Welcome back to a new instalment in the Fringe Focus series here on LouReviews. Today we are heading to northwest London.
Hampstead’s newest Fringe venue is the Circle & Star Theatre on Heath Street. Tucked behind the Horseshoe pub, it has comedian and actor Steve Furst as its artistic director and co-founder.
As it approaches its 1st birthday, it presents a new play by Estee Stimler, Wits End, a “dark comedy about family grief and death, following three children who have just one afternoon to bury their father, Marvin Becker,” which runs from 9-22 Nov. Tickets can be purchased here – https://circleandstar.com/.
Steve tells us more about the evolution of this venue and his hopes for the future.
The Circle & Star is approaching its first birthday. What made you want to take on this artistic challenge, and what’s been the highlight of the year so far?
The challenge presented itself very quickly. From hearing the venue could be vacant to signing, to raising the money, to opening took four months. I have always harboured a desire to have my own space, so I couldn’t be happier.
With Justin [Bovington, creative director & producer], my partner in the business, we are still finding our way, but I think we’ve found a great balance of entertainment on offer.
The highlight? For me, it was presenting my one-person show Fagin – Hero or Villain? But we’ve had some incredible moments on the stage, spellbinding performances.
How does the theatre fit into London’s thriving Fringe scene?
The theatre has hopefully become a welcome addition to the fringe scene. We are definitely punching above our weight for a venue our size – we have amazing tech including four streaming cameras permanently set up and a huge screen on the back wall and all sorts of stuff.
The venue now feels more like an artistic salon than a fringe venue. We are particularly proud of our lovely toilets. It’s quite boujie. Well, we are in Hampstead, after all,
Can you talk a bit about your programming policy and what you have been doing to keep audiences interested over the past year?
For us it’s trying to offer everything. We aren’t like the Old Red Lion, which does brilliant work for theatre, or Upstairs At the Gatehouse who do some magnificent musical shows. For us it’s creating unique nights in our space.
Regular nights keep people coming back, like ‘Voices’, our monthly music night curated by Guy Chambers. We are offering world-class entertainment in a very intimate setting.
You’re known as a successful performer yourself with three decades in the business – how has it been to approach shows from the artistic director perspective, and what made you want to take on the role?
Because I’ve had so much experience in all disciplines – TV, musicals, theatre, cabaret, variety and music – I can pull on all of these as artistic director.
No doubt having a very good address book of creatives to approach helped put us on the map. Now it’s about forging alliances with other creatives and keep cultivating those relationships.
What are the challenges of running and maintaining a space like the Circle & Star?
For us, the main challenge is making things work financially when you only have 55 seats. We aren’t the cheapest (or the most expensive), but it’s a constant headache trying to balance the books.
So far so good. But we are ALWAYS on the lookout for ways of getting those fee-paying bums on seats.
Is there anything you would like to do differently going forward into your 2nd year?
I don’t think so. I hope I’ve adapted to each challenge. I want to direct more. That much I do know.