Frantic Assembly takes over the National Theatre River Stage

26-28 July 2019

We cannot wait to welcome you to our 25th birthday celebrations with a weekend of partying on the River Stage at the National Theatre, packed with live music, dance, workshops and special performances, including Sometimes Thinking a brand new, specially commissioned piece for River Stage. Oh, and best of all, it's all FREE

Friday 26 July

Frantic Assembly Megamix

18.30 to 18.45

Celebrating 25 years of Frantic Assembly productions to a soundtrack created by Pete Malkin, the Frantic practitioners, in collaboration with co-founder Scott Graham, have created a quickfire megamix of the company's illustrious career.

Happy Birthday Frantic Assembly

18.45 to 19.00

Kicking off proceedings, we welcome you to the Frantic Assembly birthday weekend. Frantic Assembly turns 25 this year and has an exciting array of projects in the works. The River Stage takeover kicks off a year of activity, and will include a new Frantic Assembly production and a new series of the podcast starting with a live episode with special guests.

Julie Blake

19.00 to 20.45

Since 2005 Julie Blake has devoted her life to soundtracks, first leading Ninja Tune's North American sync operations and now working as General Manager of Erased Tapes Music, where she represents some of the world's most exciting composers for theatre and film.

Lewis Griffith

21.00 to 22.45

DJ and Frantic Assembly Ignition graduate, Lewis Griffith, takes to the River Stage to ramp up the party atmosphere for Frantic Assembly's 25th birthday.

Saturday 27 July

Frantic Assembly Warm-Up

12.00 to 12.45

Start the day right with Frantic practitioners and the Frantic Assembly warm-up. An intense HIIT-style warm-up, to set you up for the day. Can you keep up?

Frantic Games

12.45 to 13.00

We're asking our audience to join in for some classic Frantic rehearsal room games. Do you have the coordination and stamina to keep up with our practitioners?

Curious Incident: Astroboy Demo

13.00 to 13.30

Frantic Assembly co-founder Scott Graham presents a live demo and talk on how Frantic achieved some of the most iconic images for the NT production of The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time.

Luke Brown Dance Company: Princess

13.45 to 14.30

Princess is an autobiographical story told through raw and exhilarating dance theatre. A brutal and beautiful recreation of real life romance, blurring the lines between fantasy and reality in an honest and often comical search for a happily ever after.

Podcast Live

14.45 to 15.30

Following the success of series one, hosts Scott Graham and Jonnie Riordan present the Frantic Assembly Podcast LIVE. With specials guests and questions from the audience.

Ignition for Women

15.45 to 16.30

Following the successful pilot of Frantic Assembly's Ignition for Women programme, we reunite the company to present their work, The Map Woman, a show created in an intensive week of rehearsals in April 2019.

Sometimes Thinking

17.00 to 18.00

A brand new Frantic Assembly production written by Phil Porter, with a soundtrack by Underworld. Sometimes Thinking is a celebration of the hours invested in daydreaming and fantasising about the people we could have been, the things we should have said and who we might yet become.

Frantic Assembly Megamix

18.15 to 18.30

Celebrating 25 years of Frantic Assembly productions to a soundtrack created by Pete Malkin, the Frantic practitioners, in collaboration with co-founder Scott Graham, have created a quickfire megamix of the company's illustrious career. How many of our past productions can you recognise?

Frantic Games

18.30 to 19.00

We're asking our audience to join in for some classic Frantic rehearsal room games. Do you have the coordination and stamina to keep up with our practitioners?

Honey Moon

19.30 to 21.00

Fresh from UK tours with Her's and FUR, these indie crooners have earned themselves a reputation for crafting catchy bittersweet love songs, filled with 60s-style hooks and dreamy harmonies, as well as entertaining live shows that play out with tongues very firmly in cheeks. Honey Moon bring their smooth sound to see the Frantic birthday celebrations into the evening.

DJ STEFAN JANIK

21.00 to 22.45

Frantic Ignition graduate Stefan Janik isn't your average schoolboy, playing Scotland's T in the Park at the age of 15 and being interviewed by Danny Howard on BBC Radio One Dance Anthems live. Now producing his own work and playing gigs at Savannah Bar in Ibiza, Janik brings his energy to London's South Bank to help Frantic Assembly celebrate their 25th birthday.

Sunday 28 July

Frantic Assembly Warm-Up

12.00 to 12.45

Start the day right with the Frantic practitioners and the Frantic Assembly warm-up. An intense HIIT-style warm up to set you up for the day. Can you keep up?

Family Frantic

12.45 to 13.15

Frantic have curated a special workshop to introduce Frantic to the youngest of audiences, Join us for a family-friendly, interactive introduction to the world of movement.

Curious Incident: Astro Boy Demonstration

13.15 to 13.45

Scott Graham presents a live demonstration and talk on how Frantic achieved some of the most iconic images for the National Theatre production of The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time.

Sometimes Thinking

14.00 to 14.35

A brand new Frantic Assembly production written by Phil Porter, with a soundtrack by Underworld. Sometimes Thinking is a celebration of the hours invested in daydreaming and fantasising about the people we could have been, the things we should have said and who we might yet become.

Frantic Games

14.30 to 15.00

We're asking our audience to join in for some classic Frantic rehearsal room games. Do you have the coordination and stamina to keep up with our practitioners?

Frantic Assembly Megamix

15.15 to 15.30

Celebrating 25 years of Frantic Assembly productions to a soundtrack created by Pete Malkin, the Frantic practitioners, in collaboration with co-founder Scott Graham, have created a quickfire megamix of the company's illustrious career. How many of our past productions can you recognise?

Ben Norris: Spoken Word

15.30 to 16.00

Ten years of the Ignition programme has seen a huge amount of new talent being discovered and nurtured through Frantic Assembly's Learn & Train and Artistic teams. In this session, one of our talented Ignition graduates takes to the mic to offer song, poetry, spoken word and prose.

Declan Bennett

16.00 to 16.30

Declan Bennett, who starred in the Frantic Assembly production Fatherland, joins us at the River Stage for an eclectic mix of songs from his own portfolio and music from his West End career.

Chorus of Others: The Power of Love

16.30 to 17.00

Frantic Assembly's production of Fatherland reached out to the public, to assemble a group of men to participate in the production each night The Chorus of Others. To conclude their weekend on the River Stage, Frantic Assembly invites the chorus and their family and friends back to rehearse, for a special closing performance. Musical Direction by Kate Marlais.