Audience reactions to Between the Lines

• “Evocative and haunting, distilled and poignant but ultimately uplifting. A honed and crafted clever piece of theatre made all the more intense by the space.” – A. Irvine

• “de Deney’s latest performance combines poetry and virtuoso storytelling to create a poignant revisiting of the themes of war, love and loss.” – M. Teusink

• “I really enjoyed last night, your performance was captivating, you played all your characters so believe ably, both male and female, loved the humour and the emotional end left me with a tear in my eye.” – J. McKay

• “Spellbinding and emotionally challenging. WW1 is recreated in 3D. Poetry from the depths of the trenches. WW1 recreated past present and future. A must for all of us and essential for our children to witness first hand the horrors of war.” – A. Jacobson

• “I just had to write to congratulate you on what you’ve created. They say that one of the marks of a good play is how much people talk about it afterwards. Peter and I on our way to the airport at 5 am were discussing WW1 and found ourselves moved to tears again by some of the moments in your play. The way it brought “The Great War” down from its historical heights and cliches to the voices of suffering people was so poignant. the idea of choosing a single grave from a cemetery so you can feel it was such a rich one and really representative of what you’ve done so well. We are coming back for more!” – L. Kingstone

• “de Deney’s piece is a powerful story, delivered in a masterful way. It’s insightful, it’s sad, and at times it’s even funny.” – M. Carandini

• “Great story. Thought-provoking and moving – what more do you want from an evening out?” – S. Williams

• “Came in exhausted after a day’s work, went out renewed with vigour and passion. Reminded of Peter Brooks “The Empty Space”, returned to what theatre really is – you only need the actor. How did he do that? The magic of acting. There was magic in this performance and you could see the first world war cemetery and the half dozen characters who had a role in the story. Gripped from the very beginning by this original conception which uses the poetry of the day to paint the social context.” C. Denning

• “Your central character vividly evokes life in the trenches and you tell his story with humour and horror. I was gripped.” – Rachel, Hackney

   

• “A rich, moving performance, deeply impressive in its variety.” – T. Osborn

• “I thought that Simon de Deney’s solo show was a tour de force. Cleverly interweaving WW1 and modern characters, poetry and moving reminiscences, this little gem packed a powerful emotional punch for me. I still can’t quite come to terms with the fact that he was responsible for all of it. Everything.” – J. Clinch

• “I just want to say it was an honour to have watched your show. I was made to laugh , cry, reminisce. The play was a real roller coaster of emotion which came through the poetry. I feel you took everyone with you on the very believable journey through Joe’s life and left us all wanting more.” – P. Pearce

• “I’m amazed by the sheer courage to get up and do something like that, but double congratulations for writing something so moving and beautiful and thought provoking.” – P. Kingstone