For more than a decade, The Miniaturists have shone the spotlight on short plays, showcasing work by Moira Buffini, David Eldridge, Anna Jordan, Nick Payne and many others, in their evenings of five 20-minute complete plays.
They are now taking this a step further, sharing 20-minute plays by podcast in a crowd-funded initiative that takes off in November and sees five plays by emerging and established playwrights available to all.
Podcast producer Will Bourdillon said, "as we approach the Miniaturists’ twelfth birthday, we want to try something new.
"We’ve always been a place for writers to try out their craziest idea, to see if they can grab an audience and make them laugh, cry, fall in love, all in just twenty minutes. And along the way, we’ve been extremely lucky to work with some of the most fascinating writers around, both new and established.
"The Miniaturists Podcast lets us bring this process, that has proved so successful on stage, to a whole new medium, offering a whole new challenge to the writers we work with and bringing the work of the Miniaturists to audiences all across the world."
The first season of five plays is made up of:
- Stanley Road by Al Smith—performed by Steven Elder
- 4.30 by Phoebe Éclair-Powell—performed by Pip Gladwin, Andy Goddard, Lee Hunter, Howard Perret, Farshid Rokey and Mary Roubos
- The Book of Eyes by Camilla Whitehill—performed by Ciara Baxendale, Will Bourdillon, Pippa Caddick, Tom Crowley, Barry McStay, Asha Reid and Fiona Sagar
- Strays by Isley Lynn—performed by Eboni Dixon, with Lucy Farrett, Michael Keane, Barry McStay, Farshid Rokey, Fiona Sagar and Max Tyler
- Self-Repair Kit by Vinay Patel—performed by Ian Houghton
All the podcast plays are directed by Andy Goddard. They are available from 16 November via the Miniaturists web site or by searching "The Miniaturists Podcast" through any mainstream podcast platform.