When your show features songs with titles such as The Internet is for Porn and Everyone’s a Little Bit Racist, a church is not necessarily the first place you would expect to pitch up for rehearsals.

But a compact church hall in south east London is where the new nationwide tour of the West End and Broadway smash Avenue Q has been practising.

When News Shopper stopped by to meet the cast and get a glimpse of the work-in-progress, the room was stuffed with rigging, mirrors, desks and actors.

But the thing that most interested people were the larger-than-life puppets around the outside of the hall. Even in an inanimate state, they draw people in.

Actor Stephen Arden plays Nicky and Trekkie Monster and is one of the lucky few to have previously toured with the show.

He said: “It is a lot less stressful.

“I see some of the new cast rehearsing and their brains are still thinking about making them walk and making them talk and making them do different things.

“For me, so much of it is in the body and I can start to add more detail.”


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While he has experience, Stephen said bringing the puppets to life is difficult.

He said: “The challenge was to get all the emotions and reactions you have as an actor into this puppet, which is where having mirrors in rehearsals really helps.

“You can see the little gestures – that’s them looking shocked or surprised or inquisitive. It was a good way to know what I need to do with my hands to do that.”

In the actors’ corner in rehearsals is puppet-guru Nigel Plaskitt.

Nigel’s a veteran of Cameron Mackintosh’s West End production of Avenue Q.

He has worked on Muppets films, Captain Scarlett and The Hitchiker’s Guide to the Galaxy among others, and is helping the cast to reach perfection in puppetry.

 

Stephen said: “It’s great. The man’s a genius. Just when you think you’ve got something right he’ll come in and say ‘you’re just slightly off on that’.

“That’s the thing that keeps you coming back because you want to perfect it. There are always little things you can find and add to your character.”

Since it opened in 2003, Avenue Q has been an audience favourite and regular award winner, using  Jim Henson-style puppets to tell a story for adults that is full of irreverent humour and songs.

But even now, not all audiences know quite what they’re getting.

Stephen said: “It is not like any other musical.

“It is in a format that people are familiar with. It is like watching the TV show – everyone grew up watching the Muppets or Sesame Street or some sort of animated show.

“You come in and the style of show is that so you’re instantly transported. You don’t expect the profanity and swearing, people are like ‘Oh my god!’

“You get to know different audiences.

“You know an audience that has no idea what they’re coming to, you’ll hear just the belly laugh.

“Then you have got the people who know it is coming but they want to experience it and still find it funny.”

Avenue Q is at Greenwich Theatre from May 12 to 24 and The Orchard Theatre, Dartford, from June 23 to 27. Go to greenwichtheatre.org.uk or orchardtheatre.co.uk