Directed by Jamie Lee.
With Gary Knowles, Sarah Louise Tyler, Sarah Waters, Correana White, Laurence Clarke, Cian Marc

With poetry, music and humorously instructive sketches highlighting aspects of British culture for international students to the UK. See key points.

'One in Five' features the work of Matt Harvey, Wislawa Szymborska, Jackie Kay, Oscar Fovarge, Paul Curtis, Jeanette Winterson, Marian Spires and Adrian Mitchell.

"By turns boisterous, rhythmic, melodic and inspiring, the show gripped everyone through to its tumultuous climax." David Jones, co-director of the Bournemouth Literary Festival, 2008. Full review.

'One in Five' is available to universities, colleges and schools as part of induction, cultural or language programmes for international students. The show is accompanied by pre- and post-attendance materials for students, and workshops for international officers and EFL/ESOL teachers. (Running time approx 45 mins, plus workshops tailored to needs.)

Contact Teflonstage for more information.

Click here for some of the texts used in 'One in Five'.

Key Topics covered in performance

Be prepared to encounter colloquial English and slang not always covered in English language textbooks.

You will hear many different local accents in the UK.

The 'W curve' for culture shock.

New technologies are changing the way younger Britons communicate.

In social situations British introductions and information sharing is often indirect.

British rituals and rites of passage for students at British universities, especially in Freshers/Welcome Week.

The importance of gender equality in the UK.

Language codes. Polite or non-confrontational expressions are important.

Self-deprecation (modesty) is often preferred to open boasting, arrogance, self-promotion and being earnest.

Identities. National identity is often a complex subject in the UK although most people are quite relaxed about it.
Racism does occur but much less so than in the past.

Driving in the UK. The importance of following laws, rules and regulations.

Recent British Prime Ministers have announced that Britain is a less class-based society than before. But to what extent is this true?

The importance of critical thinking. Humour can also be a critical thinking tool.

Quotation, paraphrase or plagiarism? Using a text on British drinking habits.

The various uses of language for serious and humorous purposes.

Our common humanity: more similarities than differences.

A review of One in Five

Authentic and boisterous!

The festival organisers very much appreciate what Kestrel Books and the Teflonstage theatre company did for us and we were all very impressed by their enormously entertaining "One in Five" performance.

The show offered a dynamic blast of poetry in performance, combining poetry, music, prose, wordplay and humour based on the theme of being an international student dealing with the wonderful variety of Englishes, identities, rivalries, customs, tribal behaviours, etc, in the world today.

Authenticity was the watchword and so many of the characters and vignettes that appeared struck a chord with the audience.

At one stage, the actors jeered, chanted and yelled at each other in the guise of football supporters and the atmosphere created was scarily authentic!

By turns boisterous, rhythmic, melodic and inspiring, the show gripped everyone through to its tumultuous climax.

... a superlative performance that had members of the audience all but falling off their chairs with laughter.

All in all, it was a highly entertaining show and one that the festival organisers cannot recommend highly enough. It is telling that the ELT practitioners present, including the Principal of ETC International College and several of his staff members (plus a handful of international students), also remarked that the material would lend itself perfectly to pedagogical use.

The format they used is apparently very flexible, and Tony Childs-Cutler of Teflonstage told us afterwards that the group can vary it according to the English language levels in the audience.

They are already discussing versions for ESOL students, for example, and one for a largely British audience. They also have available some pre- and post-performance materials if teachers would like to exploit these in the classroom.

Jamie, the Director, evidently has a genuine interest in theatre for educational purposes and the festival organisers are convinced that he and the company are bound for great things! The producers have managed to put together a great team and it will be exciting to witness how the show develops in future performances.

Thank you and well done to the whole team!

David Jones, Co-Director, Bournemouth Literary Festival.
www.bournemouthliteraryfestival.co.uk