The Corner Shop performance - September/October 2008

The Corner Shop performance was a site-specific theatre production which took place in West Bromwich

The performance begins as the audience enters the disused furniture shop in the Queen’s Square, West Bromwich. They enter a street, with two buskers playing and shoppers passing up and down, in and out of the local shop.

The Shopkeepers prepare the shop

Shelves stacked with fresh fruit and vegetables

Immediately it is clear this is no ordinary performance. The audience are in the scene, the performers pass by and through them. Into this come other new arrivals, people from all over the world, India, Iran, Poland, The West Indies and Cradely Heath and from many different times, from the 60’s through to the present day. The new comers are people looking for a way to get on in the world and a way to take their fate into their own hands.

The play explores the lives of these people as they set up shops. It crosses time to compare experiences. It splits rooms, scenes and the audience as they get to experience a fantastical sweet shop, hear of a grisly murder and meet local celebrities as they pop in for a pint of milk. It explores the complexity and richness of the life of the humble corner shop.

The play is beautifully underscored and the music evokes the different cultures of the characters, much of it played live on sitar and violin.

The regular customers of the Corner Shop are like part of the family

The final scene saw everyone come together to celebrate the Corner Shop