s major work in an intimate space.The Name is a delicate, deeply human portrait of belief, doubt and the longing to be seen.
After Life
ER - 2025 Riverside Studios / The White Bear
Jay and Tess are stuck in purgatory, waiting to be re-born on earth. As they wait, they sift through various professions and jobs, discussing what they would like to be in their next incarnation. They also pass time be recounting the tale of how they met, the house party that brought them together and the fateful night that ended their lives on earth.Er is inspired by Plato’s Myth of Er and all the other myths surrounding it. It looks at reincarnation and karma, setting these ancient themes in the modern setting of a party. These types of plays our important to us, as they go beyond the commercial appetite for psychology and reason, they hark back to a more primordial version of theatre, interested in exploring the mystical elements of our nature, the parts which cannot be reached by science or knowledge, the parts which are best revealed through story.
Putrid Beauty - 2023 Actors East in association with The Shed Theatre Company
Lucifer is trying to find God. Sapphire has a plan to help him. One Faustian pact later see’s this unlikely couple stretching the boundaries of heaven, art and self-acceptance in attempt to find the truth. Highly ironic and absurdist-ly brutal, this dark, romantic comedy explores the self-torture and nihilistic pursuit of trying to find purpose in this world.Putrid Beauty was inspired by an Anthroposophical idea - that Lucifer and the darker parts of ourselves are always trying to find the divine.
Fox-Light - The Hope Theatre 2022 directed by Simon Usher
Fox-Light followed two young artists as they unfolded in love at a party. Fox-Light pushed the boundary of performance art and theatre, we brought real life scenarios of the artists involved into the production and reconstructed them as a narrative play.
Our work is kindly supported by the Hermes Trust and individual members of the public. As we don't often 'tick' regular funding boxes, we rely on donations from members of the public and those who believe in our work. If you would like to find out more about how you can support us, please email.
Contact
The best way to reach us is by email.
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