The Nuclear Plays

By EWAN POLLITT

‘Reactor’: Jim seals himself off from the world every day - literally. Wrapped in duct tape and a gas mask, this is simply his life working in a nuclear reactor. But life behind the mask is becoming increasingly difficult and, much like the reactor itself, Jim’s life has become one of constantly avoiding a meltdown. Reactor is a hilarious and shattering new play about hanging onto sanity for dear life, the invisibility of mental illness, and the difficulty of connecting in a world where so many people wish to be sealed away.

‘Fission’: When their father suddenly dies, estranged siblings, Lex and Jack, are forced together; his ashes need scattering and his work needs finishing. But who their father was and what he really loved seems to have been ripped apart, split between the two of them. A playful examination of family, reconnection and sibling rivalry, Fission takes the audience through nuclear laboratories, wakes and the Lake District.

The Nuclear Plays were first performed at the Drayton Arms Theatre, London, from 12-14 March 2020 with the following cast:

Lex Nell Baker

Jack Geraint Rhys

Jim Ewan Pollitt

Director Jasper Frost

Playwright Ewan Pollitt

Producer Jonathan Taylor

Tech Operator Joe McInally

Show Photographer Stefan Hanegraaf

Produced with Caged Bird

'Reactor' is a show 'Born in D&D', resulting from discussions surrounding the portrayal of mental illness in theatre at Improbable's 'Devoted and Disgruntled' (Battersea Arts Centre, 2020).