I sat down with writer Oliver Judd to find out more his debut play Dust coming to the Golden Goose Theatre this November.
Can you tell me a little about your show and what audiences can expect?
Dust is a three-hander set in a single location – the back room of a failing bookshop. When an old friend returns to London after a long estrangement from his two dearest friends, each of the characters is forced to reappraise the memories they have spent the previous eight years rewriting.
Over its three acts, it moves fluidly between the past and the present. The characters reminisce and tell stories, but when their versions of the past start to conflict, they begin to argue. On the surface, Dust is a realistic drama that concerns itself with art, theft and betrayal; at its core it asks what happens to reality when truth becomes subjective.
What drew you to this specific story?
Last October I had a dream about three people arguing in the back of a bookshop, and when I awoke I knew that I had to write this story. It’s changed a lot since then, but at its core it has remained true to my original intention, which was to find a unique yet honest way to represent the fragility of memory, and how this fragility directly impacts the state of our present-day selves.
What’s strange is that in the past I have focused on writing novels and short stories, but from the beginning Dust was always going to be a drama. It just made sense – the setting, the physical and emotional intimacy, the time-frame – everything felt conducive towards creating a claustrophobic and propulsive play.
What has been the biggest challenge in bringing this production to life?
The play is ambitious, both theoretically and technically, and so naturally I have had plenty of agoraphobic days riddled with self-doubt and uncertainty. However – thankfully – there is an incredible team of wonderful creative people around me who believe in Dust and who have done great jobs doing most of the work while I fret and flounder.
My brother and co-producer Joe Judd is fantastic at checking in on me and doing much of the legwork (and sometimes, when I need it, telling me to stop being a diva), and Isis Clunie, the director of Dust, has been vital in giving this production its shape.
How does the design of your show (set, sound, or lighting) impact the presentation of your story?
Like Krapp’s Last Tape or The Price, Dust features memory as an antagonist and uses its setting to portray philosophical and physical stagnation. As such, the set is hugely impactful on the drama, and the drama on set. Imagine rotting cardboard boxes lining the walls, collapsing bookshelves, glitchy old hi-fi systems, faded photographs and, of course, books everywhere, from the proscenium arch to the darkest corners of the stage.
So, if there are audience members who can’t abide messy, maximalist stagings, then it might be a good idea to steer clear of the Golden Goose Theatre at the end of November.
Isis and I have also been working closely with our fantastic sound designer, Patch Middleton, to create a soundscape for the play. He really is a magician, and I am so excited to see exactly what he cooks up.
If you could sum up the show in one word or phrase, what would it be and why?
“Memory can make a thing seem to have been much more than it was.”
That’s a quote from Gilead, an incredible novel by Marilynne Robinson about an old man reflecting on his life. It’s a bit of a mouthful, but I think it quite nicely encapsulates the ideas that form the basis for Dust.
Dust runs at the Golden Goose Theatre, London, between 25 – 28 November. Tickets are available at https://www.tickettailor.com/events/riotrunproductions/2267294
