Fourth Monkey Actor Training Company
Fourth Monkey Actor Training Company is both a repertory theatre company, and an actor training provider and drama school for young actors.
Based in North London, United Kingdom, Fourth Monkey provides an alternative to traditional conservatoire training or drama school. In addition to receiving training in London, Fourth Monkey's actors travel and perform throughout the UK and overseas in a repertory style.
Alongside Fourth Monkey's approach to training, the company is noted for their theatre productions. Although performing in a wide range of theatrical styles and genres, they are generally recognised for their work in repertory theatre, ensemble theatre, physical theatre, in-yer-face theatre, site-specific theatre, and fringe theatre.
Overview
Fourth Monkey was formed by Steven Green, the company's Artistic Director. His intention was to create a hands-on alternative to drama school training.Initially only a one-year course the company, in 2012, began providing a two-year programme as well. Some actors train at Fourth Monkey for three years, graduating from the one-year programme onto the two-year. The company also offers a variety of .
The is the professional touring arm of the company. Born out of the training programme, the company's aim is to deliver original, physical theatre nationally and internationally. The Ensemble toured in 2014 - 2015 with their acclaimed OFFIE nominated production of The Elephant Man, which was supported by Arts Council England.
Fourth Monkey performed annually at the Edinburgh Festival Fringe, where they earned a following. The company has since shifted their focus towards partaking in the Camden Fringe, performing annually at the festival since 2017.
The company is also noted for having actors spend a month-long residency in Italy training with world renowned maestro of commedia dell'arte Antonio Fava.
Currently, Fourth Monkey consists of over 100 students, split between the one-year "Year of the Monkey" course, and the "Two Year Rep" course. The company, in partnership with The Stage, offers a full scholarship annually to two prospective students.
Fourth Monkey has collaborated - and created work in association - with theatre companies such as ,
, , , , Shunt, , , , and .
The Monkey House
In September 2015 the company announced they had set up their own premises "The Monkey House" on Seven Sisters Road near Finsbury Park where they plan to stay permanently, having previously taught in locations such as Jacksons Lane.The Monkey House is also a London Fringe performance space, and since 2017 has annually played host to a number of shows for the Camden Fringe.
List of productions and performances
Fourth Monkey has a long history of both audience and critical reviews for their performances of established texts and company-devised projects.2019
Camden Fringe Season 2019Two Year Rep production
- Valhalla devised by Fourth Monkey
- Witness written by Mia Jerome
- 909 written by Abi Smith
- Sannyas written by Mia Jerome
- RebelRebelRebelRebelRebel. Please? devised by Fourth Monkey in association with
A showcase of performed excerpts from translations of Spanish and Latin American plays. Performed in association with The Cervantes Theatre, London.
- Yerma by Simon Stone after Federico García Lorca
- The Unwritten Law by Felipe Santander
- All About My Mother by Samuel Adamson after Pedro Almodóvar
- The Little Pony by Paco Bezerra
- The Love of the Nightingale by Timberlake Wertenbaker
- The Lower Depths by Maxim Gorky
- Heroes devised by Fourth Monkey
- An Open Mind devised by Fourth Monkey
- Henry V by William Shakespeare
- Pericles by William Shakespeare
2018
Two Year Rep production:
- The Woman and the Canvas devised by in a co-production with Fourth Monkey.
Scandal Season
- Bombshells performed by graduates of the Year of the Monkey course
- Fatty performed by graduates of the Year of the Monkey course
- Kidnap! performed by graduates of the Year of the Monkey course
A showcase of performed excerpts from new translations of Spanish and Latin American plays. Performed in association with The Cervantes Theatre, London.
- The Opera Cleaners by Ramón Griffero
- Divine Words by Ramón del Valle-Inclán
- When Five Years Pass by Federico García Lorca
- The House of Bernarda Alba by Federico García Lorca
- The War of the Worlds devised by Fourth Monkey in association with , adapted from the novel of the same name by H.G. Wells
- Widows by Ariel Dorfman and Tony Kushner
- Ghetto by Joshua Sobol
- Adrift devised by Fourth Monkey
- Faire des Marques devised by Fourth Monkey
- Romeo and Juliet by William Shakespeare
- The Tempest by William Shakespeare
2017
Two Year Rep productions:
- The Burial of the Rats devised by Fourth Monkey, adapted from the short story of the same name by Bram Stoker
- Titus Andronicus by William Shakespeare
- Medusa by Ezra Elia
- Persephone by Ami Sayers
- Pandora by Ami Sayers
- Orlando: The Queer Element devised by in association with Fourth Monkey, loosely inspired from ' by Virginia Woolf
- The Woman on the Chair devised by Fourth Monkey in association with
Conflict Season
- Mother Courage and Her Children by Bertolt Brecht, translated by John Willett
- 3 Winters by Tena Štivičić
- Goblin Market devised by Fourth Monkey
- Refugee Blues devised by Fourth Monkey
2016
Fourth Monkey's Genesis and RevelationTwo Year Rep productions:
- Ascension: Part II by Steve Green
- Ascension: Part I by Steve Green
- Sodom by Ami Sayers
- The Ark by Steve Green
- The Whale by Steve Green
- Plasticine by Vassily Sigarev, translated by Sasha Dugdale
- Terrorism by The Presnyakov brothers, translated by Sarsha Dugdale
- The Grain Store by Natalia Vorozhbit, translated by Sasha Dugdale
- Ruckus devised by Fourth Monkey in association with Shunt
- Question Mark devised by Fourth Monkey
- The Nesting Place devised by Fourth Monkey
- The Winter's Tale by William Shakespeare
- The Revenger's Tragedy by Thomas Middleton
2015
- Little Red Cap by Ami Sayers
- Hansel & Gretel adapted by Toby Clarke
- The Bloody Countess devised by Fourth Monkey
- Rapunzel adapted by Angela Gasparetto
- The Odyssey by Hattie Naylor, adapted from the epic poem by Homer
- The Wonderful Ice Cream Suit by Ray Bradbury
- Don Juan Comes Back From The War by Ödön von Horváth, in a new version by Duncan Macmillan
- The Public by Frederico Garcia Lorca
- Hellcats devised by Fourth Monkey in association with
- As You Like It by William Shakespeare
- A Midsummer Night’s Dream by William Shakespeare
- Much Ado about Nothing by William Shakespeare
- Tamburlaine the Great: Part II by Christopher Marlowe
- Tamburlaine the Great: Part I by Christopher Marlowe
2014
- The Elephant Man by Steve Green and David Ledger
- Alice by Toby Clarke, adapted from the Alice novels by Lewis Carroll
- Treasure Island adapted from the novel by Robert Louis Stevenson
- The House of Bernarda Alba by Frederico Garcia Lorca
- Can't Stay Away! by , adapted from David Posner's translation of The 22 Misfortunes of Harlequin by Carlo Goldoni
- The Sad Story of the Sun and the Moon devised by Fourth Monkey
- Rhesus by Euripides
- Lysistrata by Aristophanes
- The Kitchen by Arnold Wesker
- Vinegar Tom by Caryl Churchill
- The Iceman by Toby Clarke, adapted from the short story by Haruki Murakami
- Our Country's Good by Timberlake Wertenbaker
- Yerma by Frederico Garcia Lorca
- The Good Person of Szechwan by Bertolt Brecht
- The Jew Of Malta by Christopher Marlowe
- The Massacre At Paris by Christopher Marlowe
- Faustus by Christopher Marlowe
2013
- The Peculiar Tale of Pablo Picasso and the Mona Lisa by Steve Green
- One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest by Dale Wasserman, adapted from the novel of the same name by Ken Kesey
- Sans Salomé by Toby Clarke
- Paradise Lost devised by The Fourth Monkey Ensemble, adapted from the epic poem of the same name by John Milton
- Project Colony devised by The Fourth Monkey Ensemble, adapted from In the Penal Colony by Franz Kafka
2012
- 4.48 Psychosis by Sarah Kane
- The Elephant Man by Steve Green and David Ledger
- Nights at the Circus by and Steve Green, adapted from the novel by Angela Carter
- The Erpingham Camp by Joe Orton
- Divine Words by Ramón del Valle-Inclán
- Minotaur conceived by Natalie Katsou and translated by Yannis Goumas
- Lord of the Flies by Nigel Williams, adapted from the novel by William Golding
- The Bacchae by Euripides, translated by Ranjit Bolt
2011
- Antigone by Sophocles, translated by Ranjit Bolt
- The Love of the Nightingale by Timberlake Wertenbaker
- The Threepenny Opera by Bertolt Brecht
2010
- by Anthony Burgess
Awards
Year | Award Ceremony | Category | Nominee | Production | Result |
2019 | Off West End Awards | OffFest - Short Run | Fourth Monkey | Valhalla | Nominated |
2015 | The Stage | School of the Year | Fourth Monkey | Shortlisted | |
2015 | Off West End Awards | Best Male Actor | Daniel Chrisostomou | The Elephant Man | Nominated |
2015 | Off West End Awards | Best Production | Fourth Monkey Ensemble | The Elephant Man | Nominated |
2014 | Edinburgh Fringe | Sell-Out Show | Fourth Monkey Two Year Rep | Alice | Won |
2014 | Off West End Awards | Best Set Designer | Zahra Mansouri | The Peculiar Tale of Pablo Picasso and the Mona Lisa | Nominated |
2014 | Off West End Awards | Best Costume Designer | Zahra Mansouri | The Peculiar Tale of Pablo Picasso and the Mona Lisa | Nominated |
2014 | Off West End Awards | Best Ensemble | Fourth Monkey | The Peculiar Tale of Pablo Picasso and the Mona Lisa | Nominated |
2012 | Off West End Awards | Best Lighting Designer | Pablo Baz | 4.48 Psychosis | Nominated |
2012 | Amnesty International | Freedom of Expression Award | Fourth Monkey | The Elephant Man | Nominated |
2012 | Edinburgh Fringe | Sell-Out Show | Fourth Monkey | 4.48 Psychosis | Won |
2010 | Edinburgh Fringe | Sell-Out Show | Fourth Monkey | Won |