The Last Blog Post (of 2012)

The end of the year is fast approaching, so I thought I'd squeeze in one final blog post.

Every now and again I am reminded it's a strange, small world, and never more so than in the world of The Arts. To cut a very long story (involving a New Year's Eve party 10 years ago, performing in a florist's shop, graphic design and 'Bunnies') short, I found myself designing the posters and flyers for this is tinder's production, 'The Last March', the Christmas show at The Bike Shed Theatre in Exeter.

I haven't previously discussed it on my blog, but as well as being an Actor I am also studying Graphic Design. Whilst I can't claim to have designed the beautiful main collage (Ian Nicholson, Tinder's Artistic Director, had already commissioned it), it was a great job to work on as Ian gave me a clear idea of what he liked, but plenty of room to be creative. In addition to this, I have watched the show and it is a great piece of Theatre!

On the left is the original collage and on the right is the final design for 'The Last March' poster

The play is the tale of Captain Robert Falcon Scott's final expedition to the Antarctic in 1912. He planned to lead the first team to reach the South Pole, but was beaten by the Norwegian explorer Roald Amundsen. Furthermore, Scott and his team died before they could make it home. “He didn’t go for material gain,” explains Ian, “It was a dream and he wanted to do it, it was important to him and his family. It was the last possible place left to be discovered, everywhere else in the world had been found.” Much like the story of Titanic, I haven't given away the ending and the heroic tale is full of myth and adventure. And tea, let's not forget the tea.

The final design for 'The Last March' flyer

Death and failure may not sound like the stuff of a heartwarming, Christmas, family tale, but Tinder saw the story from a very angle. After discovering Ian's great grandfather served under Captain Scott, Tinder did some research and discovered 2012 marks 100 years since Scott died. The story that emerged for them, was one of a very British adventure, with moments that appeared absurd and humourous when viewed from the 21st Century:

“They took out champagne and Christmas trees and a piano and a slide projector...They took 31 men and Amundsen took nine. Nine men and dogs while Scott had champagne
and brandy and footballs.”

Ian Nicholson, Director of The Last March, Artistic Director of this is tinder

The poster strapline states: "...This time, history is written by the losers..." because, as Ian explained to me, although it was Amundsen who won the race to the Pole, it was Scott's expedition and subsequent death that usurped his victory.

This is not to say that Tinder treat the expedition glibly, but the absurd and humourous moments they draw out make it both enjoyable and exciting, whilst in turn making the 'serious' moments more sympathetic and touching. If you are still concerned about it being a family show in which people die, the deaths are cleverly portrayed in a way which doesn't allow the audience to dwell on them and some younger children may not even realise that characters have died.

The Last March runs until 12th January 2013, so you still have time to catch it, before it disappears into the mists of time and a flurry of fake snow, but if you really can't find time to watch it, at least pick up a flyer to keep me happy!

Useful Links

Tickets for 'The Last March'
this is tinder on Facebook
this is tinder on Twitter (@thisistinder)

A blog post concerning an Actor trying to write about her involvement in a new play currently running at The New Diorama, or ‘I’m in Bunnies’ for short.

If you are reading this blog post before midnight on Sunday 28th October, you might still have time to take advantage of the ticket offer running via Time Out. You can see Bunnies for just £7 at The Diorama (on selected dates) if you book through Time Out, but the offer ends on Sunday 28th October. Here’s the link to the Time Out offer: http://uk-offers.timeout.com/deals/bunnies

Every time I’m in a play I have these grand plans to blog during the process and every time I realise that there’s no way that will happen until the show is up and running. So I’m typing this whilst sitting in my digs, listening to Radio 2, slurping a cup of tea and wondering if the condensation on the window is hiding the watermarks of rain on the other side, meaning this will be a waterproof-and-wellies day.

Don't trust the Bunnies...Photograph Copyright Annette Chown 2012

I am currently playing Eva in (to give it its full title), ‘A PLAY CONCERNING A FARMER’S RADICAL ATTEMPT TO RESTORE HIS LAND TO ITS SUPPOSED FORMER GLORY, AND THE DIFFERING REACTIONS OF HIS CHILDREN: OR BUNNIES (FOR SHORT)’, which is a dark satirical comedy, containing ‘swearing, violence and lots of taxidermy’. It’s definitely not one for the kids. Here’s some of the blurb from the flyer with more of what it’s about:

‘The once beautiful land is blighted by non-native species, including the grey squirrel, the Chinese mitten crab, the Siberian chipmunk, the Topmouth Gudgeon and, even, the European rabbit. They are wreaking havoc. Fortunately Stamper, a local farmer, has a solution.’

The play is written by Kieran Lynn (An Incident at The Border) and started life as a short play for The Bike Shed Theatre’s New Blood season in 2011. It went on to become a full-length play, won a Peter Brook Empty Space award and was performed at The Bike Shed Theatre in the Autumn. At the moment, if you search for the show on the web, you will probably find reviews relating to the first full-length production, but this is a different animal (see what I did there?), featuring a new cast (me, Jolyon Westhorpe and Richard Pulman) and a new director (David Lockwood). However, tonight is perhaps the scariest night of all: Press Night in London. So sooner or later there will be reviews floating around that relate to our production. Let’s hope they enjoy it...

Kieran watching from the sidelines, tweaking the script Photograph Copyright Annette Chown 2012

It is a comedy, but like all dark comedies it also makes us look at the world from a different angle. As the audience, we follow a ‘logical conclusion’ in Bunnies and for our director, it made him wonder how many steps it really is from, what he terms, ‘casual racism’ to extremism and ‘eradication’. Do ‘casual’ thoughts ultimately lead to extreme thoughts or does there have to be a catalyst that ignites extremism?
I don’t really want to give too much away, but hopefully, this has given you a flavour of what to expect and if you follow me on Twitter or Facebook you can see more rehearsal photos and keep up to date with the show.

That's not a real frog, it is a real pencil. Photograph Copyright Annette Chown 2012

Before I finish this post I do just have to mention our programmes: I love them. They are published by Oberon Books and contain the script as well as biographies of those involved and only cost £3 if you buy them from theatres the play is visiting. If you want to buy the script at a later date, it will cost you more, so now’s the time to grab one. This will be the first time my biography appears in a published script, so for me, it’s extremely exciting!

Me excitedly holding a copy of the programme! Photograph Copyright Annette Chown 2012

Bunnies will be at The New Diorama until 3rd November, then we head to The Salberg Studio at The Salisbury Playhouse (6th - 10th November) and then we finish the tour in The Brewery at The Tobacco Factory in Bristol (13th - 24th November).

Useful Links

The New Diorama Bunnies Page
The Salisbury Playhouse Bunnies Page
The Tobacco Factory Theatre Bunnies Page
Oberon Books

If you missed it first time around...

I have some very exciting news which I will be blogging about soon (although those of you who follow me on Twitter already know what it is!), but in the meantime I have some re-exciting news: 'Private Peaceful' is back on BBC Radio 4 this Saturday at 2.30pm.

Image from the 'Private Peaceful' Podcast (available for a short period after broadcast).

If you missed it the first time around and want to know more about it, you can read about it on the BBC Radio 4 website or peruse the blog post I wrote earlier in the year entitled, 'Molly, Me & Private Peaceful'.

Hope you enjoy it and I look forward to divulging my exciting news very soon!

It’s not my cup of tea: why I was wrong about the Devoted and Disgruntled Roadshow

‘It doesn’t sound like my cup of tea’, said my friend when I asked if they were attending the Devoted & Disgruntled Roadshow at the Tobacco Factory Theatre in Bristol. I followed up with the immortal words, ‘I don’t think it’s my cup of tea either’. I take back those words: I was a fool. I have a feeling that when I look back, my first D & D Roadshow will go down as one of the most important moments in my creative life.

The Devoted & Disgruntled Roadshow is run by Improbable theatre company and has been touring since 2005. Each stop is a  one or two day event which allows you to ‘join the nationwide conversation about the future of Theatre’, but if you are like me, when you first read the name of the roadshow you fear it will be a load of people moaning about the erosion of funding and generally airing grievances, rather than finding solutions. I felt I was Devoted, but maybe naive, and wanted to learn why others were Disgruntled. I was also unsure of the set up and afraid that I would have nothing to contribute.

The Devoted & Disgruntled banner

'Whenever it starts is the right time.'

I thought it was a drop in, drop out weekend, and it can be, but it turns out, it’s a good idea to get there at the beginning of the day, especially if you’ve never before attended an Open Space event. I wasn’t the only one who didn’t realise this is how it works, so we didn’t start the day according to the timetable, but as you soon learn: Whenever it starts is the right time.

The wonderful Phelim McDermott of Improbable immediately puts you at ease and explains how the weekend will work and soon people start to ‘call sessions’. A session can be about anything from What's The Point? When Did You Last Feel Truly Inspired By An Experience In A Theatre? to Earning Money V Making Theatre. How Do We Do Both? and beyond. The person who has called the session then selects a space-and-time Post-it from The Wall of Space and Time and when all that’s done, you can browse the wall and decide what you want to attend.

The 'Wall of Space and Time'

I even found myself co-leading a session on the second day as, having listened to a lot of people, I felt there was an underlying question many people wanted to discuss. I called a session entitled Four Stars: Is the traditional review still the Holy Grail?, which I merged with two of Alison Farina’s sessions about success, as we felt they overlapped. You can read Alison’s report here and mine, which is presented as diagrams, which can be found in my blog post Devoted and Disgruntled Report Diagrams.

Some of the sessions called at the Bristol stop of the Devoted & Disgruntled Roadshow

Reports are created by the person who called the session (usually) and they create them, after the session, in the ‘Newsroom’. You can read the reports from the event in Bristol or any of the events across the UK on the Devoted & Disgruntled Roadshow website. Although most are specific to Theatre many are relevant to The Arts in general. Reading the reports, you can see that some people left the roadshow still feeling disgruntled, but the roadshow is not the end of the discussion as the website allows conversation to continue.

Some intrepid reporters in the Newsroom

'Whoever comes are the right people.'

I soon realised my preconceptions were wrong and I was in a group of Devoted people who wanted answers and collectively wanted to create change. Yes, there were people who got things out of their system and there were discussions about funding, but instead of the constant negative, downward spiral I feared, in the sessions I was a part of, these things were discussed and suggestions for change and development became the end result. This is not to say that definitive answers were found, everyone has different opinions, so individuals have to decide if they have found a solution.

A session in full swing

I attribute the openness and reduction of moaning to the model used for the events. The events are Open Space and if you have never attended an Open Space event, I cannot describe them better than Devoted & Disgruntled:

‘Open Space Technology (OST) is a form developed to support groups to self-organize and collaborate around any question of shared concern. It gives all participants the chance to propose a starting point for discussion, take part in any of the conversations or flit between them all. It is particularly effective in dealing with complex issues where diverse and conflicting views are present.’

‘What is Open Space?’ on the Devoted & Disgruntled Roadshow website.

There is also a live Twitter feed at the event which shows tweets marked with #DandDR. So us Twitterers were determined to spread the word, but something happened that none of us expected:

Yes!

That’s right, for a brief period on Saturday 30th June 2012, #DandR started trending in the UK! If you’re not on Twitter, this will probably mean very little, but it was a huge achievement for a relatively small group of people (combined with the brilliant people who weren’t at the event but read and retweeted our tweets), to have spread the word so far that for a moment even Twitter took notice.

'Wherever it happens is the right place.'

As part of the Open Space ethos, free tea and coffee is available, and conversations that happen whilst refueling with caffeine are just as important as those that happen in the space. As are the ones that happen on the website, on Twitter and Facebook, in Renatos over pizza and a pint or in the car whilst getting lost on your way to Long Ashton...don’t ask.

The Tobacco Factory Theatre was also the right place for the event and I would like to say thank you to Ali Robertson and Carrie Rhys-Davies for enabling the Roadshow to come to Bristol. I also have to say a huge thank you to the Improbable team who made it all happen and decided to include Bristol on their tour.

Seth Honnor's 'excellent continuum of cultural destiny'

'Whatever happens is the only thing that could have.'

Considering some people were still Disgruntled at the end, why do I feel it will be so important for me? In the same conversation I referenced at the beginning of this post, I said to my friend, something that I’ve previously discussed on my blog, ‘the reason I am going is because every now and again I like to push myself and do things that ‘aren’t my cup of tea’ or that scare me, just to see what happens’. In the Open Space I opened myself to change and some of the people I met and the discussions I was a part of unlocked something creative in me that has been locked for a long time: it reminded me of the possibility of Theatre and reawakened my desire to make things happen.

'When it is over, it is over.'

Some of the Reports on the wall at the end of the weekend

In the style of Sesame Street: this blog post was brought to you by the five rules of Open Space and the letters D and D.

Links

Devoted & Disgruntled Roadshow

The Reports from Devoted & Disgruntled Bristol

My Report

Devoted & Disgruntled on Twitter

Tobacco Factory Theatre

Tobacco Factory Theatre on Twitter

Devoted and Disgruntled Report Diagrams

These diagrams form my report on the Devoted & Disgruntled website for the session entitled Merge Alert PART 2 (with diagrams): #1 - How Do We Measure Success And How Do You Know When You Have Achieved It? #2 How Do You Get Where You Want To Without Kissing Ass Or Being A Twat? #3 The 4/5* Review: Is This The Holy Grail? 

Alison Farina and I decided to team up and combine our questions as we felt they overlapped. Many questions were answered with further questions, not because there were no answers, but because ultimately the answer to each is dependent upon the individual, only they know what is ‘correct’ for them.

To illustrate the session I have turned my notes into the diagrams below. The diagrams are a mixture of questions, answers and musings from the group.

These diagrams have been created from my notes alone, so it's worth cross referencing with Part 1 of the report, written by Alison.

Flushed at The Bikeshed Theatre

Exeter's Ignite Festival kicks off today and Theatre will take over the city. One of the first shows on the bill is Flushed from Theatre Rush at The Bikeshed Theatre and I recently found myself watching the YouTube promotional video for the production:

As Theatre explores new ways to promote productions and find new audiences, more and more promotional videos are appearing, which is great, but it can be hard to find a way to give an audience a sense of a production, especially when it's new writing and may not even be fully-formed at the time it starts to be promoted. That's why I wanted to highlight the video for Flushed, because I really like the way it manages to give you a sense of the play and the company. It's also enjoyable and nicely shot which made me want to watch the show and share the video.

But if you want to know more, here's the blurb from The Bikeshed Theatre website:

Four women


One bath


Can they fit in?

Flushed delves into the minds of four women who are facing up to their idiosyncrasies. We see moments of madness, insightful reflection and simple confessions that start to unravel their relationship with themselves. Who do you really see in the bathroom mirror?

Theatre Rush was formed only this year following the devised production of ‘Gesig’ which held its debut at The Bike Shed Theatre in December 2011, receiving a warm response by men and women alike. A company of female actors and practitioners shared the vision to deliver the bold truth about women starting with inspiration from Martha Graham’s quote:

‘There is a vitality, a life force, an energy, a quickening that is translated through you into action, and because there is only one of you in all the time, this expression is unique. And if you block it, it will never exist through any other medium and it will be lost…’

Part-comic and part tragic, Flushed offers a window’s view to some of the mysteries women would prefer kept secret. Accessible to both the sexes, Flushed is honest, surprising and in some cases, absurd.

Flushed is on 25th (7pm), 27th (7pm) and 29th (6pm) June 2012 at The Bikeshed Theatre in Exeter.

Links

Flushed Facebook Page

The Bikeshed Theatre

Ignite Festival

Bristol's Sleeping Beauty: Why The Whiteladies Picture House Needs Your Help

The iconic Whiteladies Picture House is under threat as plans have been submitted to Bristol City Council to turn this beautiful building into a set of flats and a gym. But two men and their collective have no intention of letting that happen and they need your help.

It’s been just over 10 years since the Whiteladies Picture House closed its doors and like Sleeping Beauty it’s been waiting for a Prince to come and give it the kiss of life. However, Sleeping Beauty didn’t have a covenant on her that said she couldn’t be used as a cinema or for any other theatrical purpose. Having said that, no-one was determined to convert her into flats with a gym either, but that’s not the point of the analogy here...It turns out, Princes are like buses, and two have come along at once in the form of Alan Mandel Butler and David Fells.

When I turned up at the last Equity meeting, having not been for ages and having not read the emails the branch had sent out (sorry!), I’ll be brutally honest, I was expecting David and Alan, to be in their late 60s with no plan for the building beyond stopping it being turned into flats. Oh how wrong I was:

Alan and David: clearly not in their 60s and they do have a grand plan

My jaw dropped when they started to discuss their grand, yet financially viable, plan*. They intend to turn the Whiteladies Picture House into a community arts centre that consists of a 450 seat proscenium arch theatre, a separate 200 seat cinema/screening room, a large function room, foyer area, private meeting room and film edit suite.

They propose that the screening room/cinema would also be suitable for lectures and stand-up comedy. The function room, which was originally a ballroom (fully sprung), would be suitable for private functions or as a rehearsal space, cabaret comedy venue or as a large meeting room. They are also hoping that it will be put to its original use once again to host ballroom dance classes.

These pictures are from the Whiteladies Picture House campaign website. Click on them to visit the site and see more.

They aim to help local film-makers produce and showcase their work and hope to offer access to and training on film equipment, as well as a stock of owned cameras and access to the film edit suite. Completed films could then be showcased in the balcony cinema before the major features.
What is even more impressive is that they intend to do all of this whilst restoring this Grade II listed building to its former glory. They are both extremely passionate about old cinemas and understand, as well as appreciate, their cultural and historical significance. With this in mind they have been researching the building and sourcing vintage pieces they would love to purchase to restore the building with the love and care it desperately needs.

So what is stopping them from putting all of this into action? Money and Time. Not the covenant, as you might think, but money and the time they need to raise the money. Here’s why: the guys have worked tirelessly and have met with Odeon cinemas who will lift the covenant if The Whiteladies Picture House Ltd (the not-for-profit company they created to oversee the renovation and redevelopment of the Picture House building**) can secure the building. But securing the building is the problem.

The current landlord of the property has expressed no interest in the proposal itself, but would be willing to sell the property to The Whiteladies Picture House Ltd. So Alan, David and the rest of the Whiteladies Picture House Creative Collective (the group of people who have come together because they believe the project is something the city needs) started fundraising, but somewhere in the middle of all this, their hard work reminded other investors that the Picture House was lying unused and suddenly other proposals, old and new, started to creep out of the woodwork. Worse still, the decision to grant planning permission for the flats and gym is pending and will be decided in a few days time on Wednesday 27th June 2012. This is where they need your help:

A cover I created for the Downstage Write Facebook page

If the plans are passed, it’s the end for the Whiteladies Picture House as a community arts centre. So, assuming you cannot furnish them with £1.7million to buy the freehold, you can help them by signing the petition to support their proposal and/or you can lodge an objection to the flats/gym conversion by leaving a comment on the planning proposal. The relevant links can also be found below and on their website.

I really hope that David, Alan and The Collective are successful, because they have a fantastic, community-oriented vision for the Picture House; a stunning, culturally significant building which shouldn’t be consigned to history when there’s an opportunity for it to be part of our future.

I have provided a brief overview of the proposal in this post, but there is a lot more to it, so for further information visit their website.


*They mention the viability on their website, but at the Equity meeting concerns were raised about how they would generate income if they were successful in their plan and make the Picture House financially viable in the current economic climate. The answers they gave demonstrated a clear business plan and quelled the concerns.

** Once restored, this company intends to take on day-to-day operation of the venue.

Links

Whiteladies Picture House Campaign Website (http://www.whiteladies-picturehouse.com/)

The Petition

The Planning Application (If you want to add an objection, you need to click on the 'Comments' tab)

Whiteladies Picture House on Facebook

Whiteladies Picture House on Twitter (@wlpicturehouse)

Whiteladies Picture House Collective on Twitter (@WLPH_collective)

Equity

Fertility Objects: What's it all about?

Fertility Objects is the fourth production from the new-writing company Butterfly Psyche Theatre and starts at the Rondo theatre in Bath this Wednesday (20th June 2012). As I follow some of those involved on Twitter, I thought I'd find out more about the production.

The poster for Fertility Objects

Do you know a couple who are ‘trying for a baby’? Or suspect you know a couple who are? As you get older, the answer seems to be ‘yes’ on most days of the week. Fertility Objects is a play about three such couples who have hit a few bumps on the journey to parenthood and have ‘broken down’. They are trying to keep going and through the course of the play we discover if they will succeed in reaching their destination.

Image ©Lisa Hounsome 2012

The play is written by Alison Farina, Butterfly Psyche Theatre’s Artistic Director, and directed by Hannah Drake, the Rondo's resident Intern Director (and winner of the Elsa Roberts Prize for Directing). It is a deeply personal and delicate subject for many, but, as part of her research, Alison held interviews with men and women who have been affected by fertility issues and she had this to say about the experience:

“I was struck by how many people were affected by infertility and was moved by how many of these individuals were so supportive and encouraging of the project. It is such a personal and even taboo issue, despite its commonality and is rarely discussed openly. The challenge with this kind of subject matter is making a show that’s emotionally engaging without being a sob-fest, but I think we’ve cracked it!”

Alison Farina, Writer of Fertility Objects

Image ©Lisa Hounsome 2012

According to Japanese tradition, if a person can fold 1000 Origami cranes, they will be granted a special wish and designer, Natalie Remington, has incorporated this tradition into the design of the show:

“Our set design is based on the idea of Origami mobiles; since this show is about people wishing for a baby, we thought the idea of making the 1000 Cranes for them was both appropriate and poignant.”

Natalie Remington, Designer for Fertility Objects

The beauty of Theatre is that it allows you to explore emotions and situations that are close to you and also opens windows on to new experiences. Both reactions to a production can inspire questions and after the show on Wednesday 20th June, Butterfly Psyche Theatre are giving you the chance to get some answers. There will be a post-show discussion with the team from the Bath Fertility Centre, including Medical Director, Nick Sharpe Matron/Fertility Services Manager, Helen Kendrew, an Embryologist and their centre Counsellor (this event is free and will take place just after the performance).

Image ©Lisa Hounsome 2012

With a subject matter close to many people’s hearts and a cast consisting of Oliver Millingham, Shane Morgan, Justin Palmer, Jenny Johns, Anna Westlake and Fleur Ward, it’s firmly on my list of shows to see this week.

The show runs Wednesday 20th - Saturday 23rd June (8pm) at the Rondo Theatre in Bath and links for booking and further information can be found below.

Links

The Rondo Theatre

Bath Box Office

Butterfly Psyche on Facebook

Butterfly Psyche on Twitter

Bath Fertility Centre

Hannah Drake

Natalie Remington

Saturday Shorts 3 at The Bristol Folk House

The place to be this Saturday 9th June at 7.45pm is The Folk House on Park Street, Bristol watching Saturday Shorts 3. Tucked away behind the Children's Hospice shop and Nomad Travel (if you’re walking up the hill and you reach the Spar, you’ve gone too far!) you will find a haven of creativity and this Saturday it will be the venue for a showing of 6 new short plays.

The 6 plays have been selected from over 200 entries and will be produced as script-in-hand performances, directed by Pameli Benham and Duncan Bonner. If you’ve never been to a script-in-hand performance and aren’t sure what one is, the plays are performed with costume and props, but the actors maintain the script in their hand as they perform. It may sound distracting if you have never watched one, but when I am in the audience I forget the actors have scripts, they just become part of the action.

It’s a brilliant opportunity to watch new work which may not otherwise have the opportunity to be performed, or before it’s picked up for full performance. It also provides feedback for the writers, who can see how an audience responds to their work and may make alterations based on the reaction.

The actor folk for Saturday Shorts 3: (top row) Alan Coveney, Jason Bailey, Me - Annette Chown, (bottom row) Duncan Bonner, Marie Clifford, Paul Currier

I performed in last year’s Saturday Shorts and I had a great time so I’m really looking forward to this Saturday. The plays selected for 2012 are as follows (the descriptions are from the Bristol Folk House website http://www.bristolfolkhouse.co.uk/whatson.php):

'Our Space' by John Yates - A bizarre pair tell us of the life they lead entirely within the boundaries of their own home.

'The Philosopher Barber' by Belinda Dixon - A moving comic monologue about rites of passage, the power of words, and a nice, neat short back and sides.

'Welvis' by Stephen Rhys Gage - A down-at-heel entertainment agency turns out to have a more sinister side.

'Tescoville' by Katherine Mitchell - A tense comedy in which a man is held hostage by his ex-partner who is seeking the child support money.

'Joe. Morag. And an Urn' by Andrzej Wawrowski - A touching comedy in which an estranged couple scatter the ashes of the adult education tutor who brought them together.

'The Hunt' by Alan Harris - A strange and atmospheric tale in which a young man rescues his sister from a life as a hound.

Duncan preparing to be The Philosopher Barber

I will be performing in ‘Tescoville’ and ‘The Hunt’, and at the time of writing this, I know as much about them as you do, but from their descriptions, they sound great, so I cannot wait until Saturday!

Tickets are £6 and available from the Bristol Folk House (T: 0117 926 2987)

http://www.bristolfolkhouse.co.uk/whatson.php

'Actual Reality' is a Gripping Yarn

This weekend Gripping Yarns will take place at the Royal Albert Memorial Museum (RAMM) in Exeter, and my monologue, Actual Reality, is one of the twelve pieces selected for performance.

Although I do a lot of writing for different things, I have never written a script or monologue, and submitted it anywhere, because I’m always saying ‘I haven’t got an idea I want to develop’. So, when I turned up halfway through the first scriptwriting workshop, I had no intention of writing a script, I just wanted to say hello to Sheila (Show of Strength), but as I walked around the beautifully refurbished museum, a kernel of an idea started to form.

Front of leaflet advertising the writing workshops for the project

On my list of ‘Interests’ you will find History, and although I have my favourite periods, part of my interest lies in a desire to learn from the past and understand how it affects our present and ultimately our future. This gave me an idea: what if you were in the future, looking back at the present as if it was the past? What defines this period of time? How could things change on a small or large scale?

I still didn’t put anything down on paper, but over the next few weeks a couple of issues came up in the news and suddenly I had a starting point, but no real story. Time was marching on and as I was now considering submitting a monologue I needed to get back to the museum and properly explore the objects on display.

If you’ve been to the new museum and picked up one of the maps, you’ll know that finding your way around is still a bit confusing, but thankfully they have the room numbers on the walls, so, on my second visit, I was determined to visit every room. It was the last, and perhaps the most underwhelming room I tracked down that provided the inspiration I needed.

Room 6, Behind the Scenes, is a tiny room which aims to give you an idea of what happens behind the scenes at the museum, and on the wall you will find copies of catalogue cards for objects in the museum. They have a picture of the item and all sorts of information like, what it is, what it’s made from, where it comes from, etc, etc. As I looked at the cards I found myself wondering how you would fill out the cards if you were cataloguing a human. Suddenly, I knew I had an idea I wanted to develop and no more excuses not to write it.

Without giving too much away (in case you pop into the museum and watch the performance), Actual Reality, explores what it means to be human, my frustration with endless terms and conditions and disclaimers as well as the constant advertising bombardment and privacy intrusion from companies battling for our personal information and touches on some current political ideas. That’s right, I’ve packed all that (and more) into a darkly humorous, five minute (ish) piece holding a mirror up to modern life.

That’s enough about my piece, there are eleven others being performed and it’s going to be a brilliant weekend at the museum. I haven’t seen all of work, but it’s likely that there will be pieces that make you laugh, some that make you sad and definitely ones that make you stop and think.

It’s a similar setup to Show of Strength’s Trading Local, but instead of taking place in local shops, each piece will be performed in the museum. If you’ve never been to Trading Local, think of it as a mini theatre festival that happens in one building and there will be a timetable so you can see find out what’s happening, when and where it’s taking place. Assuming it becomes available online, I’ll post a link to it, when it’s released.

In the meantime, if you want to find out more, there are some links below and I hope you get a chance to visit the RAMM over the weekend and see some of the Gripping Yarns.

Useful Links

RAMM Gripping Yarns Page
Exeter Northcott Gripping Yarns Page
Exeter Northcott Gripping Yarns Press Release
Show of Strength

Right Here, Right Now

I am sent a lot of Press Releases about productions in the South West, so I’m going to trawl through my inbox over the coming weeks, and bring you a selection of shows to peruse. I thought I’d start with a short blog post today highlighting a couple of productions that are on now...

Madhampton.co.uk

Stepping Out Theatre Company  

http://www.steppingouttheatre.co.uk/

The Blurb

‘It isn’t legal or ethical... But it is incredibly exciting and it’s on the internet so that means it’s probably OK!’

A group of online friends have met through ‘second-life’ therapy site madhampton.co.uk., a slightly scary therapeutic community.

Madhampton is a virtual English village with an array of larger-than-life characters. It appears to offer sanctuary for troubled minds but when they meet for real the friends discover it is more complicated than that...

Who is the mysterious figure behind the site and what is his real agenda?
Why are forest-dwelling rebels the Square Wheelers so keen to take it down?
And do they really have to wear tights while they’re doing it?

The friends must decide whether Madhampton is a healing place or a sinister cult... And how far they are prepared to go to escape their painful realities.

My Thoughts

It sounds as mad as the name and I like the poster (yes, I know, never judge a book by it’s cover - although these days I think you can, as the best book covers are designed to communicate the contents or reach a target audience, but that’s a whole other discussion...) so I’m really looking forward to this one.

The Important Info

Where?

The Brewery Theatre, 291 North St. Southville, Bristol

When?

7.45 p.m.
Wednesday 4th - Thursday 5th and Tuesday 10th - Saturday 14th April 2012

How much?

£9/£7

Where do I get tickets?

The Tobacco Factory Theatre
T: 0117 9020344
www.tobaccofactorytheatre.com

APOPO

On The Stage Of The Present 

www.onthestageofthepresent.posterous.com

The Blurb

On The Stage Of The Present (Tom Pritchard) brings a brand of performance improvisation combining movement, dance and text to story tell, reigniting a long standing collaboration with Chloe Whipple. Other special guests will join us over the three night run where a whole new piece will be discovered onstage each night.

So join us for APOPO, a series of 3 performances on the 5th, 6th and 7th of April 2012.

Titles:
5th Night 1) You are not allowed in the past anymore
6th Night 2) The medium is somewhere in between us
7th Night 3) Avoidance of a monochrome disappointment

My Thoughts

I don’t know Tom Pritchard’s work, but I know Chloe is fantastic and I like the titles for each night. It’s also 2 for 1 on Adult tickets, so I reckon it’s worth a watch!

The Important Info

Where?

The Bikeshed Theatre, Fore Street, Exeter

When?

7.30pm
Thursday 5th - Saturday 6th April

How much?

£10/£7 and according to the website a 2 for 1 offer is currently available for Adult tickets.

Where do I get tickets?

The Bikeshed Theatre
T: 01392 434169
http://www.bikeshedtheatre.co.uk/whats-on/apopo/

That’s it for today, but I shall highlight more over the next couple of weeks.

Molly, Me and Private Peaceful

There are some productions that stay with you and remind you why you love acting. On Saturday 4th February 2012, the Radio 4 production of Michael Morpurgo’s, ‘Private Peaceful’ will air as the Saturday Play of the Day, and for me, it is one of those productions. 

Image from the 'Private Peaceful' Podcast (available after broadcast). Click on it to go to the podcast.

Once upon a time I worked as a bookseller, and one day I decided I wanted to arrange a large event with Michael Morpurgo, to promote his latest book. Clearly I had gone mad. It meant co-ordinating 450 children from 9 schools to gather in the Bristol Old Vic for the event. Somehow I managed to bring it all together and I still remember watching the auditorium fall silent as the children became completely absorbed in the author’s words.

At some point during the day talk turned my acting and wouldn’t it be funny if I ended up in an adaptation of his work...so imagine my surprise when a few years later I got the phone call to say I’d got the role of Molly in the Radio 4 production of one of his most popular books - my jaw dropped and, let’s face it, I did a little dance.

I always hoped I would be in a production of his work, but 'Private Peaceful' was the last Morpurgo adaptation I ever thought I would find myself in!  Why? Because I had watched the original stage adaptation with Paul Chequer as Tommo, and assumed that if they ever did a radio version they would keep it as a  one-man production. I also assumed it would be recorded in a studio, but we recorded it on location in Iddesleigh and it wasn’t until we were on location that I understood why this was so important for the production. 

Iddesleigh is a rural village and we had the luck to be there on one of the most gloriously sunny days last Spring to capture, in the recording, all the sounds of nature that course through the village - and nature is definitely a character in its own right.

Here we are, squinting in the sun!  (Left to Right) Simone Reade, Christopher Bianchi, Amy Reade, Michael Morpurgo, Annette Chown, Paul Chequer, Alison Reid, Mark Quartley. This image is from the Radio 4 website listing and you can find more behind-the-scenes pictures of the production on the site. Click on the image to visit the full listing and find out more.

I’ll admit I was nervous as the others had already been working together and I was only with the team for one day of recording, but Susan Roberts, the producer, immediately put me at ease, and everyone was lovely and welcoming. The production also brought me back together with some familiar faces, including Chris Bianchi, Simon Reade, mini me, (well, mini-Molly) Amy Reade and of course, Michael Morpurgo!

Image from the BBC Radio 4 website listing for 'Private Peaceful'. Click on it to view the listing.

The play takes place in this idyllic Iddesleigh and the trenches of the First World War through the memories and inner thoughts of Tommo Peaceful, with the music of Coope Boyes and Simpson to transport you to the era. It’s very moving, so you might want to grab a box of tissues before you switch the radio on!

I’ve already listened to it and Susan Roberts has crafted a beautiful production which I am proud to be part of, and the only way I can describe it is ‘magical’, because it really felt like there was something in the air that day which has made its way into the final piece.

Useful Links

'Private Peaceful' Full Radio 4 Listing

'Private Peaceful' Podcast

Michael Morpurgo's Website