PLEASANCE THEATRE, London. Oct 4-23 October 2016
“You can’t speak You have had an operation You have lost your voice? Okay, a cappuccino? Okay, large? with chocolate? take away? yes that will be £2.89 so you have £2.89? okay what name shall I put on the cup? Never mind, I’ll put NO NAME okay, NO NAME, no problem, enjoy your coffee.”
Can You Hear Me Running? charts the real life experiences of Louise, a performer who loses her voice to a rare condition and decides to overcome her loss by running the London Marathon. Louise embarks on a journey to re-find her voice and meets a host of characters along the way, from voice professionals to new age healers…an intimate yet universal story about never giving up until the finish line.
“Beautifully written by Harper…a probing real-life drama that challenges our sensibilities but leaves us feeling warm inside”. LondonTheatre1
“The script is powerful, both simple and emotional”. Womens Running UK
“Understated yet moving, an honest and energetic show”. Cairns Theatre Passion
“Engaging one-woman show combining energetic storytelling and rich visuals” The Stage.
“WHEN CAN YOU SPEEK? SPEEK MUMMY PLESE.”
“a very powerful script written by the talented Jo Harper,” Like the Wind magazine.
“lifts the heart and makes us believe, however briefly, that anything’s possible” The Blog of Theatre Things.
“I sign up for Reiki and I meet the burping beast. She heals with a burp, she takes the pain, digests it and burps it out. I smell her breakfast lunch tomatoes cheese bacon anchovies garlic tuna. My voice is indigestible.”
“Can You Hear Me Running? was created by myself and Louise Breckon-Richards. I used Louise’s notes, her running blog, medical notes and interviews we conducted with running specialists to turn her story into a play. After my initial meeting with Louise in 2013, we worked for three years to develop it, including a showing at a Tamasha scratch in 2014 and an extensive R&D process with performances at PARK and Pleasance Theatre. The play arose from Louise’s wish to share her story and her openness to work with my words. It was a wonderful, collaborative journey to create the play together.” Jo Harper
Read more press reviews here:
https://www.londontheatre1.com/news/148789/can-you-hear-me-running-pleasance/
Review: Can You Hear Me Running? at the Pleasance
Can you hear me running? A review
Can You Hear Me Running?
http://womensrunninguk.co.uk/inspiration/can-hear-running/?platform=hootsuite
Check out our socials-
Can You Hear Me Running? web-site
Can you Hear me Running? on Facebook
Twitter @canyouhearmerunning
Listen to Jo and Louise Breckon-Richards talk about their collaboration on What’s Offstage?
Steve Grihault, Adrian Gee, Louise Breckon-Richards,Tom Turner, Sophie Johnson, Dan Glover, Tamar Saphra, Jo Harper, Eva Auster. 
Dan Glover, Jo Harper, Louise Breckon-Richards, Steve Grihault – The Stage
CREDITS Created by Louise Breckon-Richards and Jo Harper. Written by Jo Harper. Directed by Steve Grihault. Musical supervisor, composer and pianist, Dan Glover. Production design, Eva Auster. Movement director, Steve Kirkham. Production Design, Adrian Gee. Assistant director, Tamar Saphra. Lighting design, Tom Turner. Stage Manager, Sophie Johnson.
Can You Hear Me Running? Rehearsal photos by Graham Saville