Research - Ian Farnell

Theatre and science fiction

My current research explores contemporary British theatre and science fiction. I'm interested in how the images and themes of science fiction are being used to interrogate various current anxieties, and how the qualities of live performance are utilised to add new dimensions to the genre.

RECENT SCIENCE FICTION PLAYS

The Greatest Play in the History of the World

UPCOMING SCIENCE FICTION PLAYS

Home of the Wriggler - Stan's Cafe

A "lo-fi sci-fi docu-drama" exploring memories of the Longbridge car plant from the perspective of a post-oil future. Touring through Feb 2020.

A Number - Bridge Theatre

Churchill's short, brilliant drama of fatherhood, neglect, and human cloning. Tickets here.

Augmented - Sophie Woolley/Told by an Idiot

Not sci-fi exactly, but a fantastic personal story of technological enhancement. Touring early 2020.

The War of the Worlds - Rhum and Clay

This isn't a direct adaptation, but a fascinating and playful exploration of truth, lies and fiction, via both HG Wells and Orson Welles. On tour throughout 2020.

The Glow - Royal Court, London

This will probably turn out to be more gothic horror than science fiction, but you never can tell with Alistair McDowall. Tickets here.

Electric Rosary - Royal Exchange, Manchester

Tim Foley's Bruntwood Prize-winning play, set in a convent where technology and faith collide. Tickets here.

For a general discussion of the field, including reviews of recent works, check the blog. If you want to read the scholarly stuff, then here's a list of my publications:

"Utopian dreams, dystopian realities in Lucy Kirkwood and Anne Washburn". Foundation: The International Review of Science Fiction 46 (128): 38-47

"Mars: After the Crisis review". Fantastika Journal 1 (2): 177-179

"A manual for near-future parenting: Thomas Eccleshare's Instructions for Correct Assembly". Fantastika Journal 3 (1): 149-151

"Science, science fiction, and Nick Payne's Elegy: a conceptual third way". Studies in Theatre and Performance 40 (2): 206-223.

DOI: https://doi.org/10.1080/14682761.2019.1608125

"Science Fiction and the Theatre of Alistair McDowall". Contemporary Theatre Review 29 (2): 121-137.

DOI: https://doi.org/10.1080/10486801.2019.1591388

"In space, nobody can hear you say you didn't 'get' it: theatre, science fiction, and genre snobbery". Contemporary Theatre Review: Interventions July 2019

"Alistair McDowall's X". Sci-Fi: A Companion, ed. Jack Fennell. Oxford: Peter Lang. Ebook: https://www.peterlang.com/view/9781788743518/chapter24.xhtml