LabRats bring their new show, RATKING, to the Volia! Festival next week.
“RATKING is a punch-in-the-face response to the cyclical nature of power – laced with madness, sex, and dark humour. A collision of rats, Roman emperors, and the modern workplace, it exposes how ambition and decay repeat themselves through time.”
Where: The Playground Theatre
When: 8-9 Nov
Ticket link: https://www.voilafestival.co.uk/events/ratking/
Anita Brokmeier tells us more about the show.
Tell me a bit about your show. Where did the idea come from?
RATKING explores the rise and fall of empires told through three different worlds: a modern office, the Roman Empire and a colony of rats.
Considering our current political climate and capitalist labor structures, the question of the consumption and collapse of power is more relevant than ever, and yet archetypical to human nature.
It’s dark, sexy, funny, and a good night out! It is a deeply theatrical experience as each world has its own visual and stylistic language.
The result is a really ambitious and exciting piece of theatre. The show has been devised by the cast and we have built it through many rounds of experimentation.
Throughout this year working on and off on this show, we developed a shared understanding of collaboratively devising theatre to create this ensemble-driven wild ride by merging animal transformation (rats) with heightened physical theatre (corporeal mime, post-Grotowski, expressionism) and new writing.
The show has very much revealed itself to us through the process as we continue to sit with the question of who are we when we have power, and how are we when we don’t?
It’s like we are sculptors – except rather than starting with clay and shaping it into something we are chipping away at a piece of marble to reveal what was always inside.
Because of this we hope it says something very timeless and inescapable about the human condition.
Why should audiences choose your show? How would you sell it in one sentence?
Imagine Remy from Ratatouille and the cast of Succession dropped into a gladiator coliseum to face off against Nero on a chariot pulled by bloodthirsty animals – while from the heavens, the Gods of Theatre vomit up hundreds of years of theatrical tradition into the arena.
RATKING is a theatrical feast to leave you full to bursting. You are the emperor at the head of our table, and we have prepared for you a banquet of blood, guts and sex. Now, tuck in.
What does being part of the Voila! Festival mean to you?
We are a very international company, hailing from Singapore, Chile, India, Germany and Australia, so we are very excited to be a part of a festival that celebrates international voices.
We hope it also means the show will connect with new audiences who aren’t afraid of ambitious, experimental theatre. We are also a larger ensemble (there are six of us) working collaboratively and that is a really hard thing to achieve in the current political-cultural environment.
There is always a push to work in smaller or solo casts because it is more affordable. Likewise devising is a slower and more costly making process that requires risk taking from the beginning, as the end product is so undefined.
But we believe in ensembles and the power of collective creativity. Choosing to work this way is hard, both logistically and financially, you need to be bold and brave.
The result is a unique, exciting new theatre that is able to celebrate many voices, beliefs and cultures at once. Now more than ever we need to champion community, and spaces to share the work – like Voila – are vital.
How did you make a start in the industry?
We are LabRats. Why? We met in a lab (RADA’s MA Theatre Lab 2024), and experimentation and testing are core to our work. We honour a laboratory approach by starting with researching and improvising fragments, images and concepts before looking through a dramaturgical lens.
Why are we rats? Just like the little critters, we get around: we are six London-based artists from five countries. Every member in our group has a unique professional background and training (e.g. Bharatanatyam training, acting, dramaturgy, musical theatre).
We call ourselves a collective over company because we are passionate about the strength of community and community building as a form of soft power in response to the increasing pressures placed on artists to survive in a capitalist society.
This means we share our values, working practices, our resources and creative spirits with each other freely and generously.
What’s next for the show?
This is just the beginning of RATKING’s journey in the UK theatre landscape. After Voila!, we’re building momentum – developing the show further, growing its visibility, and connecting with new audiences and collaborators.
We’re exploring festival platforms for 2026, including the Edinburgh Fringe, and looking to partner with a producer or venue passionate about experimental ensemble work.
Most importantly, we want to keep refining RATKING through audience feedback and future residencies, ensuring the piece continues to evolve in scale and depth.Join us – and help us spread the plague!