If you reviewed your own show, how would you describe it?
A quietly devastating portrayal of a community on the brink of destruction, this spellbinding production finds both humour and poetry in the unlikely perspective of the local binman.
What is the best or most inspiring show you’ve seen at the Festivals?
The first show I remember falling in love with at Fringe was Growing Pains by Tom Gill. It was a one-man show where he told his life story, playing all the characters, through a combination of music and spoken word. It was my first Fringe, and so it was the first time I experienced the power of sitting in a small, dark room and being so close to the performer’s soul, sweat and tears! I can still picture a moment at the end of the play where he poured a handful of seeds out onto the stage, “I’ve been growing these pains…”. It was beautiful, funny and terribly sad. At Fringe, I’m always looking for something that makes me laugh out loud and hold back tears. To find that scope of emotion in a one-hour slot is particularly impressive.
What do you do to relax in August?
Stare at a wall. Have a nap. Go for a walk. Empty my brain of all stimulus for a few hours until I’m ready to go back out into the mayhem again.
What show are you most looking forward to seeing in August, and why?
I love Cat Cohen. I can’t wait to see her new show at Pleasance. She’s on the pulse of our irreverent yet deeply anxious generation and I think she’s incredibly sexy with it!
What’s the one piece of advice you’d give a performer coming to Edinburgh for the first time?
Don’t be afraid of things going wrong. One of the best performances we had for the last Fringe show I performed in was when a chair broke on stage as an actress was sitting on it. We styled it out and had a giggle with the audience, who from that point onwards were our best friends. Mistakes loosen everyone up and produce interesting results sometimes.
Tell me a little more about your show and what audiences can expect.
Refuse is a British-Ukrainian collaboration inspired by a news story about binmen in Ukraine who took on an extraordinary role in their communities following the outbreak of war. Set primarily in peacetime and following the looming threat of invasion, this story is surprisingly funny and warm in its exploration of everyday life and neighbourhood drama. Expect striking and enigmatic staging, eccentric characters and an unusual take on current affairs.
Can you talk about some of the creative team involved?
Anastazie Toros, the director of Refuse, is pursuing a PhD in artistic representations of migration and conflict from the ongoing Russian-Ukrainian war. Her approach to theatre is grounded in her expertise in devising and movement-based practitioners such as Grotowski and Lecoq. Claudia Green, our producer, currently works at the BBC and has previous production experience working with global brands such as H&M and Sony. Vasyl Sydorko, who plays the lead character Maks, is an endlessly malleable actor who performed extensively with the Lesia Ukrainka Theatre in Lviv and was nominated for the Taras Shevchenko Prize. Maria Shtofa, who plays Valentyna, worked with the National Theatre in Kyiv and gained recognition for her lead role in Rhino, which premiered at the Venice Film Festival and was later acquired by Netflix. Our production assistant and marketing lead, Nataliia Zuieva, trained with the Ukrainian Film School and previously assisted Anastazie on the premiere of A Fan of War by Polina Polozhentseva. I’m the writer of Refuse and will also be acting in the play as Yelena. I’ve performed with the National Youth Theatre, Lyric Theatre Hammersmith and Orange Tree Theatre. I was a finalist for the Kenneth Branagh Award for New Drama Writing in 2021.
Where do you draw inspiration from for your work, both in terms of creation and performance?
Something lights up in my brain when I find a connection between the mundane and the extraordinary. Through my writing, I am often trying to understand a subject I find too huge to see clearly through something small and granular. When it comes to performance, everything comes from the ensemble and is born organically out of the connection made in the rehearsal room. I like embracing the flexibility of theatre – the way that a script can metamorphosize depending on who is performing it, where and for what audience.
Looking at this production, how would you say it links to previous work personally and thematically?
The first script I ever wrote was about a receptionist working in an erotic massage parlour in Sydney. After discovering that sex work was decriminalised in New South Wales, I was intrigued by the idea of the person performing day-to-day administrative tasks in a sex work setting. I think this production takes a similar approach in representing the relatable, sometimes absurdly ordinary perspective of a binman facing up to something as incomprehensible as war. Personally, this play came out of my connection to this region. My grandparents arrived as refugees in England following the Russian invasion of their homeland in Lwów, Poland (now Lviv in Ukraine). As a British person growing up with a Northern Irish father and Polish grandparents displaced by war, I’m interested in exploring national identity through my work and representing individual stories of loss and survival. I’m very proud to be making my playwriting debut in honour of my Eastern European lineage.
Why is this an important story to tell?
We are three years into this war, numb to the news and fatigued with this fight, but every day tragedies take place that in 2022 might have shocked us. With war spreading globally, we need to reflect this reality as artists in a way that creates empathy rather than an othering effect. With Refuse, we want to embrace the power of theatre and live performance, bringing people together to experience this story collectively and feel it on an emotional level that goes far beyond the headlines.
What would you like audiences to take away from seeing you/this production at the Fringe?
To see themselves in this story. To fall in love with these characters and feel their loss as if it were their own.
Do you tend to take inspiration from events happening in the world around you in terms of your work? Do you think artists have a responsibility to respond to what’s happening?
I am affected by events around the world as I believe any artist is – we are all sponges soaking up the current moment and then filtering it through our own unique perspective. I don’t believe it’s a responsibility; I believe it’s an inevitability. The only responsibility the artist has is truth to their inner vision and fearlessness in sharing it.
How do you feel about the current arts landscape in your country and your part in it? Does it excite you and inspire you to keep pushing the boat out?
I think it’s very difficult to make work as an artist without financial backing and support. Edinburgh Fringe has sadly become unaffordable for many people due to soaring accommodation costs. I hope that this can be curbed and fringe theatre continues to thrive – but I can see how many blockages and limitations there are to people sharing their work for the first time without previous credits to their name. I’m inspired by the multi-talented women coming out of the UK like Michaela Coel, Sharon Horgan and my amazing friend and mentor Sally Phillips. They make me feel better when industry executives tell me to “be careful not to wear too many hats”. Between acting, writing, comedy and directing…I’m a milliner at this point!
Why are arts festivals such as the Fringe so important for international exchange?
As we’ve discovered in our team – we grow so much by sharing ideas and practices from our different cultures. We are excited to debut this play at a festival that has global reach, immersing people in Maks’ world and creating a touchstone for international audiences to connect with Ukrainian stories.
What can the wider arts community do to get more people involved in their specific disciplines?
Run free workshops. Invite people to shadow rehearsals or production meetings. Offer lottery script-reading initiatives like the Royal Court have just announced. Give feedback to people in competition shortlists (please! It helps so much).
Have you got your eye on any other shows that are part of the programme?
Single Use at Pleasance. We love to see another company taking on rubbish as their muse!
What’s next for you and how are you feeling about the future in general?
I’ve been sitting on this play for three years now and during that time it’s been shortlisted by BBC Radio 4 and Bloomsbury. I wrote it whilst studying with the incredible John Burgess, who sadly passed away last year. I feel John on my shoulder keeping watch, suggesting edits, and generally sharing in my bubbling excitement as I prepare to watch my first full-length play take shape and open up to audiences. After this, I’m going to keep working on my next script; a feature film following a girl who travels to Australia with a piece of rock left behind by her long-dead father, on a mission to heal an intergenerational curse that takes her deeper and deeper into Australiana and further and further from herself…
How can Edinburgh audiences keep up with you beyond the festival?
Follow @refuse_play on insta and @lucy_mcilgorm for updates on all my projects!
Anything else?
50% of profits from Refuse will be donated towards rebuilding Ukrainian homes & communities.
Refuse, Assembly George Square Studios, 31 Jul-25 Aug (not 6, 13, 19)