Parabolic’s previous productions include the WWII-set For King And Country, and it’s easy to imagine the starship here swapped for a submarine
Owen Kingston is Parabolic Theatre’s artistic director; today, according to the insignia on his jumpsuit, he’s also the captain of the USC Havock. Kingston lays one palm on a scanner and its entrance opens, with that trademark science-fiction swoosh, to reveal the metallic angles of a starship’s access corridor.
Off it, beyond another door – swoosh – is a shuttle pod, used for away-mission excursions or emergency evacuations. At the far end is a med bay and a cargo dock, complete with a brig, its entrance outlined with red light. On our way to the bridge, our tour guide points out bunks set into the corridor’s walls. These are so that sessions can eventually run overnight, or for entire weekends, he explains. Off this corridor is something rarely seen in sci-fi shows: a bathroom, its video porthole displaying the starfield outside. “We thought about putting showers into the ships too, but at some point you have to start axing things,” Kingston laughs. “It’s incredible how quickly you can spend three million quid.”