Deeply nostalgic and dazzlingly modern.
A love letter to the ‘Choose Your Own Adventure’ books and a directive to live actively and make choices.
A forgotten diary falls from a book you buy on eBay, what do you do?…YOU decide.
Join Nathan Penlington and a team of filmmakers as they embark on a quest to find the author of the diary and unravel the mystery of its pages. A true story of obsession, childhood sweethearts, friendship, loss and adventure.
But there is a twist. You, the audience, decide Nathan’s fate by voting using remote controls.
His destiny is in your hands.
Supported by:
The Boy In The Book, the complete story of finding the diary and the search for Terence Prendergast, was published by Headline in May 2014.
Choose Your Own Documentary was created by Nathan Penlington, Fernando Gutierrez De Jesus, Nick Watson and Sam Smaïl.
Choose Your Own Documentary was co-commissioned by Southbank Centre, London. Supported by Arts Council England. Initial development supported by Out Of Print.
The show was previewed in 2012 at Southbank Centre, London, where it performed to sold out audiences. The show went to SXSW in Austin, Texas, in march 2013, supported by ITV New and Hackney House, before a reedited version, involving more choice, premièred at the Edinburgh Fringe where it won the prestigious Scotsman Fringe First Award.
In 2014 Choose Your Own Documentary toured the UK theatres, with assistance from Arts Council England. The show sold out three week residency at London’s Soho Theatre, and was an official selection at: Tribeca Film Festival, New York; Antenna Festival, Sydney; and Sheffield Documentary Festival.
Southbank Centre is proud to be co-commissioner of Nathan Penlington’s Choose Your Own Documentary, a sensitive, exhilarating journey to find the boy in the book. The audience, who help to direct the action of the show, become as intrigued as Penlington, driving him on in his quest to explore how his narrative has intersected with one boy’s childhood diary. A triumph for live literature.
Press for Choose Your Own Documentary:
‘Anyone who took GCSE drama can vouch that learning lines isn’t easy. But it’s a tad trickier when the show you’re rehearsing has multiple endings, hundreds of possible narratives and is completely different each night. Acclaimed poet and storytelling comedian Nathan Penlington has set himself that task’ – Time Out
‘An awkward, unusual, tender story about what it is to be awkward and unusual’ – ★★★★ The Times
‘That rare creature, a truly lovely show’ – ★★★★ Evening Standard
‘This is a piece full of nostalgia for the 1980s but it’s also about moving on from the past. And, in our case, it’s a love story – but you may not get to that bit. By the end, there are still tantalising mysteries…Maybe you’ll get to find out, but we had a different story – one no less satisfying because the ending wasn’t the one we were expecting’ ★★★★ – The Scotsman
‘Enough intrigue, excitement and decision making to keep you glued to your seat’ – ★★★★ Official London Theatre
‘A really sweet little show that is guaranteed to leave you smiling – as long as you choose wisely’ – ★★★★ Plays to see
‘It wouldn’t surprise me if there’s a cult lurking in some sodden Welsh valley, drinking Tizer, eating Penguin biscuits and devoting themselves to following the path of ‘Choosing Wisely’’ – Geekocracy.
‘Choose Your Own Documentary is a neat, sweet show, which delivers plenty of heart-warming character despite its high concept. It would be difficult not to love this show. Interactivity makes you feel involved, and makes the outcome so much more emotionally satisfying. It might seem simple on the surface, but it’s breathtakingly complex underneath… as all the best choose-your-own-adventures are’ ★★★★ – Fringe Guru
‘Funny, touching, stratospherically human production. The thing that makes this show exceptional is the kind of story it tells. It’s not the rollicking intergalactic and hyper-dimensional quest of the original Choose Your Own Adventure books. It’s much closer to home than that. This subject matter is explored gently and subtly, and it makes the show so, so much more than its ingenious format’ ★★★★ – Broadway Baby
‘Inspiring, original, and deeply moving’ ★★★★ – Informed Edinburgh
‘Could this be the first X Factor/ theatre mashup?’ – The Cultural Exposé
‘The dual narrative of his own struggles with growing up and the mystery surrounding the unhappiness expressed in the pages of the diary turn what could be a voyeuristic exercise into a uniquely immersive and human experience. Not only are you part of an audience Choosing Your Own Adventure, you’re doing it in the knowledge that your decisions will reap meaningful and fascinating rewards’ – Evnt
‘With audience interaction for introverts, Choose Your Own Documentary reinvents the comedy/documentary genre’ ★★★★★ – Giggle Beats
‘By his own admission, the incredibly talented storyteller Nathan Penlington likes to make shows about his various obsessions; and lucky for us, one of them is the Choose Your Own Adventure books’ – Spoonfed
‘Funny, heart-warming, and utterly bizarre – there’s very few people today pushing the envelope of stand-up, performance and documentary making quite like this… Nathan Penlington really is a name to watch’ – We Heart
‘More than two decades after he read his first Choose Your Own Adventure novel, Penlington has created a live theatre-come-film-come-comedy-come-spoken word show which uses the same format…It sounds fun, but potentially a bit gimmicky – until you hear the story behind it’ – Scout London
A deeply moving testimony to the small choices we all make in our lives and the profound effects they can have.