Just Popped Out

 Harriet has recently been bereaved, and has been struggling to come to terms with it, preferring to imagine that her husband, Peter, is still alive. In this poignant monologue, we learn about their relationship, why Harriet is finding the transition so hard, and her reasons for resisting treatment. Just Popped Out is an extract from a full length play (working title The Line) set in a near future world in which medical technology is able to eradicate associations between memories and the emotions they carry. It explores the importance of memory as part of our identity, and the fine lines between dreams and delusions; compassion and control.

 Written by Sam Chittenden
Sam has been involved with the NVT since 2013. She has directed a number of shows including ‘One. Two. Three.’ as part of a Short Plays Competition and full length productions of ‘The Arsonists', 'The Clean House’, ‘Antigone’, and ‘The Language Archive’. Her own short play ‘Moving Slowly’ featured as part of the short play festival in 2017.
Digital versions of Sam’s plays ‘Underworlds’ and ‘Unquiet Slumbers’ are available via Sweetstream.co.uk. She is currently working on two new musicals.

‘Just Popped Out’ is an extract from her first full length play ‘The Line.’

Performed by Sharon Drain
The writer of Just Popped Out, Sam Chittenden, contacted Sharon after seeing the NVT production of Jumpy by April de Angelis in 2018 to audition for her play Sary, first performed at HorrorFest in 2018 and then Brighton Fringe and award-nominated at Edinburgh Fringe in 2019. Then followed Clean, Best Play award at Brighton Fringe 2019 and now the production of Clean - The Musical.

 Directed by Judey Bignell
Judey is a writer, director and actor from Sussex and is delighted to be working with the NVT again after her short play 'Match and Matrimony' was featured in their Summer 2019 New Writing Festival. She was thrilled to be asked to direct Sam Chittenden's work, having worked with her on previous projects and being a huge fan of her work. Previous directing credits include 'Sex and Disability' (Damian Darkness Productions, 2019), 'Babble' (Cast Iron Theatre, 2018), Sam's own 'Split Scene' (Different Theatre, 2018) and two of her self-produced Murder Mystery dinner evenings for the Chestnut Tree House.