ALTRUI, an OFF TOPIC THEATRE scratch night

Off Topic Theatre are back at The Studio Beyond on Saturday 7 November with ALTRUI, another one of their scratch nights. If you've never been to one, the format is pretty straightforward: it's a showcase of works-in-progress. The plays are staged specifically to get audience feedback so they can be improved and reworked, and the company hands out QR codes so the room can have its say. The whole thing wraps up with some live singing.

The bill for this one is a bit of a mixed bag. There's Miracle (20 mins), a musical theatre set by Emily Guilfoyle (20 mins), an untitled play by Eli Yim (20 mins), and a folk set by Rosie Herissone-Kelly (20 mins). The longest piece is Breadwinner by Buffalo Roves Theatre, directed by Casey Caldecott, which runs for 40 minutes. Between the five of them, you're looking at about two and a half hours of new material.

Off Topic Theatre is a fringe company started by a group of friends back in 2017. They don't run auditions; they invite creatives to audition and offer a role to everyone regardless of background. They got going with Dr Faustus, a project aimed at helping young people aged 16-25 produce authentic work and gain industry experience, and since then they've worked closely with working-class, neurodiverse and LGBTQIA+ people to make inclusive theatre across different genres. They're currently raising funds for their 2027 production of A Midsummer Night's Dream.

ALTRUI is at The Studio Beyond, 63 Wood Street, L1 4AL. It starts at 19:30, with doors open from 18:45, and runs for about two and a half hours. Tickets are £6.13 to £11.55 via Eventbrite.