Interview with Little Soldier Productions on Nothing Happens (Twice)

Hinton Magazine spoke with Little Solider Production’s creators and performers MerceÌ Ribot and Patricia Rodriguez, on their latest show Nothing Happens (Twice)…

What can you tell us about Nothing Happens (Twice)?

(Patricia) It is our latest show and also the most personal one.. It speaks about our journey together for the last 10 years as a company, comic duo, friends, etc. The existentialism of the piece lays its roots in the one and only Waiting for Godot which might seem heavy but somehow, we feel we have managed to make it lighter than the original. We are incredibly proud of what we have made and the wonderful team - led, by the also one and only, Ursula Martinez- that has pushed us to places we had never been before.

As a multilingual physical comedy theatre company, how would you describe your usual work?

(Patricia) We make comedy shows but we navigate other genres as well. In recent years we have been using more and more autobiographical elements and we tend to sing. The absolute common denominator in our work is that we address the audience directly. We like to take risks and work with talented and wonderful people.

What sparked your interest in the life and work of Samuel Beckett?

(Merce) I’ve been fascinated by Waiting for Godot since I saw it on stage in Barcelona when I was 17. Both Patricia and I talked about performing it when we first met but never pursued it until now. During the making of the show, our fascination for Beckett grew and we became obsessed by his life and work during the pandemic - which provided a longer than usual period of research and development.

How challenging is it to perform in a two-person show?

(Merce) Performing together is a great pleasure, we’ve been doing it for a decade, and we’ve got each other’s back. It’s a great relief knowing that whatever happens on stage we’ll be able to deal with it together. It’s particularly important with the kind of work we make, which has windows to improvisation and audience interaction.

What do you find most rewarding as a performer who also devised the play? (Merce) The main difference for me is that the ownership of the material is greater when you’ve been part of the making process. (Patricia) It feels really good to make a show from scratch, and to get the opportunity to perform this kind of piece in front of an audience, when you have been involved in the process of making, just adds an extra layer of pleasure to the whole experience.

Nothing Happens (Twice) is touring the UK until the 21st April!

Grab your tickets here https://bit.ly/3LG3Tsq