Hard As Snails Productions is a production company with a single aim:making theatre and film accessible for everyone. The company is co-owned by Helena Marrion-Cole and Nathan Cook; who are both experienced actors, directors, writers, producers and workshop facilitators.

Firstly, we work to create film which speaks to everyone. Our narrative aims to capture aspects of everyday life and include characters and scenarios which people can relate to. We create adventure out of the little things in life.

We also believe that theatre can and should be enjoyed by anyone, but that there are various reasons why some people do not go to see it. We aim to encourage those people to get pleasure from theatre and there are three ways in which we plan to do this:

1.   Our productions will use accessible material and themes that can be enjoyed regardless of level of education/social background/age/knowledge of theatre.

2.   We will put on productions for people who may not have immediate access to the theatre by using site specific venues, such as putting on small shows in elderly homes and hospices.

3.   We plan to facilitate workshops on both a ‘just for fun’ and T.I.E (Theatre in Education) basis for children, young people, adults and vulnerable groups. Going to the theatre is not the only way to enjoy theatre. We feel these workshops would be key to getting more people involved with theatre.

We’re on a mission to prove that anyone can be positively affected by theatre, whether it’s through laughter, being emotionally stimulated in other ways, sharing and expressing feelings, being educated or educating others about you.  Hard As Snails Productions hopes to use these three techniques to prove that theatre is for everyone.   

For any information on Hard As Snails, please contact us at:
nathancook99@hotmail.com / helenacole@hotmail.co.uk

Other websites:
Pretty When I'm Drunk Official Blog: haspwid.blogspot.co.uk
Helena Marrion-Cole Official Website: helenamarrioncole.blogspot.co.uk

Hopes and Dreams for the Future

Hard As Snails Productions plans to continue taking its productions to fringes across the UK and eventually hopes to have the budget to take productions to Fringes and performance festivals internationally.We have a number of different groups we hope to work with through our theatre workshops to help theatre reach out to more people;

·         People in disadvantaged areas of the country

·         Children, young people and adults

·         Vulnerable groups

·         Young carers

·         Groups with disabilities

·         Groups with special needs

·         Projects abroad for children in disadvantaged areas

·         Prison inmates on a rehabilitation basis

And a number of site specific projects we hope to carry out;

·         Small performances for the residents of elderly care homes

·         Small performances for entertainment in hospices

·         Putting on children’s shows for disadvantaged areas abroad

·         Site specific performances at music festivals

A little bit of history... 

Written and directed by Helena Marrion-Cole, Pretty When I'm Drunk premiered in 2011
in Leeds through the Leeds based theatre company Open Theatre Society. The production's run at TheStage@Leeds received a 5 star review from Leeds Student Paper, and sold out every night of the show! In February 2012 the show appeared and sold out once again at The Little Leeds Fringe.

Following this, in order to take the show to further fringes the cast and crew created the Hard As Snails Productions youth theatre company.

Hard As Snails Productions took the show to The Camden Fringe where again it was a complete sell out every night and had a fantastic audience response! Pretty When I'm Drunk proceeded by taking The Edinburgh Festival Fringe by storm, where it received a 5 Star Review from Three Weeks Edinburgh.

 

 

To find out more about the show, go to the official Hard As Snails Productions - Pretty When I'm Drunk Blog.

2012 Promotional Video for The Edinburgh Festival Fringe

 

 

Leeds Student Paper

"Perfectly suited to the intimate atmosphere of the Alec Clegg Studio, the writing and acting had the audience laughing from start to end. An impressive production by the Open Theatre Society."

"Pretty When I’m Drunk was the funniest play to be shown at Stage@Leeds for a long time."

"Written and directed by Helena Marrion-Cole, the story is farcical, with extraordinary comic effect."

"The eclectic mix of characters is what makes this a brilliant production."

"Helena Marrion-Cole, besides writing/directing, also plays brilliant the widowed, snobbish Englishwoman, rather fond to jumping from behind the sofa. Her motto is that if you want something done ‘you have to bloody do it yourself’. She, of course, ends up in bed with Big G (Nathan Johnson) and his impressive Afro."

Leeds Student Paper, Rodolfo Barradas Simões

To see full review (click here)

Three Weeks
Edinburgh Festival Fringe

theSpace on the Mile, 21 Aug, 1.40pm.
tw rating 5/5 | [Katherine Cunningham]

Bitter, broad, ridiculous, and very, very funny, ‘Pretty When I’m Drunk’ is a traditional comic play in the best sense of the phrase. Slacker Joe goes for a night out and ends up being sucked into a dark criminal underworld, never completely comprehending his situation. It’s a good simple caper comedy which, in the middle of the wackiness and surrealism of the Fringe, is a welcome and refreshing change of pace. Yet shows like this don’t work unless the delivery is perfect, and again, ‘Pretty When I’m Drunk’ delivers. The cast is solid, managing to play stereotypes effectively without making them tiresome. It’s far from what you’d expect at the Festival, but that’s all to the good.

Click here for Review Link

For more Reviews and further information about Pretty When I'm Drunk and Hard As Snails Productions, visit haspwid.blogspot.co.uk

Pretty When I'm Drunk Cast and Crew

Joe     Oscar T.Wilson

Leila      Tuesday Critchfield (Camden and Edinburgh Fringe productions) 

Leila     Janine May (Stage@Leeds and Little Leeds Fringe productions)    

Sean     Nathan Cook

Carla     Nyla Levy

Katrina  Fadia Helena Qaraman

Big G     Nathan Powell

Hiroku  Tilly Johnson

Mademoiselle    Tamika Minder Oliver  (Camden and Edinburgh Fringe productions) 

Mademoiselle     Charly Gabriel  (Stage@Leeds and Little Leeds Fringe productions)

Mrs Winchester    Helena Marrion-Cole

Technical Crew

Camden Fringe     James Millington and Ania Wojnowska

Edinburgh Fringe  Sam Glossop


Written and Directed by Helena Marrion-Cole

During its run at Leeds Pretty When I'm Drunk was...

Co-directed and choreographed by Charly Gabriel

Choreographed by Janine May

Produced by Alice Bartholomew

And after that Pretty When I'm Drunk was...

Produced by Lesley Marrion-Cole (Camden Fringe)

Produced by Tilly Johnson (Edinburgh Festival Fringe)