Spy for Spy at Riverside Studios to star Amy Lennox & Olive Gray

Casting has been announced for the world premiere of Kieron Barry’s new romantic comedy Spy for Spy, coming to the Riverside Studios this summer 2023.

The show will star Olive Gray (Halo, Save Me Too), and Amy Lennox (Cabaret, Kinky Boots).

Announced lats month, Spy for Spy is a romantic comedy with a difference, as the drama is performed like a playlist, with the scenes shuffled in a random order.

Sarah and Molly are two Californians who love each other – and that’s all they have in common. As the uptight lawyer and the free-spirited dreamer strive to make their improbable relationship work, we see them break up, meet the parents, move in together and fall in love – all in a completely random sequence.

The play asks if our lives make more sense in the wrong order, and if there is any logic to love as it zigzags from moving drama to laugh-out-loud comedy.

Audiences have the opportunity to affect the show as six audience members pick a song title at random. Each song title relates to a scene, and the order in which the song titles are picked will be the order in which the scenes are performed.

Kieron Barry’s previous plays include Stockwell, with Kieron nominated for an Evening Standard Award for most promising playwright; Tomorrow In The Battle; and Numbers.

Directed by Lucy Jane Atkinson, the creative team also includes Bethia Jane Green – Designer; Holly Ellis – Lighting Designer; Anna Short – Sound Designer; Sean Laing – Production Manager; Nell Thomas – DSM; and Amy Moore – ASM.

The show is a co-production between Feather Productions, led by writer Tim Whitnall and producer Anna Murphy, and TeamAkers Productions, led by writer/producer Laurence Akers and actor/producer Suranne Jones.

Spy for Spy is playing at the Riverside Studios from 15 June to 2 July 2023.

Currently playing at the Riverside Studios is Winnie The Pooh until 21 May; and coming up is Tarantino Live: Fox Force Five & The Tyranny of Evil Men from 6 June 2023.

Book tickets to Spy for Spy at Riverside Studios in London

The Quotes

Writer Kieron Barry said: “I was intrigued by the disparity between how we experience events and how we remember them. In contrast to our society’s endless promoting of the now, I have often found the present moment to be insubstantial compared to the reckless zeal of the past, which seems forever vivid and urgent as it crowds about us. Of course, here and there a huge event comes along and one suddenly feels alive and present again, yet the fate of such a moment is to become just another memory and so it continues. I wanted to write a play which would recreate the zigzagging, chaotic sensations of recollection, and in particular the act of summoning memory to examine the sharpest question of all: were we loved?”

Director Lucy Jane Atkinson said: “I am so excited to be working with Olive and Amy on this show. They each bring with them a wealth of experience on stage and screen, as well as a playfulness, bravery, and enthusiasm which suits them perfectly to this piece. I can’t wait to get into rehearsal and see them bring these characters to life.”

Producer Anna Murphy said: “Feather Productions are really excited to be co-presenting this whip-smart, funny, and touching new play. Kieron Barry’s brilliant, connective writing breathes life into a love story perfect for our times: a couple subsumed by a flood of random memories as they recount their disordered relationship, a theatrical USP ensuring that no two performances can ever be alike.”

Producer Laurence Akers said: “TeamAkers are delighted to be involved in the production of Kieron’s excellent play. Spy for Spy beautifully illustrates the complexities of love and relationships and confirms the notion that the memory has no respect for order or continuity in matters of the heart.”

Producer Suranne Jones said: “This is our inaugural step into theatre production, and we couldn’t be prouder of the people who’ve come together to make this a reality.”