Love in Troubled Times: Simon Stephens on The Funfair

Thirty minutes after our scheduled meeting time, The Skinny is introduced to Simon Stephens. We are told – though not by Stephens himself – that the morning’s rehearsals have overrun, biting into everybody’s lunch break and Stephens is in need of a sandwich. He can eat that while he talks; would we mind?

An overrunning rehearsal often points to one of two scenarios: things are taking longer than expected or the company is in full swing; creative juices are flowing. In the case of the former, it would be dangerous to deny a man his sandwich. Luckily, our delayed meeting appears to be the fault of the latter.

“It is brilliant in there,” enthuses Stockport born Stephens, whose northern accent triumphs over years of east London living. “We have the most brilliant company – a cast of really young actors who are just fantastic. It is a tremendously energetic room and a real privilege to be back in Manchester.”

An Olivier-winning playwright whose adaptation of Mark Haddon’s The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time garnered international acclaim, Stephens is one of Britain’s most celebrated dramatists. He is also responsible for the opening play in Manchester super new venue HOME: a radical retelling of Odön von Horváth’s 1930s darkly political whirlwind Kasimir and Karoline. In a nod to its vibrant setting, Stephens’ version is to be titled The Funfair.

Seizing his sandwich he begins to talk of a model box showing from the day before. It is an exciting moment in any pre-production schedule, but for Stephens there is an added kick: The Funfair is to be performed in a brand new theatre – a theatre that Stephens has yet to set foot in. “Usually you can contextualise the design having seen work in that theatre before,” he says, “but I was looking at this model box thinking, I have no idea what this theatre actually feels or looks or sounds like – that is thrilling.”

HOME's new 500-seat theatre // image: Simon Bray

An untouched 500 seat theatre in the heart of Manchester demands attention and Stephens does admit to feeling slightly daunted by its unfamiliarity. He does not, however, view this as a negative: “There’s nothing wrong with being a bit daunted by a space – it evokes the possibility of danger or mystery or something I don’t quite understand and that is great!”

It is difficult to imagine Stephens finding anything daunting. Marianne Elliott once demanded he write her a play. His directorial pals include Katie Mitchell, Sarah Frankcom and Ramin Gray. He is a man in demand – and for HOME's artistic director of theatre, Walter Meierjohann, the man to open the new £25 million venue's theatre programme.

“When Walter approached me I was so busy that I was set to tell him I was unable to take any more work – ‘I’m sorry to let you down but I just can’t.’ And then he told me he wanted to do Kasimir and Karoline. What could I say?”

It is a play that few will have heard of and yet its original plot seems oddly familiar despite its origins in 1930s Germany. Jobs are scarce and the country is in debt. Plagued with self-doubt, Horváth’s protagonist vies for a sense of worth in an unjust society, his struggle starkly lit against the chaotic backdrop of a funfair. He is unemployed, disenchanted and in love. But can he be all three? Kasimir and Karoline shows a couple falling apart amid the energy, madness and cruel romance of its heightened setting.

Stephens’ enthusiasm for the project is palpable. It is a play he has known for a long time – 15 years in fact – and he readily confesses to it being one of his favourites. “It is an extraordinary play,” he promises, “and I have rewritten it for Manchester.”

It is a timely gift. Inspired by the insidious popularity of radical politics, Stephens confesses to spending the past three years attempting to write a play about UKIP. He admits to finding the task difficult, and yet “inadvertently, accidently and unconsciously” The Funfair has allowed him to write that play, containing a pertinent political undertone that vibrates with a distinct and important contemporary relevance.

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“There's nothing wrong with being a bit daunted by a space – it evokes the possibility of danger and mystery” – Simon Stephens

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“It feels as though I have taken Horváth's initial text and found that every sentence is an attempt to make sense of an England in which Nigel Farage is an increasingly prominent political figure. This is a play that feels like it was written for today’s England and there is a spirit to it that is absolutely written for Manchester.”

It is not the first time the city has found itself at the heart of Stephens’ work. Harper Regan depicts the struggles of an ordinary 41-year-old as she visits her dying father in Stockport, while Punk Rock follows a group of students at a Stockport private school during their A Level mock exams. Port is set in Stockport. On the Shore of the Wide World is set in Stockport. It appears Stephens has been writing for Manchester for a very long time. It is, of course, his home.

We suggest there is something intricate and circular (if not a touch sentimental) about a new Simon Stephens play opening a new Manchester theatre: a theatre that calls itself HOME. Does the situation evoke a sense of return, a homecoming of sorts? At first, Stephens questions whether the notion is worth taking too seriously: “What it is to be at home?” he muses through a mouthful of sandwich. “Part of me thinks that home is where my kids are – and that is east London.”

“However,” he continues, picking over his words carefully, “it is undeniable that when I arrive at Piccadilly Station or when I am kicking around the areas of Stockport in which I was brought up, there is something in my muscles' memory that resonates. There is a familiarity and nostalgia between us for sure.”

It is an interesting use of the pronoun “us”. For Stephens, Manchester is clearly an old friend, though he is quick to acknowledge that it is a changing city; a city that is, in his own words, “on the cusp of making the most exciting theatre in Britain.” It is unarguable that the addition of venues such as HOME and The Factory are about to shake up the Manchester arts scene and yet Stephens appears most animated when describing the unique strength of the city’s fringe ecosystem.

“There is a generation of young writers, directors and artists who can’t afford to live in London anymore and a lot of them are coming to Manchester. The level of creativity, energy and imagination in Mancunian theatre in the next five years has the potential to be quite extraordinary.”

Watch this space.

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