The Research
In 2008 Elaine Pantling received R&D funding from the Arts Council England East Midlands, Leicester City Council and Leicestershire County Council to research and develop a piece of work that explored the misuse of power around Domestic Violence/abuse.
Elaine worked alongside support agencies dealing with Domestic Violence. She visited hostels and women’s refuges, delivering workshops, observing and interviewing survivors and practitioners collecting stories and personal accounts. Elaine said: “It was such a privilege to be let into the life of the survivor and all the stories told have helped to give ‘Apple Pie Order’ truth and integrity” Elaine then wrote a and performed 20 minute piece of theatre that explored the physical, sexual and psychological aspects of abuse. The Pilot performance was shown to a 100 strong audience at Curve in Leicester made up of Survivors and DV Practitioners.
“The use of humour was fantastic. The scene with the duck was really well constructed; the way it went really quickly from light and fun to dark and sinister. As a victim – or survivor – I was able to identify with something in each scenario (even though I didn’t experience all of them)”. Audience member
The response was incredible and Elaine (Laurielorry) received further funding to develop ‘Apple Pie Order’ Education, Awareness, Training education pack and an hour long performance of the piece.
Writer and performer Elaine Pantling
Elaine worked for twenty years as a ‘Time Served Cutter’ in the Hosiery trade… mainly in ‘Knickers’. She graduated, at the age of 40, from De Montfort University with BA Hon's in Performing Arts. Laurielorry Theatre was conceived in 1999 and Elaine has written, produced, performed in and toured nationally with the productions ‘Sausage and Samosa’, ‘Gusset’,‘The Three Graces’, ‘Elaine Pantling Pants’, ‘The Diaries of Marjorie Simpson’, ‘Contour and Cream’, ‘Trifle’, ‘The Upper Room’ and ‘Are You Sitting Comfortably’.
Although Laurielorry (Elaine Pantling) is an individual artist she works in collaboration with different artists and organisations. She Co Produces and works with Mark Makin of makin projects and has worked with Olivier Award winning Director Mark Whitelaw, Pete Shenton of New Art Club and Bobby Baker as her mentor and friend and continues to work with Isabel Ford Actor and Director.
Television credits include ‘Are You Sitting Comfortably’, previewed on Arts showcase
Central Television, ‘Gusset’ -
Radio credits include BBC Radio 4 ‘Woman’s Hour’, BBC Radio Scotland ‘The Arts Show’, BBC Radio Leicester and BBC Radio Kent.
Film credits include Mum in a short Film ‘The Good Men of Leicester’ Written by Al Mackay and Neal Craston. Writer and Director of short film “My Genes Don’t Fit”, Devised and conceived with a group of adults with learning disabilities and Film Maker Harvey Sharman Dunn. Supported by The Wellcome Trust
Co Writer, Director and performed in “I love You More Than Cheese” supported by Lloyds TSB, Produced by 27A Access Artspace. Co Writer, Director and Workshop facilitator of ‘The Grumpy Young People of Agar Nook’ supported by Northwest Leicestershire CC and The Arts Council England.
Directed by: Isabel Ford
Isabel has two wonderful daughters and she juggles between motherhood, acting and directing. Apple Pie Order is her second directorial adventure with Elaine... the first being ‘Sausage & Samosa’ where Isabel used her expertise in clowning and physical theatre. She also appeared as Gaiety in ‘The Three Graces’ written by Elaine Pantling, directed by Pete Shenton.
Isabel collaborated and devised and continues to work with the artist Susan Swanton on their well received showcase of Mother F which premiered at The Royal Exchange studio last year. She most recently worked at The Coliseum Theatre, Oldham in their production of Brassed Off from which she acquired a leading Manchester agent, Jane Hollowood Associates. As a child Isabel was privileged to know the late great Max Wall (her father edited his autobiography 'Fool on the Hill' and he became a close family friend.) The family would often see him in productions and particularly his acclaimed one man show. Max was one of the main reasons Isabel wanted to become an actress and his brilliant clowning has inspired and influenced her interest in physical theatre.
At the age of 11 she was picked out of 500 school children to play a page boy in The Merchant of Venice, a Vanessa Ford production at The Theatre Royal, Bury St Edmunds. Her first professional engagement also led on to meeting John Gorman and Chris Tarrant from Tiswas who chose her to do an interview down a Stoke on Trent coalmine on the successful children’s programme for HTV.
She was lucky enough to travel to Canada for a year and work with Keith Johnston (author of Impro) in Calgary, Canada. She was taught by him and played weekly theatre sports. On returning to England she became involved with theatre Sports at the Hen and Chickens, London. She worked with the then new comedian Eddie Izzard and Stella Duffy.
In 1992 she began a 3 year theatre degree course at Rose Bruford College of Speech and Drama. She studied red nose and buffont clowning, commedia del'arte, Greek theatre, mask, puppetry, musical and classical theatre. Since leaving college she has worked extensively in theatre, acting, devising and directing. She has toured nationally and internationally most notably with Teatre Biuro Podrozy from Poland and Macnas Theatre from Ireland. She has worked on educative theatre for Quantum Theatre for Science and Nottingham Playhouse. She also devised with the writer Philip Osment. His play 'Palace of Fear' was originally commissioned by the Schools Development Agency, presented by Leicester Haymarket and published by Oberon 2004. She has toured with Michael Friend Productions and Laurielorry theatre and worked in repertory theatre at Hornchurch, The Belgrade and Birmingham Rep. She has also appeared in two plays for BBC Radio 4 directed by Kristine Landon Smith (Tamasha Theatre) Isabel has worked with the film director Debbie Isitt (Nasty Neighbours and Confetti)in a theatre production of The 101 Dalmatians. Debbie remains a close friend and artistic mentor.
Co-
Mark and Penny Makin established makin projects in September 2005 to be able to work with outstanding theatre and dance companies of all scales who produce high quality, accessible, entertaining and stimulating work.
The team at makin projects handle the national and international tour booking for
these companies along with co-
Makin projects also offer highly popular day training and consultancy sessions to a range of emerging and established theatre and dance companies on how to tour their own sustainable UK and International tours.