EAST Yorkshire writer and actor Charlie Blanshard will present his debut full-length play, Jorvik, at Barley Hall, Coffee Yard, York, on February 17 as part of the 2025 Jorvik Viking Festival.
How pleasing to see a theatre show in a festival noted for its living history encampments, workshops, tours, traditional crafts, feasts, family events, boat burning, evening entertainment and dramatic combat performances.
“That’s why I’ve made the show,” says Old York Theatre co-producer Charlie, whose imposing 6ft 2 frame and long hair would have befitted Viking times.
“When I was studying at Rose Bruford College, I made a short Viking film called Snake-In-The-Eye, which we shot in the Allfather Hall in Valhalla, as my final work on my MA in Actor Performer Training course.
“Dr Chris Tuckley [Jorvik’s head of interpretation and learning] gave me historical advice for that project, and I reached out to him again with this play. He put me in touch with Abi at Jorvik; I presented the script and asked if there was any way I could do it at Barley Hall.”
The answer was yes, and now February 17’s 6pm and 7.30pm performances will lead off a northern tour that will take in The Brain Jar cocktail bar in Hull on February 19 and the Monks Walk Inn, where Charlie once worked, in Beverley on February 20, as well as crossing the Pennines to play a Manchester cabaret bar on February 18.
Jorvik, an immersive play set directly in the aftermath of the fall of Eoforwic to the Great Viking Army and its rebirth as Jorvik, will be staged in the Tudor Throne Room, the great hall at Barley Hall.
What will “immersive” involve, Charlie? “Every audience member will be cast as a member of the Viking Army with plenty of opportunities to get involved if you want to,” he says. “Everyone is part of the moment. It’s not a play to be sat at the back with popcorn!”
Directed by co-producer Jack Chamberlain, Charlie takes the role of Ubbe, son of Ragnar and leader of the Viking army, playing opposite Oliver Strong’s Odin in the two-hander.
“The play leans heavily on the Viking mythos, rejoices in the fantastical and is delivered with the spirit of larger-than-life storytelling. We follow our protagonist, Ubbe, soaked in the blood of battle as he finds himself at a great banquet in his honour,” says Charlie.
“But in this mysterious throne room, not all is as it seems! Jorvik is a play about loss, faith, glory, family, love and celebrating life while we are still around to enjoy it. Expect big characters, song, fights and plenty of table banging.”
Defining Old York Theatre’s theatre style, Charlie says: “It’s theatre of myths and legends, legacy and mortality. We’re not focused on history; it’s storytelling about larger-than-life heroes and gods and focusing on their stories. Ultimately, we want people to come and have a good time and leave with a smile on their face.
“We tell the story in a mixture of styles, with moments of mythological verse and also modern language. It’s a mash-up to match the clash of two worlds, and every show will be different because each audience will add a unique element with their own story.
“It’s a performance that’s rooted in history and myth but lives and breathes today – and York is the perfect place for its debut because this is a city where history does live and breathe and you can experience the legends of times before.”
Born in Londesborough, in the Yorkshire Wolds, and raised in Hull, Charlie has been drawn to York since regular weekend family trips in his childhood. “It really does feel like home every time I come to the city,” he says.
“Even as a young child, it captured my imagination. From the city walls to historic pubs, you think, ‘who has walked these streets before me?’. ‘Who has sat before in these pubs?’ ‘If the walls had ears, what would they have heard? What victories were toasted here? What losses were mourned?” It’s a city that cannot deny its history.”
Old York Theatre’s motto is “Theatre company rooted in Yorkshire, for the world. Anywhere, anytime, any place”. Hence this month’s mini-tour heading to a great hall, a cabaret bar, a cocktail bar and a pub. “We hope to expand on that,” says Charlie.
“We also want to appeal both to people who’ve been to a theatre a thousand times and those who’ve never been. So we want to break down barriers for people to go to a theatre show, as well as those who go to see Chekhov and Shakespeare, which is why we’re doing the play in cocktail and cabaret bars.”
Living in Hull on his return from London, Charlie has worked with Middle Child theatre company, based in Hull Old Town, and now with Old York Theatre. “I want to make work for the North,” he says. “The northern theatre scene called me back to make new theatre, bringing northern stories to northern audiences and breaking down that barrier of theatre being London-centric.”
Old York Theatre in Jorvik, Barley Hall, Coffee Yard, York, Jorvik Viking Festival, February 17, 6pm and 7.30pm. Box office: https://jorvikvikingfestival.co.uk/events/jorvik-immersive-theatre/
Charlie Blanshard: the back story
EAST Riding-born actor and writer, loud and proud of his Yorkshire roots. His passion for performance is lit by his desire to tell northern stories on screen and stage and shine a light on the many talented artists that call the North home.
Graduated from Rose Bruford College with MA in Actor Performer Training. Has since toured Europe with English Theatre Company, performed Shakespeare in Dubai on the QE2 and worked with many companies and individuals on his door step in Hull, including Middle Child.
His childhood visits to York awoke his love of history, with a particular fondness for the Vikings, Romans and Greeks, fuelling his drive to one day tell those stories.
“I could see the influence – the legacy – that these histories have left on this city. From street names to days of the week – undeniable heritage that has stood the test of time,” he says.
The myths and legends that still survive today captured his imagination. “The stories of epic quests and heroes spoke to the storyteller in me,” he says. “Over many years, I realised there was something deeper, beyond the stories. Really, at the root of it all is human connection and human struggle.
“We aren’t as different as we think to our ancestors. For example, our desires, while modern at a glance, are deeply rooted in that same human condition: The need to be remembered.
” Instead of pursuing fame, success or social media status, the Vikings wanted infamy, songs, sagas and poems. A totally different era, but a comparable obsession with legacy. Jorvik is an exploration of this idea, a celebration of life, of family and the love we leave behind.”
He relishes the challenge presents for him as a writer, producer and actor by this project. Pushing himself into multiple different disciplines. Expanding his tool box to allow him to champion working in the arts in a northern city.
Training at a London drama school opened his eyes to the “disparity between the theatre industry in the North and the South”. “It is my firmly held belief that new, exciting and dynamic theatre should have a greater representation and be produced in the North,” he says. “Why must people have to travel far to see new, innovative and great theatre? Why don’t we bring it to them?”
Especially excited to be exploring the use of non-traditional theatre spaces. From Tudor halls to pubs. Anywhere, anytime. “I believe bringing live performance and theatre to these venues is really important,” he says.
“It opens up the world of performance to people not from a theatre background. It breaks boundaries and perceptions of what people think theatre is and removes barriers that prevent them seeing it.”
Did you know?
CHARLIE Blanshard is the narrator for Channel 5’s four-part documentary Bomb Squad: Trigger Point.