end of tour

It is the beginning of December and I have just arrived home after my last gig of Fallen Fruit.

For those that haven’t seen it, Fallen Fruit is a text heavy and physically demanding solo so (needless to say) I am quite happy to be home with my feet up. Not that I will stay with my feet up for long, but for now, I am taking up the entirety of the sofa.

I visited 22 venues with Fallen Fruit, the biggest single-season tour we have ever done with one show.

This blog is a really massive THANK YOU! A massive THANK YOU to all the people who came to see Fallen Fruit and to those who supported it on its way. Thank you to all those who chose us over simply staying at home, over Eastenders or The One Show, over going to the cinema or watching Netflix, over a known “piece of drama” or a “known title”, over NT Live, over The Met Live, or something else that has Live in the title but actually nothing live in front of you at all, over anything else.

We collected over 240 written responses from audience members about Fallen Fruit, below are some of my personal faves -- not so much because they liked the show as because of the lives they hint at:

“I loved it! Moving story, really made me think (I have friends in Hungary who say their parents are worse off now than under communism) still so relevant to today's politics. Brilliant to use two languages and another with the BSL.” -Dunoon

“An amazing way of portraying a period of history from a very personal viewpoint incorporating what was happening elsewhere. I lived in Berlin when the wall was built, had relatives in the East so this was personal for me too.” -Dunoon

“Inventive, engaging - I got to understand a political event from a personal perspective. Really enjoyed the insurgent TV entertainment references. Gently political works! Thank you!” -Wigtown

“I think the show was fantastic, the ability to tell such a huge story with or from such a normal point of view is really remarkable and helped us to be there. Highly enjoyed it. Thanks” -Grizebeck

“I really enjoyed the play and learnt a lot. Thank you for being so proud of where you are from and your history. It is so important to remember.” -Grizebeck

“It was challenging, sad, and it felt that Bulgarians lost more than they gained by the changes of 1989. I visited in 1975 and remember the grey block of flats, empty shelves in the supermarkets, empty streets and long queues for bread.” -Wingates

“That was wonderful. Such a great energy and very impressive to keep up. It made me realize how little I know about the subject and will be looking for more documentaries to catch up. I could really see myself as a fly on the wall, experiencing the stories. Great work and I am looking forward to see more.” -Glasgow

“I go to the football game every week so I didn't know what to expect but I really enjoyed it, don’t normally come to the theatre but glad I did” -Paisley

“I had never given any thought to the impact of the Wall coming down on the ordinary people of East Germany and the other Eastern Bloc countries so the show was an eye opener. I was particularly impressed by the prizes in the boxes always being party membership as long as your answer complied with the party line” -Paisley

“Really enjoyed it: you humanized immigration of a time of great importance. The humour was effective.” -Skye

“I was fascinated. Gave me a painful glimpse of the terror before 1989 and the chaos after. Many thanks” -Findhorn

“Moving insight into that era and a glimpse into Bulgaria and the changes 30 years ago. What vitality, creativity and stamina of Katherina! I loved the combination of text, music and movement” -Findhorn

“Don’t underestimate how ignorant we (the British!) are of other people’s histories. Thank you for educating me” Banchory 

“Heartfelt recollection of a moment in history that we should never forget. Thank you” -Clevedon

“It was an eye opener. Very interesting and slick. Opened up the history of East and West and the separation and the importance that the wall coming down” -Burton Bradstock

None of the above would have been possible without the support of the full TDL team, so THANK YOU again:

To Alister who has been my rock, who stepped in when it was needed, who let me ride it when I felt strong, who watched the show too many times, who picked me up after a tough night. 

To Caroline Ryan who interpreted around half of our tour dates sometimes for audiences who had never seen BSL interpreted work, giving rise to conversations about the language and access to art.

To Louise Charity, Fran Fenech and Vince Field for being a brilliant stage managers, for calming the storms every single day however short on time.

To Storytelling PR who have been working with us since 2014 and are real legends and worked to make sure people heard about the show on their radio and read about it in their papers.

To Leah and Dayna from Ooh Festivals who have worked tirelessly to try and reach to marketing departments across the UK and whose amazing energy meant that many people totally new to our work came to see us. 

Thank you!