Crucible @50 Podcast Series

In this special, extra episode of the Crucible@50 Podcast Series, Tedd George interviews two greats of the stage and screen: Sir Ian McKellen and Sir Derek Jacobi. Drawing on their lifetime of work in the theatre and on film, Tedd explores the different open stages they have performed on, including the Crucible Theatre, their likes and dislikes, their work with Tyrone Guthrie and Laurence Olivier, and the differences between acting on stage and on film.

You can get a copy of 'Stirring Up Sheffield: An insider's account of the battle to build the Crucible Theatre' from Wordville here: www.wordville.net

In the ninth episode of the series, Tedd George interviews three designers about the challenges and surprises of working on the thrust stage: Christopher Oram, Jessica Hung Han Yun and Andrzej Goulding. The discussion covers not only the Crucible Theatre, but also designing for the open stages of the Donmar Warehouse, the National, the Festival Theatre Chichester, the Menier Chocolate Factory and the Orange Tree.

You can get a copy of 'Stirring Up Sheffield: An insider's account of the battle to build the Crucible Theatre' from Wordville here: www.wordville.net

In the eighth episode of this series, Ashley Barnes and Tedd George speak with Robert Hastie, Artistic Director of Sheffield Theatres, about the the highs and lows of the past five years and the standout moments of the theatre’s 50th anniversary season, including the ambitious staging of Rock, Paper, Scissors. They also explore Robert’s vision for Sheffield Theatres going forward.

In the seventh episode in the series, following the renaming of the Studio Theatre as the Tanya Moiseiwitsch Playhouse, Tedd George explores the career of this remarkable designer of the Crucible’s iconic thrust stage. Interviews with those who knew and worked with Tanya include Ian McKellen, James Smith, Nick Thompson, Clare Ferraby and Rodney Ford, along with a restored interview with Tanya by the Crucible’s first Artistic Director, Colin George.

In the sixth episode of the series, Ashley Barnes, Deputy Head of the Department of Humanities at Sheffield Hallam University, visits the archive of the Crucible Theatre and learns about its transfer across the road to Sheffield Hallam. Ashley meets with Jackie Pass (Assistant to the CEO and Artistic Director of Sheffield Theatres) and Debbie Gamble (Head of Wardrobe) who share with him the treasures of the Crucible Archive and the theatre's immense costume and prop collection, before visiting Steve Sharp (Head of Library Resources at Sheffield Hallam University) to discuss how the Crucible Archive will be housed and accessed in the future.

In the fifth episode of the series, Tedd George interviews two more directors about the challenges and joys of working on the thrust stage: Michael Grandage (Artistic Director of the Crucible Theatre, 2000-05, and of the Donmar Warehouse 2002-12) and Robert Hastie, Artistic Director of the Crucible Theatre (2016-present). There are also final comments about the Crucible by directors from the previous episode: Daniel Evans (Artistic Director of the Festival Theatre Chichester), Josie Rourke (Artistic Director of the Donmar Warehouse, 2012-19) and Anthony Lau (Associate Artistic Director at the Crucible Theatre, 2020-present).

The discussion covers not only the Crucible Theatre, but also working on the open stages of the Donmar Warehouse, the Festival Theatre Chichester, Shakespeare's Globe Theatre and the Olivier.

You can get a copy of 'Stirring Up Sheffield: An insider's account of the battle to build the Crucible Theatre' from Wordville here: www.wordville.net

In the fourth episode of the series, Tedd George interviews three directors about the challenges and joys of working on the thrust stage: Daniel Evans (Artistic Director of the Festival Theatre Chichester), Josie Rourke (Artistic Director of the Donmar Warehouse, 2012-19) and Anthony Lau (Associate Artistic Director at the Crucible Theatre, 2020-present). The discussion covers not only the Crucible Theatre, but also working on the open stages of the Donmar Warehouse, the Festival Theatre Chichester, Shakespeare's Globe Theatre and the Chicago Shakespeare Theater.

You can get a copy of 'Stirring Up Sheffield: An insider's account of the battle to build the Crucible Theatre' from Wordville here: www.wordville.net

In the third episode of the series, Tedd George interviews four actors about the challenges and joys of working on the thrust stage: Alex Young, Dominic West, Simon Manyonda and Alex Blake. The discussion covers not only the Crucible Theatre, but also working on the open stages of the Olivier, Shakespeare's Globe, the Festival Theatre Chichester, the Donmar Warehouse and the Bridge Theatre.

You can get a copy of 'Stirring Up Sheffield' from Wordville here: www.wordville.net

In the second episode of the series, Ashley Barnes, Deputy Head of the Dept of Humanities at Sheffield Hallam University, speaks to playwright Chris Bush about the challenges of writing for the different Crucible stages and the rewards of writing about her home city. Chris is an award-winning playwright, whose work for Sheffield Theatres includes Standing at the Sky’s Edge, Steel and The Sheffield Mysteries. She is currently working on her most ambitious work, Rock/Paper/Scissors, which involves three different plays with he same actors being performed simultaneously in the Crucible auditorium, the Studio and the Lyceum.

In the first episode of the Crucible 50 Podcast Series, Ashley Barnes interviews Tedd George, son of the Crucible Theatres's founding artistic director, Colin George, about their book: 'Stirring Up Sheffield: The battle to build the Crucible Theatre', which was published by Wordville in November 2021. They explore the final years of the Sheffield Playhouse, the origins and development of the Crucible's radical thrust stage design and the controversies it stirred up, as well as the theatre's fortunes since its opening in November 1971. 

You can get a copy of 'Stirring Up Sheffield' from Wordville here: www.wordville.net