Pip Simmons Theatre Group

The Pip Simmons Theatre Group was formed in 1968. Pip Simmons, the founder, served both as writer and director, but he was open to the ideas of others in the company, much of their work being devised pieces. Initially London based, it was one of the first English experimental theatre companies but spent much of its time working in Europe where there was a more sympathetic financial and institutional network. Simmons maintained the momentum of the group by taking a series of 'residencies' in theatre spaces around the UK and Europe, which was not a familiar concept at the time. The group performed at the Mickery Theatre, under the nurturing gaze of Ritsaert ten Cate, along with contemporaries such as Mike Figgis, and The Wooster Group. Pip Simmons has said of Ritsaert: 'Ritsaert made it possible for us to experiment. He was learning with us, and he didn't hide it...I did my best work there in Holland, and Ritsaert stimulated it. His stimulation wasn't just for one short period, though. He provided the best stimulation, because he stuck with you through failures as well as successes. He can't be compared with anyone else in Europe.'

The group also worked with Artsadmin, who 'loved what they were doing' and were interested in increasing the group's profile within the UK, as the more experimental companies such as The Pip Simmons Group, and the People Show were struggling to be taken seriously. The company received funding from the Arts Council of Great Britain for its Uk based work and toured many of the new alternative venues including the Traverse Theatre, Edinburgh; the Royal Court Theatre, London; the Open Space; Riverside Studios and Oval House.

As with much performance art that relies on fresh ideas and constant change, and with video recording equipment being less accessible during that time, much of The Pip Simmons Group work is sparsely documented. The company's origins in the Drury Lane Arts Lab are described by Catherine Itzin in Stages in the Revolution, while noted theatre scholar Theodore Shank has discussed their work at length in TDR.

The company specialised in intensely physical participatory performance and fused rock music, with agit prop techniques to produce visceral and confrontational performance experiences. In The George Jackson Black and White Minstrel Show, first performed at the Mickery Theatre in Amsterdam 15 August 1972, for example, which members of the company attached themselves to audience members with chains.

...
Wikipedia