AN OAK TREE
WRITTEN & PERFORMED BY TIM CROUCH
An Oak Tree opened at the Traverse in 2005. Tim Crouch has since performed it nearly 350 times in 19 different countries. It won an OBIE for its Off-Broadway run in 2007. It’s been translated and produced around the world.
The title comes from a work of conceptual art made in 1973 by Michael Craig-Martin. That work is a glass of water on a shelf and an accompanying text explains how the artist has transformed the glass of water into a fully grown oak tree.
Some responses:
‘I enjoyed myself very much. No puppets. No puppet master. Just a fluid wave machine.’ Frances McDormand
‘It is like watching your own heart being mugged.’ The Guardian
‘It is actually the essence of spontaneous acting. This concept is absolutely original and, sadly, a once in a lifetime experience.’ F. Murray Abraham
‘An Oak Tree is nothing like you’ve ever seen before and is impossible to describe without spoiling everything in it that will have you riveted to your seat, palms sweating.’ Melbourne Age
‘One of the most amazing performance experiences I’ve had.’ Alan Cumming
‘A pretentious, self-admiring, pseudo-intellectual model.’ Sunday Times
For Foyles, Caryl Churchill selected An Oak Tree as her play of the ‘00s.
Touring considerations: most successful when the host theatre is involved in casting. A different second actor performs each night.
Length: 85 minutes, no intermission
REVIEWS
AN OAK TREE WILL RUN THIS AUGUST at the Royal lyceum in edinburgh
The Form
The story is about loss and grief. The form is also about loss and grief.
An Oak Tree has two actors in it.
The Hypnotist is played by Tim Crouch.
The Father is played by a different actor at each performance – the Second Actor. An actor who can be any age, race, gender, size or shape. An actor who has neither seen nor read the play before they walk on stage at the start of the performance. An actor who can only do it once.
The Second Actor is guided through the play. At times sections of script are handed to them. At times they get text through an earpiece. At other times they are just told what their next line is. Say hello: ‘Hello’. Above all, it’s playful. There are jokes.
Every word of An Oak Tree is scripted. It’s an improvised play – but not with words. It’s improvised in all other aspects: the feeling, the tone, texture, movement, etc. Two actors meeting each other on stage and responding to what each other brings. This meeting is also part of the story.
All the Second Actors
Rehearsal 2005: Ian Golding, Cath Dyson, Hannah Ringham. German previews 2005: Alex Miller, Tom Hartmann. UK previews 2005: Deborah Asante, Emma Kilbey, Dan Ford, Alister O’Loughlin, Jo Dagless, Anna Howitt, Matthew Scott, Natalie Childs. Edinburgh Festival Premiere 2005: Rebecca Thorn, Claire Knight, Sandy Grierson, Ant Hampton, Tom Brooke, Annie Ryan, Sarah Belcher, Al Nedjari, Paul Blair, Hilary O’Shaughnessy, Brian Ferguson, Stevie Ritchie, Matthew Zadjac, Gabriela Murray, Ciaran Bermingham, Mark Ravenhill, Waneta Storms, Andrew Clark, Tom Espiner, Jon Spooner, Ross Manson, Jason Thorpe. Ireland 2005: Barry McGovern, Deirdre Roycroft, Dennis Conway, Martin Murphy. UK Touring 2006: Amelda Brown, Johnny O’Hanlon, Richard Talbot, Nick Walker, Nic Jeune, Pooja Kumar, Richard Croxford, Maria Connolly, Miche Doherty, Kathy Keira Clark, Tristan Sturrock, Mary Woodvine, Emma Rice, Kevin Johnson, Chris Bianchi, Toby Jones, Helen Kane, Hayley Carmichael, Toby Park, James Wilby, Christine Molloy, Christopher Eccleston, Gin Hammond, Roger Lloyd Pack. Lithuania 2006: Sakalas Uzdavinys. Latvia 2006: Ivars Puga. Israel 2006: Marcello Magni, Kathryn Hunter. Russia 2006: Roman Indyk, Alexander Vartanov, Maria Popova. Portugal 2006: Beatriz Batarda, Cathy Naden, Andre e Teodosio, Joao Pedro Vaz. Finland 2006: Taisto Oksanen, Auvo Vihro. Italy 2006: Lella Costa, Elio de Capitani, Laura Curino. US previews 2006: Richard Kamins, Angela Reed, Carmela Marner, Gene Marner, David Bridel, Peter Gaitens, Camilla Enders, Johana Arnold, Ed Vassallo. Barrow Street Theatre, New York 2006/7: Peter Van Wagner, Rachel Fowler, Lucas Caleb Rooney, Michael Cullen, Mark Blankenship, F. Murray Abraham, Charles Busch, Reed Birney, Randy Harrison, James Urbaniak, Kristin Sieh, Leslie Hendrix, Steve Blanchard, Laurie Anderson, Amy Landecker, John Shuman, Jeremy Bieler, Kelly Calabrese, Michael Countryman, Laila Robbins, Pearl Sun, Joan Allen, Maja Wampuszyc, Christopher Cook, Maura Tierney, Alison Fraser, Frances McDormand, Mary Bacon, Tamara Tunie, Ray Dooley, Brooke Smith, John Judd, Richard Kind, Matthew Arkin, Craig Wroe, Michael Cerveris, Marin Ireland, Peter Dinklage, Alysia Reiner, Tim Blake Nelson, Chuck Cooper, Ben Walker, Austin Pendleton, Alix Elias, Mark Consuelos, David Pasquesi, Mike Myers, David Rasche, Chris Eigeman, Lili Taylor, Kathleen Chalfant, Joey Slotnick, Bob Balaban, Adam Rapp, Mary Testa, Hunter Foster, David Hyde Pierce, Stephen Lang, Kathryn Grody, Scott Foley, Jay O. Sanders, Alan Cox, Denis O Hare, Alan Ruck, Lisa Emery, Frank Wood, Mark Saturno, Nicole Orth-Pallavicini, Erik Jensen, David Mogentale, Alexandra Neil, Brian Logan, Katie Finneran, Walter Bobbie, Wendy Vanden Heuval, Tovah Feldshuh, Carolyn McCormick, Maryann Plunkett, George Demas, Christopher Durang, Judith Ivey, Jim Dale. Canada 2007: Patrick MacEachern, Kelly Dawson, Joel Smith, Heather Kolesar, Maiko Bae Yamamoto, Kathryn Shaw, Marcus Youssef, Jonathan Young, John Krich, Erin Ormond, Trevor Hinton. Soho Theatre 2007: Paterson Joseph, Sophie Okonedo, Ruth Sheen, Tracy-Ann Oberman, David Morrissey, Ed Woodall, Phelim McDermott, Amanda Lawrence, Anna Francolini, David Harewood, John Ramm, Selina Cadell, Anthony Vendetti, Tracey Childs, Jeremy Killick, Gina McKee, Juliet Aubrey, Michael Simkins, Saskia Reeves, Celia Meiras, Tricia Kelly, Hugh Bonneville, Paul Hunter, Adrian Scarborough, Linda Bassett, Eve Best, Kwame Kwei Armah, Gary Winters, Janet McTeer. UK Tour 2007/2008: Richard Headon, Sam Troughton, Josie Lawrence, Richard Katz, Ben Keaton, Jonathan Keeble, Brigit Forsyth, Claudia Elmhirst, Bill Champion, Louise Dearden, Mark Calvert, Terry O’Connor, Deka Walmsley, Jon Whittle, Nathan Rimell, Cora Bissett, Julie Brown, Murray Wason, Siwan Morris, Richard Elis, Ged Stephenson, Vic Llewellyn. Brazil 2007: Rodrigo Nogueira, Guilherme Leme. BBC World Service 2007: Tim McInnerny. Singapore 2008: Loong Seng Onn, Jean Ng, Karen Tan, Ivan Heng. Quebec 2008: Kevin McCoy, Robert Bellefeuille, Anne-Marie Cadieux. Melbourne 2008: Jane Turner, Geoffrey Rush, Julia Zemiro, Kim Gyngell. Hong Kong 2009: Lynn Yau, Jonathan Douglas, Fredric Mao. Brown University, USA 2009: Matt Clevy. Odyssey Theatre, Los Angeles 2010: Meagan English, Peter Gallagher, Clancy Brown, Lisa Wolpe, John Rubinstein, Kurtwood Smith, Jesse Burch, Dan O’Connor, Jennifer Leigh Warren, Beth Grant, Joe Orrach, Peter Van Norden, Stu Levin, Jason Alexander, Peter Macon, Stacie Chaiken, Christopher Michael Moore, Michelle Monaghan, Anne De Salvo, Miguel Sandoval, Lauryn Cantu, Alanis Morissette, Alexandra Billings, Kathleen Early, Carolyn Seymour, Floyd Van Buskirk, Kyle Secor, Alan Cumming, Rich Sommer, Michael Gladis, Megan Gallagher, Alex Kingston, Wendie Malick, Josh Radnor. UMASS, Amherst, USA 2010: Marcus Gardley, Milan Dragicevich, Julie Nelson. Bios, Athens, Greece, 2011: Yota Argyropoulou, Yannis Sarakatsanis. Bangkok, Thailand, 2012: Pattarasuda Bua Anuman Rajadhon, Nophand Boonyai. Dublin 2012: Nyree Yergainharsian. Rehearsals 2015: Gerard Bell, Peter Hobday, Hannah Cooper-Dean, Amy Griffiths. National Theatre 2015: Conor Lovett, Maggie Service, Kate Duchêne, Philip Quast, Stephen Dillane, Naomi Wirthner, Samuel Barnett, Kiruna Stamell, Nicholas Karimi, Sharon D Clarke, Penny Layden, Nick Holder, Ashley McGuire, Trystan Gravelle, Chook Sibtain, Pearce Quigley, Richard Henders, Jodie McNee, Patrick Marber, Sarah Cameron, John Heffernan, Samuel West. Traverse Theatre 2015: Ewen Bremner, Jamie Michie, Aoife Duffin, Sharon Duncan-Brewster, Caitríona Ní Mhurchú, Gary McNair, Lucy Ellinson, Ned Dennehy, Simon McBurney. Bristol Old Vic 2015: Neve McIntosh, Akiya Henry, Fionn Gill, Simon Shepherd, Kate O’Flynn, Jon Beedell. Warwick Arts Centre 2015: Luke Barnes, Lou Platt, Charlotte Josephine. RADA 2018: Susan Wokoma. Orange Tree, London 2018: Kate Hardie. Central School of Speech and Drama, London 2018: Shelby Bond, Claudia Heinrichs. Teatro Sarmiento, Argentina 2018: Ingrid Pelicori, Luciano Suardi