Pip Simmons, the visionary theatre director who died in 2024, formed The Pip Simmons Theatre Group in 1968. A deeply experimental company, largely performing devised work, they are immortalised in this sumptuous hardback, Offstage: The Pip Simmons Theatre Company 1974-86.
Sheila Burnett, creator of this book, was a member of the company from 1974, arriving as a “Brummie art student”. At this time, Simmons had brought in many new recruits and effectively relaunched his company, and it was this version that Burnett immortalised with her camera.
Every page offers a startling image from life and improvisation on the road. Letters are reproduced, reminiscences are shared. A world of chaos, community and creativity is captured; production credits are assembled.
Over 200 black and white photographs record a busy period in the history of The Pip Simmons Theatre Group. It’s not a slickly curated story but the warts-and-all record of 12 years in the life of this group of travelling players.
It’s all here in Burnett’s photographs. The venues that stage the work. The travelling between engagements. The moments unguarded, off-stage. Never meant for publication but offering a unique look into the mundane moments of making theatre, and the magical minutes when work was presented before an audience.
Offstage builds a chronological picture of a group of 6-9 artists committed to presenting work in an alternative style. A rock Dracula, an Expressionistic style story of the Holocaust called An Die Musik, an expressive and immersive Masque of the Red Death. A punk rock paradise crossed with the bleeding heart of a love affair gone wrong. Circus freakery twinned with decadent cabaret.
Whether chilling on tour, counting the days, or capturing a sliver of performance in a flash, Burnett has an eye for what makes a strong image. There are far more photographs than accompanying text, and although they were never meant for the public gaze, they work well in this coffee table book. It’s a heavy-duty publication, one to value, not to carry around.
Pip Simmons and his group could be the founders of immersive and verbatim theatre. The names loom large in theatrical folklore: Chris Jordan, Emil Wolk, Rudi Engelander, Joan Oliver, and Burnett herself. Woven into the fabric of fringe and alternative theatre, and now available for every bookshelf.
If you are anything like me, a theatre devotee who loves exhibitions and visual imagery, this will be worth a look. If you liked books like Simon Annand’s The Half, which captures performers in the half-hour before they go on stage, this project will have appeal. If you are interested in the unusual side of creativity, then Burnett’s photographs will be up your street.
The book has been released to coincide with the anniversary of Pip Simmons’ death on 24 Jan 2024.
Offstage: The Pip Simmons Theatre Group 1975-86 is published by Tricorn Publishing and is available now.
Pip was an original to say the least. I very much admired him. We ran across each other often while we were both bringing our new work from London to Ritsaert TenCate’s Mickery Theatre in Holland in the late ’60’s thru the early 70’s.
xxxx Roger Hendricks Simon / http://www.thesimonstudio.com / rhsstudio@gmail.com
Many thanks for stopping by, Roger!