We sat down with Hannah, one of the two-hander cast of Anna Jordan’s play Lost Atoms, starting their UK tour soon. Lost Atoms looks at a relationship over time and how memory impacts the way we look at love, as two people weave in and out of different moments in their shared past and future.
1. What was your first reaction when you read the script for Lost Atoms — did you see yourself in these characters straight away?
My first reaction to the script was “oh this is good, this is really really good!” and I totally saw parts of myself in Jess from the jump. We’ve been working with Scott and Anna on this since late 2024 so our fingerprints are all over these characters – which is such a rare privilege.
2. The play dives into love, memory and “what ifs” — did it change the way you think about relationships?
Yeah, I think so. It’s actually been a very healing process for me with regards to how I look back on past relationships. Not just romantic but familial and platonic as well. Just because a relationship didn’t work out doesn’t mean it didn’t have meaning or that it wasn’t a success in other ways.
3. How do you prepare for a role that shifts between past, present, and imagined futures — emotionally and physically?
Physically, Frantic take care of that. We have intense warm ups and conditioning during rehearsals to build up the stamina for a show like this. Emotionally, the Play jumps in and out of the past and present so I have to be very switched on and commit to being present in the moment with Joe, who plays Robbie. There’s also a level of emotional trust that is already there between Joe and myself, having worked together before so when those emotionally demanding scenes come up, we know we have each others backs, all the way.
4. Frantic Assembly is known for movement-led storytelling — what’s been the most challenging or rewarding part of that process for you?
The most challenging part for me is working out the mechanics of movement sequences, it’s always the hardest part. The repetition is tough on your body but once you nail the mechanics of a move, it becomes easier and more effortless.
So the most rewarding part for me is actually where we’re at now, where things are starting to click into place, sequences are becoming more effortless and fluid and we’re starting to see the shape of it all.
5. You’ve both worked with Frantic before — how has the company shaped you as a performer?
Frantic has been instrumental in shaping my confidence as a physical performer. I saw their production of Othello in 2014 and I remember thinking “This is incredible! This is exactly the type of art I want to be making” I used to dance as a kid and was an actor in training at the time and I thought this is the way of combining both skills – storytelling through acting and movement. But somewhere along the way, I was made to feel like this type of work wasn’t for me. And then when I had my first audition for a Frantic show – Scott and the other practitioners in the room really helped me believe that I could do it and that it didn’t matter what you’ve been told before, this work is for everyone.
6. Any moments in Lost Atoms that still hit you emotionally, even after all the rehearsals?
Yes, there’s a few in there but I’m not going to reveal what because – spoilers!
for ticket and info, visiting https://www.franticassembly.co.uk/productions/lost-atoms