OVERTURE The other companies are FissiParous Theatre, which will be mentored by Allam, Tell Tale Theatre Company, whose members will receive advice from Shaw, Heath Players, which will work with Graham, Crossmichael Drama Club, which has been teamed with Joseph, Bingley Little Theatre, which has been assigned Wilson, Regent Rep, which is being mentored by Halfpenny, and Strathclyde Theatre Group, which is working with Walter. In each round, the companies will be judged by a panel made up of Miriam Margolyes, Quentin Letts and Bill Kenwright. Stagestruck will be broadcast in summer 2012.
HUGE COSTS FORCE GROUP TO ABANDON PAVILLION An amateur drama club claims Weymouth Pavilion is driving away business with higher costs than West End theatres.
The spiralling staff costs have now forced Weymouth Drama Club to cancel its annual pantomime at the Pavilion.
KENNETH MORE THEATRE FACES CLOSURE
The Kenneth More Theatre in Ilford could potentially be closed under a plan to make Sir James Hawkey Hall in Woodford Green the borough’s main amateur dramatics centre. A town hall source said top level discussions have taken place over the possible closure and a subsequent £1.2 million investment in new facilities at Hawkey Hall in Broomhill Road. The Guardian has been told that renewal of the theatre’s 35-year lease has been repeatedly postponed from cabinet agendas since September. Earlier this year Robert Jackson, then the manager of The Kenneth More Theatre in Oakfield Road, collected 3,250 signatures on a petition calling on the council not to cut £50,000 from its budget. The news comes as another drama centre is fighting for its future after council cutbacks. Redbridge Drama Centre in Churchfields, South Woodford, recently held an open evening to encourage business owners to make grants to the cash-strapped centre. The authority plans to cut funding by £250,000 each year after 2012. Redbridge Council has so far declined to comment on the story.
STAGESTRUCK - PROFESSIONAL MENTORS ANNOUNCED
Actors Roger Allam, Martin Shaw, Richard Wilson and Niamh Cusack are among the eight mentors who will work with the amateur companies competing in Sky Arts’ new series Stagestruck. They will join Julie Graham, Paterson Joseph, Jill Halfpenny and Harriet Walter as mentors in the series, which follows eight companies as they compete against each other by performing extracts from well-known plays, for the prize of appearing at a London theatre. The amateur companies will be whittled down to one over three knockout rounds, with the winning company then having eight weeks to rehearse a play to perform in the West End, at a yet to be disclosed venue. Each group will be assigned one of the mentors to help them prepare their performances for the different rounds. Cusack, who has been assigned Edinburgh Graduate Theatre Group, told The Stage: “Not enough people are put in touch with how great it is to watch plays and be in plays, and one of the ways of getting people interested in watching plays is for them to get up and do it themselves. “I am not a director, but I love enabling actors with less experience than myself.” She added that there should be more mentoring in the industry, claiming there was a place for “older actors mentoring other actors”. “I think we should do that more. It happens in ballet and it happens in opera, and I don’t think it would be a bad thing if it happened more in the theatre. I think amateur dramatics can benefit in that way,” she said.
The club has called off the family show for the first time in 34 years because it can no longer afford to pay the workers. The club’s business manager Richard Grafton said they faced mounting costs of £5,000 to put on the show in January, including £2,000 for casual staff. He said: “They are paid more than West End theatre workers and six times the minimum wage.” He added: “Some of our members are professional theatre technicians so we know what these people are paid.” Mr Grafton said the club has offered to run the shows with its own volunteers but technical staff and ushers employed by Weymouth and Portland Borough Council are part of the contract. He said: “We have made it fairly clear to the council over the last couple of years that staffing costs are becoming an issue. “It’s got to the stage this year where we can’t afford to do it anymore.” The group planned to stage Cinderella over three nights, plus a Saturday matinee. It would have required five ushers, each at £14.40 an hour, and six technical staff, each paid £16.14 per hour, rising to £32.28 for both Saturday shows. This is in addition to the £700 per show to use the theatre, the cost of extra equipment used and a four per cent commission plus VAT from ticket sales to pay box office staff. Mr Grafton said putting up ticket prices would not have been fair on loyal supporters. “We try to keep ticket prices low to give local people the chance to support us, which they have done in large numbers for over 60 years,” he said. “It’s a shame that we all have to suffer because of inertia from those who should be taking the lead.” The drama club is prepared to use its own volunteers – some of them professional theatre technicians – to act as ushers and technicians. Mr Grafton said: “It’s a big show with a lot of backstage staff but they won’t let us bring our own people in.” The group has also suggested to the council that a pool of volunteers is formed and training is given – in line with other theatres in the area and nationally – to help keep costs down. “We have offered to co-ordinate this operation and have been refused,” said Mr Grafton. “If the council wishes to reduce costs they would do well to listen to the theatre users, who last year staged shows which raised over £5,000 for a new stage, which the council could not afford.” Weymouth Drama Club has also cancelled its spring show at the Pavilion but will still be putting on a play, which requires less staff. It is now looking at other local venues for future shows.
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LETTERS
letters
ABBEYDALE PICTURE HOUSE - THE OTHER SIDE OF THE STORY
I read with interest the article on the Abbeydale Picture House project in the August issue but fear that it may have been written whilst wearing rose-tinted spectacles. I speak as a joint founder, Trustee, ex Vice Chairman and ex Treasurer of the Friends of Abbeydale Picture House, the charity set up to restore and reopen the old cinema. Along with another of the charity’s Trustees, Ken Ellis, I also stood as the bank guarantor to enable the charity to purchase the building and its business subsidiary Abbeydale Picture House Leisure Limited which operated n the basement. However, both Ken and I eventually followed other disillusioned Trustees and finally walked away from the project meaning the once vibrant board of 12 Trustees was reduced to four. A bad decision on our part as those remaining trustees decided to liquidate the business which resulted in the massive bank debt of £130,000 being laid at our door. A sensible decision you would say if your business was no longer viable, but as the Trustees immediately opened a ghost company the day after the liquidation, with the same Directors (who are also Trustees), the same staff and operating in exactly the same way maybe not so sensible. Legal yes, but moral? Most certainly not. Ken and I shall each be paying £150 a week for the next 10 years to clear the bank loan whilst the charity sit smugly in their now bought and paid for snooker and nightclub. There is much more to tell but this letter is really to reply and comment on the so called success of the Friends of Abbeyville Picture House. The charity was initially set up to raise money to enable us to restore and reopen the almost derelict theatre. Because of the state of the building the council agreed to allow us only 12 annual Performance licenses in the main auditorium, and in the early days there was actually a waiting list of artistes who wished to perform in this wonderful acousticallysuperb auditorium. Some big names went through those doors – Peter Stringfellow, Dave Berry, Frank White, Boy on a Dolphin, Past Masters, Swingshift to name a few, all raising large sums towards the restoration. However, for the last 2 or 3 years the Trustees’ efforts have comprised of a couple of local big band concerts (who I have to say are very good) and the occasional children’s theatre productions (again very good by all accounts), but certainly not good money spinners. The non-use of licenses is such a dreadful waste of the charity’s assets and the question needs asking why some of the past performers no longer wish to appear there. Sheffield has a considerable number of amateur dramatic societies but there seems to be no desire on their part to support the Friends by putting performances on there. Why? I am told membership of the charity now stands at a fraction of its original high of around 1,000 and the substantial band of dedicated volunteers is now but a handful. With the addition of Mike Trott’s daughter Claire Taylor 9who now runs the Youth Theatre), the board of Trustees now numbers five. All of these resignations. Sackings took place under his tenure as Chairman aided and abetted by his wife Anne who, according to the article, now holds the numerous posts of Events Manager, building co-ordinator, Health and Safety Officeretc. This multi-tasking would not be necessary had so many of the hard-working volunteers not left. Well-known members of the amateur dramatic world became victims of these sackings, including Adele Beckett who was superb as Publicity Officer, Sallianne Foster-Major as Director of the Youth Theatre together with her loyal band of willing hands, and Eileen Northall who had successfully and efficiently run the box-office from the outset. These sackings of volunteers were presented to the Board by the Chairman as fair accomplish and, along with many others, all left in tears. The renown Barry Northall, then a Trustee and a Director with myself of the trading company, resigned in protest at this megalomania and I swiftly followed suit, leaving the business in a healthy and happy state and no outstanding debts, yet it was to be put into voluntary liquidation less than 18 months later with many creditors financially hurt and much local goodwill lost forever. Many people including ourselves have put thousands of hours into the Abbeydale project in an effort to raise money to save this iconic building but sadly it seems to have been in vain. Very little restoration work appears to have been done and the latest news is that it has now been put on the Buildings at Risk Register. I am still very fond of the building itself and could weep when I think where this project could and should have now been – and so nearly was. My dream, when I first got involved in 2003, was that The Abbeydale would become a lyceum Mark II and I still believe that by providing an affordable venue for amateur dramatics and travelling shows Sheffield could sustain this. However, at its current rate of progress, this seems highly unlikely, and I wonder if the current Board of Trustees actually want it to progress to the next level – or are they happy pottering about at the current ‘village hall level’? Howard Greaves
SAMUEL FRENCH RESPOND We were surprised to read some of the comments about amateur theatre appearing in the Jane’s Musings column in the September issue of Amateur Stage Magazine. We are all well aware that at its best amateur theatre can offer a quality of production and acting that rivals many a professional production while, at the same time, one sees some professional presentations that leave an amount to be desired! However, it is quite a leap to deduce from this observation that authors’ agents should give equal weight to professional and amateur rights requests. The crucial difference between the professional and the amateur theatre practitioner, apart from the fact that the former may have been through years of training and tuition at drama school, is that one of them is dependent on the theatre for their livelihood and the other is not. The bank is not going to foreclose on amateurs’ mortgages if they are unable to put on a certain play, whereas this might well apply to professionals if they are out of work for any length of time. As far as authors’ agents are concerned, their clients (who also rely on theatre performances for their income) earn far more from West End and touring productions than they do from amateur licences. So, whilst playwrights and agents value highly the role of the amateur theatre, not only in keeping plays and musicals alive when no-one else is performing them but also in providing a welcome revenue stream, they are rarely going to refuse a professional producer’s request for rights. Although amateur rights are often restricted, or even withdrawn, in order to protect revivals of this kind, licensing agents such as Samuel French always work vigorously to limit the inconvenience to amateur groups as much as possible. The assertion that performing licences can be withdrawn after they have been paid for is quite simply untrue. An amateur company’s licence is a legal document and cannot be withdrawn, whatever professional production plans may occur subsequent to its being issued. This is why we always advise amateur companies to obtain their performing licence before they do anything else. They can then being their rehearsals and production plans with complete peace of mind. Best wishes Paul Taylor Performing Rights Director Samuel French Ltd.
ADVANCE LISTINGS
I am a member of a few amateur theatre companies, and am a subscriber to your magazine. I travel to see shows - in particular those not often performed. My girlfriends birthday is early December, and we planned a weekend away - taking in a show (amateur or pro.) Your October magazine lists only all the shows produced in early November> NO USE WHATSOEVER. May I ask that you request submissions of shows 2/3 months in advance - so that listings are with regard to Future shows. Surely it is not difficult to have the December issue list all shows even up to March 2012. Societies book a venue and start rehearsals many months in adveance (WKLOS is performing “Titanic” next JUNE - and we are fully aware of dates, and venue already.) So what is the problem ???? Surely it is healthy for everyone if enthuiasts are willing to travel to see shows - rather than relying on an audience of families and friends. I am sure there are lots of fans of musical theatre who, like myself, would travel to see a rare performance of a lesser-known Kander and Ebb, Maury Yeston, Jerry Hermann or Cy Coleman show. That, in turn, may encourage societies to be more adventurous. How many times does the public want to see Oliver, Sound Of Music, Guys and Dolls and The King and I ? WAKE UP !!!!!!!! David Crosby Ed Responds: We do endeavour to list every show we get sent information on, but as you rightly point out sometimes groups don’t send us listings til a few days prior to the show. We do list shows two months in advance only due to space considerations, but will look at your suggestion. We take your point though about publishing listings for lesser known shows - publicity people take note these are the people who aren’t showing up for your shows!! Send your diary listings well in advance to diary@asmagazine.co.uk
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festivalnews
FESTIVALS
WOKING DRAMA FESTIVAL RESULTS
T
he 53rd Woking Drama Festival reached its glittering climax at the Rhoda McGaw Theatre on Saturday when the awards for this year’s Festival Winners were declared. Two weeks of amateur drama were staged in the presence of drama enthusiasts from North West Surrey, during which 17 plays were performed of which 4 were youth entries. His worship the Mayor of Woking and the Mayoress attended in company with Councillors and members of the Woking Borough executive. This year’s adjudicator was Jill Colby, a member of the Guild of Drama Adjudicators who said that the standards set by the individual drama groups remained as high as ever and reflected the continuing interest and enthusiasm for the dramatic arts. Stewart Mison, Chair of the Woking Drama Association (WDA) thanked Woking Council for their continued support without which this annual festival would be in doubt. He also thanked the Ambassadors Theatre Group who, throughout the year, continues to facilitate the productions on the Rhoda stage.
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The following awards were presented by Jill Colby, Stewart Mison and Tim Matthews, the president of the WDA: 1st Place was awarded to Lighted Fools Theatre Company with ‘Visitors’ by Peter Tinniswood; 2nd Place to Runnymede Drama Group with ‘A Kind of Alaska’ by Harold Pinter; 3rd Place to Pranksters Theatre Company with ‘Hidden in this Picture’ by Aaron Sorkin.
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A complete list of all award winners may be found on the Woking Drama Association website: www.wokingdramafestival.org.uk/ Pictured (L to R) with Tim Matthews (WDA President): i) 1st Place. Lighted Fools TC, Richard Parish (Director) David Webb, Karen Brooks ii) 2nd Place. Runnymede DG: Frankie Godliman, Marc Anderson iii) 3rd place. Pranksters TC: Jessica Nunn (Director)
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ONSTAGE
songs from As You Like It and wrote wonderful hippy ballad music for them, so I was sure he could do something for this show. What evolved was perfect for the overall concept of a travelling company, with the whole cast involved in the music at the beginning of each act, a delightful formal piece for the betrothal ceremony (John Skittrell’s mandolin and Jane Edwards’ oboe creating the perfect mood) and fast and slightly mad scene change pieces with Tony and Nicola Dawson on recorder and ukulele. Wonderful stuff, with strange Italianesque scat lyrics – if you understood every word, you need your ears examined! The play itself, for those of you who don’t know, is about… well, that’s a bit hard to précis. Basically, there’s a girl dressed as a bloke, a servant who’s always hungry, a couple of young lovers and a couple of grumpy old men. At the heart of it all is Truffaldino, the servant of the title, who is rarely off stage and who almost talks more to the audience than to his fellow actors. If he’s weak, then the play just doesn’t work at all. I had the great good fortune to be able to cast Matt Webber for the part, with Abi Vickery and John Skittrell as the two masters – Abi playing the cross-dressing Beatrice and John her lover Florindo. Abi played Daisy for me a couple of years ago, was key to the success of that show and demonstrated her versatility once again. John
arrived with us quite late in rehearsals, direct from Wellington Operatic’s Oklahoma, but was totally unfazed by anything and played the upright young gentleman (as well as the mandolin) to perfection. Returning briefly to Matt; his performance was a joy, establishing an instant rapport with the audience and getting every ounce of laughter and sympathy possible out of them. It’s not every show you have a cast member discover in the middle of rehearsals that they’ve got a place at RADA. Sarah Twomey, who played Clarice, is starting there this autumn, and demonstrated just why she deserves the place. This script gives Clarice a much stronger role than the original, and makes her relationship with Silvio (Chris Key, fresh from TAOS wonderful Hot Mikado) a lot more passionate than most translations allow. There’s a lot of prom queen about Clarice, and Sarah gave it in spades, perfectly matched by the stroppy teen that is Silvio from Chris. At this point, I need to mention the duel between Silvio and Beatrice. I was determined that we’d have a decent swordfight in this show, and asked Stuart Lyddon to choreograph it, and to give me a full minute, and we got exactly what was needed, for which much thanks to Stuart and the two actors.
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LTGnews > LTGnews > LTGnews > LTGnew Michael Shipley looks at what’s been going on recently around the country. HOW ARE THE HUBS WORKING? It is nearly a year now since the LTG HUBS were formed, and the first meetings took place. Some groups were very quick off the mark, others sluggish despite the efforts of LTG Committee members to get things moving. Some Hubs have already had quite a few meetings, others have struggled to convene a second time! For some theatres the meetings have been a revelation and a stimulus as new theatre personnel have been introduced to the benefits of Guild membership. On the other hand, some LTG member theatres have resisted or been too busy to accept invitations to participate. However, the reports filtering back to the LTG Committee indicate that on the whole the meetings have been extremely beneficial. Each Hub is of course self-regulating, deciding when and where to meet, and what to discuss. The LTG Committee only gives suggestions about topics, and provides material for debate. It is presumed that each Hub will take short minutes, and copies of these are being sent to the Regional Secretaries, so that a general picture can emerge of the matters that are of most immediate concern to member theatres. It is already becoming apparent that the social networking of the Hubs is a major feature, new friendships and contacts are being made, coupled with the chance to see what other theatres are doing on stage, and what improvements are being made to their buildings. Plans to tour productions are often on the agendas. The national committee will be reviewing the progress at its next meeting, and also looking at how to take advantage of email, the LTG Website, Facebook and other electronic tools to strengthen links, especially for those theatres that are on the geographic fringes of the country.
AND THE REGIONAL CONFERENCES? There have been three regional meetings this Autumn – at TOADS Little Theatre, Torquay for the Southern Region AGM & Conference; at Penrith Playhouse for the Northern Region; and at Hall Green Little Theatre for the Central Region gathering. All were very happily attended, enabling local and national topics to be discussed, and ideas exchanged. Following the sad death of Rosemary Shaw in office, the Southern Region delegates elected Eddie Redfern as their new regional secretary. Margaret Mann and Jackie Blackwood continue to undertake their regional duties for the North and Central regions respectively. The next National Conference will be taking place in May 2012 at Southport Little Theatre.
1,000 PRODUCTIONS, OR MORE? While Leicester Little Theatre are justly proud of celebrating their 1,000th production in May 2011, they were a little uncertain whether or not their boast of being the first theatre in the Guild to achieve this milestone is in fact correct. Members with a long history have been asked to count up their productions, and two have so far responded. Maddermarket Theatre, Norwich made the count, and came up with 1046, and then Tower Theatre, London responded with a magnificent total of 1,434 by November 2011. Tower Theatre (originally the Tavistock Repertory Company) do manage to present at least 20 productions each year, notwithstanding the fact that their home for
50 years at the Tower Theatre in Islington was lost a few years ago, and they have been performing at a variety of venues in North London since then. Knowing as we do the sheer amount of voluntary manpower needed to mount just one amateur production, we can only gasp in admiration at the commitment over the past 70 and more years for one society to create such a record!
CHILDREN IN PERFORMANCE LTG Chairman Eddie Redfern sits on the committee advising the Government, and the Consultation Document on possible revisions to the Children in Performance Regulations is still awaited. When it is finally revealed, the consultation period is likely to be quite limited, and if the amateur theatre sector is to make an influential impression with its views, it will have to act speedily. Obviously the LTG and NODA both have the issue to the forefront of their minds, and will be able to advise their members quickly and comprehensively, but sometimes individual problems and points of view carry a lot of weight. So those groups in particular which regularly use children in productions should continue to be alert to the developments which are expected in the very near future. As things stand at the moment, a note in a recent issue of the Newsletter for Lewes Theatre Club perhaps points the way for the future: “The Club has been fortunate to secure a Body of Persons Licence to reduce the administration for using young people in our plays and in the Youth Theatre productions. To support this we need to increase the number of licensed chaperones the Club can call upon. I am sure there are members who would be willing to be trained for this task and the training costs would be met by the Club. If you are interested I suggest you look at the local Council website. Note however that there have been some changes for next year which do not appear on the website. I am also very happy to answer any questions you may have about how we use chaperones at Lewes. In addition I would like to say publicly how grateful we are for the stalwart support of our existing chaperones. Can I remind them to check the currency of their existing licences: we need to keep our register of Licensed Chaperones up to date, so I would be grateful if you would contact me when any renewals etc. are necessary. Once again, please help by becoming a chaperone. It is an important part of our Club ethos to support young people and the chaperone role is crucial to this.”
PLANNING A SUMMER YOUTH PROJECT The idea of a big summer youth project to engage all the talents, not least to recruit new ones, but also in association with other bodies keen to promote the ‘caring society’, and with some funds to spare in the process, is gaining much ground. But such projects cannot be entered into lightly, despite the keenness of those anxious to promote them, who probably have little real idea of what it takes to get a show off the page and on to the stage using a motley collection of volunteers! Phil Kettle of RUGBY THEATRE has prepared this short breakdown of what it takes to mount an ambitious summer Youth Theatre project, and Rugby Theatre is very experienced in this. Our typical time table would be as follows:* Choose show, and director, choreographer and musical director - December * Get sponsorship - January to July * Audition publicity - March to April * Auditions and Recalls - April to May * Technical students start one week before school holidays * Performing students start as soon as school finishes * 10 full days of rehearsals * Band call middle weekend Sunday
* Open on Wednesday for 6 performances. Depending on who you get as sponsors you may need (or have) policy documents for H&S, Discipline, Grievances, Equal Opportunity, Child Protection as a minimum. Unless you already have a “Body of Persons” status from your local authority you will need to allow a load of time to obtain licenses for the performing students. You will need registers for each day to keep records of who is present including adult supervision, parents/ carers permission for children to leave site at break times, and to be photographed. Get as many adults CRB checked as you can persuade or feel necessary, especially anyone who might work on a one to one basis with a minor. We have always had a professional artistic team (Director, Choreographer and Musical Director). The original team was recommended to us by a consultant who was working on lottery stuff for Rugby Theatre. Over the years the team has changed. If I had to start today I would speak to my regional Arts Council England team. The technical support for the project has always come from within Rugby Theatre. These are a few things to get you started, not rocket science but all necessary. Don’t under estimate the amount of paperwork and official documentation. It’s almost a year’s work for a volunteer doing a bit each day.
THE STAGESTRUCK PROJECT FOR SKYARTS The entries had to be in by the 25th July. SkyArts and Oxford Film received some 50 entries to the competition, and the Guild provided nearly 20% of them! The Guild theatres that did participate were Barn Theatre, Barony Players, Bingley LT, Bolton LT, Chelmsford, Halifax, Nomads, Royalty and St Albans. Reports coming back to me were of an extraordinarily high standard of work, which really impressed the programme makers – the opinions of the appointed judges are of course secret! The finally selected 20 groups to go through into the first round of the competition included Bingley, Bolton and Chelmsford. From a personal point of view from my home theatre Bolton, we were lucky that we were able to revive a scene from a recent production of Stanley Houghton’s Independent Means for our entry. With only 5 minutes of playing time to film, we were able to rehearse the scene several times, with and without the cameras being present, on one evening, and return the next evening to do it all again – interestingly, the first takes were better than the second! We made new friends with the camera man and sound recordist, and hopefully this is going to start a relationship with our local film-making society! Oxford Film were already preparing the first programme of the series, and arranged to come to the theatre to film us preparing our entry, before moving on to Galloway to film another group – so we had quite a surreal situation of professionals filming amateur film makers filming amateur actors! Must be good for the image! The judges of the final 20 competitors were Bill Kenwright, Miriam Margolyes and Quentin Letts. They chose 7 finalists – Bingley Little Theatre, Crossmichael Drama Club (Galloway), Fissiparous Theatre (Wirral), Heath Players (Hatfield, Essex), Regent Rep Theatre Group (Bournemouth), Strathclyde Theatre Group (Glasgow), Tell Tale Theatre Company (Toxteth, Liverpool), and the eighth competitor chosen by the public was Edinburgh Graduate Theatre Company. Over the next 6 weeks they were all very busy indeed meeting the demands of the film makers and the challenges of the competition, which required scenes from Ibsen and Chekhov to be prepared and presented at a quarter final round in Northampton at the end of October. The last four competitors then moved on to prepare scenes from King Lear for presentation on Sunday 13th
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news > LTGnews > LTGnews > LTGnews > shown what great challenges we are able to tackle, has encouraged a sense of camaraderie in and across three very able amateur theatres, and has now prompted the exciting question: who knows what next we are able to achieve together? A fantastic result. By way of a post-script, Oast Theatre reports that box office there for their own production was 100%, but for the visit from Archway Theatre it dropped to 59%, and for Lewes Little Theatre it went down to 50%. This was in contrast to the experience of the first Tri Theatre Adventure, when box-office for the Ayckbourn trilogy Damsels in Distress remained pretty steady for all companies in each theatre. Do we put this down to choice of plays? Or economics? Or sheer lack of a reciprocal spirit of adventure in the audience this year?
PUTTING ON A SHOW! Words of wisdom from our Treasurer, Brian Stoner: “What it was to be young and to watch Mickey and Judy (Rooney and Garland for the perplexed!) say to each other “We’re gonna put on a show and we’re gonna do it right here”, then less than 90 minutes later there was a singing and hoofing extravaganza in the garage that would rival Busby Berkely. This was of course roughly about the time that the LTG was formed. Then the real world intruded and I found out that there were Societies where, unlike Mickey and Judy, the electrician was renowned for bringing DRs to a halt by bellowing out, in the middle of a scene, “ Up yer FOHs” and then dragging the largest set of steps across the stage to alter a light by the merest whisker; the wardrobe mistress who was heard to say when she saw me on my first appearance at a rehearsal “You needn’t think I’m going to dress that” – and who never did; the props master who was obviously sucking lemon slices through ill fitting dentures when asked to do something he didn’t like; but never ever forgetting the odd (and sometimes very odd) tantrum indulged in by those who felt that that was how actors were allowed to behave. That was in the days before all sorts of initials intruded themselves into our lives, not to mention the organisations that stand behind them, ‘elf’n’safety, not to mention PAT Testing (a lovely man) and Working at Height Regulations that became so much part of our everyday life as we try to ensure that we try not to kill or maim audience, crew or cast – no matter how much some may deserve it! Societal changes have also intruded - the best production of Abigail’s Party I ever saw was in a small theatre in the round and the cloud of cigarette smoke that spread across the whole place as the evening progressed would certainly not be permitted today! However Mickey and Judy did not have to deal with the increasingly complex productions that we find to be such a satisfying challenge and that our audiences are increasingly expecting us to achieve. Whether it is the large scale production with the sorts of technologically demanding shows that could be seen on the professional stage, or those productions in the round where attention to detail is vital, the plain fact is that our audiences have come to expect more and will continue to do so. For instance how to get enough water in a pool on stage for Man of the Moment to make it look realistic; the record I’ve heard of so far is 15 ton weight of water but a smaller theatre has to be even more ingenious and manage with far less. The use of technology, advanced lighting, and plot requirements all present our theatres and our operators with challenges which could not be imagined when Mickey and Judy were hoofing in the garage. Smoke, haze and low haze all bring new aspects to our productions, get them wrong and the consequences are severe. What the next few years will bring is anyone’s guess but we shall have to be ready to live up to those changes. There are also the challenges of fresh approaches to productions which help to keep us fresh, always providing
of course that it’s not the underwater production of Earnest that Dame Edith always feared. If The Mikado can be set in the 1920s then just about anything is fair game, sometimes however things can go too far. All these different traits, Expectation, Complexity, Legality and Originality are all drivers to keep us on our toes and to present even better productions and with the LTG as an information base publicising best practice examples hopefully there are fewer “Old Spanish Customs” around. “We always take the cleats off during the last scene on the last night”. Just remember the LTG was born about the same time as Mickey and Judy were entertaining us. Then remember how much our productions have changed and how many good ideas have been used from seeing productions at other theatres. There are of course those occasions when all of the above come together and create that unique sort of theatrical occasion that was rewarded by W S Gilbert with the crushing comment “Good isn’t the word”. However we are dealing in live theatre and where would we be if we couldn’t gossip deliciously about such events – whether they occur on the professional or amateur stage - and talking of which have you heard about……………….? You haven’t!! Well my dear……………..!”
WORLD FIRST GREEN ROOM SIMULTANE-A-THON The date was set - Saturday 3rd September - for a never-to-be-repeated thrilling event for theatre lovers everywhere. The event - a World First ‘SIMULTANE-ATHON, was the reading of a play by multiple Wilmslow Green Room casts located at various venues around the area, all reading at precisely the same time and for the delight of transitory audiences. The Green Room was very pleased to have received permission to enact the 1998 Edinburgh Fringe Festival smash hit comedy TELELUVVIES written by Mike Woodhead and Emma Clarke and this very funny play was adapted by the Green Room’s Mark Jephcott and Celia Bonner for public performance. Two of the original cast members from the 1998 Edinburgh show, Jo Freeman and Graham Symmonds, even joined in the acting fun. Fortunately for those members of the Green Room acting outdoors, the sun shone brightly. The locations chosen were the Regent Street pedestrianised area of Knutsford, Wilmslow’s Bank Square, outside Barclays Bank in Wilmslow, Macclesfield’s Town Hall, in the Macclesfield Indoor Market, the Atrium at Handforth Dean, the Wizard on Alderley Edge, in the shopping parade in Alderley and of course, outside the Green Room itself on Chapel Lane in Wilmslow. One crew drew the short straw and had to perform outside the Harrington Arms in Gawsworth..... All in all, the event was a great success. There was a fabulous mass collaboration of acting talent from within the Green Room itself; it generated huge interest from the passing public and importantly, it resulted in raising money for St Anne’s Hospice. Hilary Pinnock, Wilmslow Green Room
THE GLOBE THEATRE WORKSHOP WEEKEND The annual workshop weekend at Shakespeare’s Globe on Bankside in August was this year given over to the seniors. Here are three views on the experience: “The Globe prides itself on being “an open house open to all” and this was certainly demonstrated by the trouble taken to welcome and involve our group (of 40 or so amateur actors and directors from across the country) in the life of this unique venue across a hectic weekend of talks, training and introductions. The programme was anchored around the final evening performance of Anne Boleyn with Q&A sessions with the director the evening before, and with actors the morning after. The group was
divided and each half worked with a director (and a voice coach) on a 15 minute presentation (of scenes from Much Ado About Nothing) as a finale to the Workshop. We blocked moves, learned dance steps, songs, text and worked on characterisation at break-neck speed - achieved by whirlwind direction instilling an esprit de corps and trust in each other’s ideas. In the end the presentations were more about ‘mood and movement’ than the text – something I had not expected and I was left with a slight hankering for more detailed work on the latter. However, so far as providing an insight into what makes the Globe a unique, democratic, alive and constantly changing performance space, the workshop could not have been bettered. It was also a fantastic forum for meeting other LTG members, comparing notes and socialising.” Adam Sutcliffe (Questors Theatre) “I was looking forward to this weekend immensely having read just about every Philippa Gregory/Alison Weir novel on the Tudor Wives and watched the recent controversial TV series. I had read great reviews for John Dove’s production of Anne Boleyn and couldn’t have wished for a better play to see on the Saturday night. The whole atmosphere of the South Bank is invigorating and staying in the student rooms at LSE’s Bankside Hotel was basic but all part of the being a student again for the weekend! After registration at the Globe on the Friday evening, we all went into a small theatre for an hour long talk by John Dove on the complexities of producing Howard Brenton’s play. He astounded us all by saying that he only received the final script of Anne Boleyn three days before opening night! The play was so popular last year that they bought it back for this season. After listening to him I just couldn’t wait to see the play. On Saturday the group of forty of us, from many different Little Theatres, was split in two and we worked on different scenes from Much Ado About Nothing. Our tutor Jo Howarth was excellent and taught us a great deal about using your voice on such a huge stage and about staging and how to keep centre stage between actors. Her enthusiasm and experience was inspiring and each of us had a small part to rehearse and learn lines for the performance to the other group on the Sunday. That evening the excitement amongst the theatre goers at the Globe was palpable as we all took our seats with eager anticipation. A walkway had been added to the main stage and Miranda Raison (Anne Boleyn) entered carrying a hessian-type bag to tease the audience with “I bet you would like to know what I have in my bag?!) and eventually revealed her head straight from the block!! It was then you noticed that she was dressed in white and the play would be in retrospect! I loved every minute of this play and just being in the Globe and watching the reaction of the Groundlings – mostly young enthusiastic people who could stand for nearly three hours!! Those were the days!! On the Sunday we were able to listen to and question two of the actors from Anne Boleyn who gave us a very interesting insight into the rehearsals in such a unique theatre. They told us that since the recent Artistic Director had taken over that more experimental theatre was being produced, making it one of the most exciting theatrical venues in London. The rest of the day saw us all frantically trying to remember our lines and moves for our final performance which was surprisingly good from both groups after so little rehearsal. Sadly we made our way back to Euston only to find that every single train that evening was delayed!! but that was another story. I loved it all and can’t wait to go next time!” Ros Binge (Bolton Little Theatre) “It was the most intensive course I have ever attended!” Dixie Atkins (Priory Theatre, Kenilworth)
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training Photo: Arts Ed
WHAT IS THE NCDT? Applying to drama school is a fraught business. To start with, it’s hugely competitive with more than 30,000 students every year trying to win a place – almost as tough as trying to get into medical school.
M
any students are baffled by the options; do they go for a ‘straight acting’ course or a contemporary drama programme? Musical Theatre or Acting for Musical Stage? One year, two years or three years? The National Council for Drama Training is there to help. They aim to provide impartial and informed advice to students, their parents and teachers from the first stage of expressing interest down to the agonising choice between one or two offers. NCDT accredits courses across some nineteen different institutions. It’s important to stress that accreditation is a pass or fail business so there are no grades awarded and NCDT does not categorise courses or advise on the ‘best’ school. But the NCDT will always recommend applying to an accredited course rather than one of the many non-accredited courses if a student is serious about wanting to pursue an acting career. Vocational training on a course accredited by the National Council for Drama Training will stand you in good stead professionally, physically and mentally. Over 1,500 students (between only 2% and 10% of those apply) enter NCDT accredited training each year. These courses will give you the opportunity to showcase to agents and casting directors - crucial if you’re to secure your first few jobs, and find a place in the profession. Untrained people can and do become actors but according to the NCDT website, some 86% of professional actors have had formal professional training. There are no formal entry requirements. But without a chance break, it is very difficult to begin acting professionally. Training will give you the exposure you need to begin, and more importantly, the physical rigor and self-discipline you’ll need to continue Many students take two or more years to win a place and it is important to stress that drama schools will be happy to re-audition a candidate they may have rejected the previous year. Often the student is just too immature at 18 for what is a rigorous and demanding programme. Also, a lot of students simply haven’t prepared properly; they’ve chosen the wrong monologue or not rehearsed their song properly. Sometimes, they may appear unfit. It is vital to audition for at least three schools, preferably more, to maximise the chances of being selected. There is a lot you can do to get in match-fit condition for what will be a tough round of auditions. Make sure you really know the speeches you select – that means reading the whole play and if possible, seeing it performed. You need several monologues as recall auditions will often require another
set plus some schools list the monologues they do, or do not, want to see! The earlier you get organised the better. Students that apply late in the process are usually at a disadvantage as schools make offers from the start because they don’t want to lose exceptional candidates. People often wonder why they get rejected right at the final recall stages and it may be because the school has already selected one or two people of a similar type and they want more diversity in the company of students. After all, when it comes to the final year, they need to cast the group in a range of roles and would be in trouble if everyone looked the same! For younger students thinking about applying in a few years’ time, the NCDT recommend getting involved in drama as early as possible. There is no excuse not to join a youth theatre or amateur company. There are so many of them offering a range of activities. It is true that the most popular can be over-subscribed but a bit of internet research should throw up something close to home. Most professional theatres offer workshops and youth projects and there are several national companies offering summer holiday projects. Check out the NCDT website for further information. Acting is good for everyone. But not everyone will have a successful career because there simply isn’t enough work to go around. It is important to weigh up the cost of full-time training against the likelihood of achieving a sustained career, and maybe opt for a university course instead. NCDT aims to support your decision-making whatever direction you finally take. Web: www.ncdt.co.uk
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schools
SCHOOLS
Carroll Senior High School
Our news schools feature looks at issues relating to schools productions.
WHAT’S THE BUZZ????? There’s quite a buzz building around the UK as the Really Useful Group have started releasing schools’ licenses for some of Andrew Lloyd Webber’s most popular shows. We met up with David Robinson, Head of Licensing for Really Useful Group, to talk about what’s on offer and what’s yet to come. After nearly 50 years of composing some of the world’s biggest and most acclaimed musicals, Andrew Lloyd Webber is looking at his body of his work, which totals 13 musicals, a song cycle, a set of variations, two film scores and a Latin Requiem Mass. The aim of this review is to come up with what he hopes will be the ultimate definitive versions of his shows.
Rights for amateur groups are as yet not released. David explained that “With Phantom there is currently the West End production and in 2012 there will be a new tour with a new design. Unfortunately the reality of a tour co-existing with amateur productions isn’t possible as they would conflict with each other. So at the moment we are restricting it.”
As part of this process Andrew decided to release Phantom of the Opera and Cats for high schools and colleges. These two iconic shows rate amongst the longest running shows in musical theatre history with Phantom not only celebrating 25 years in The West End this year but also maintaining the record of the highest grossing entertainment ever, taking over £2billion worldwide.
At the time of writing over 200 licenses have been granted in the USA and it’s going down very well. Here in the UK, interest is high and it’s going to be an exciting year as some of the first productions are rolled out across the UK.
The past few months have seen the Really Useful group talking to groups worldwide asking for feedback on what they would like to see made available and these releases are the first stage of the results of that process.
David is keen to encourage groups to take a look at their new website. “We have established a new website www.stageamusical.com. It the first port of call if you are wanting to stage one of Andrew’s shows. It will tell you what’s available, when it’s available, where it’s available and just
The versions released are the West End versions without edits. “Andrew felt that he would like people to have the opportunity to do a full production and rise to the challenge rather than a dumbed down version” said David Robinson, Head of Licensing for Really Useful Group. “We did quite a bit of research with groups and schools asking what they wantedwhen we made these releases possible and they came back saying that it was perfectly possible - so we are releasing the shows in their full form.” “Phantom has a 27 piece orchestration and is unchanged. It’s certainly a challenge but the response so far has been great with people wanting to be part of it.” Initially licenses are being granted to schools, colleges and universities.
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SCHOOLS Carroll Senior High School
about everything you need to get a license if you want to do a show, you can even apply online. We want to be as helpful as possible. It’s worth registering so that you can get advance notice of all the releases we are planning.” “We want as many people as possible to do the shows so we are working to facilitate groups with as many resources as possible to help them. “ For shows like Joseph now getting a license online is instant for schools but otherwise it’s a relatively fast process. The new website gives you the opportunity to peruse scores online and really examine material to see whether the show is suitable for them. Really Useful Group are also working on things like logos, backing tracks and many other resources that people have asked about. “We’re also looking at how we could help with things like merchandise in the form of t-shirts etc. If we are asked certain questions repeatedly we’ll put that information online.” What comes across at our meeting with Really Useful’s licensing department is that they are looking forward to seeing how schools and groups will interpret and stage these iconic shows. “We are encouraging groups not to try to replicate the professional productions but to use their imaginations in staging their productions.” David said.
South Lyon East High School
There’s still much more to come with releases of shows including Starlight Express and Whistle Down The Wind; with Woman In White, The Boys In the Photograph, and Bombay Dreams coming soon. Interest in shows like Starlight has been huge in the USA with schools seeing an opportunity to combines the drama and sports departments within schools to stage dynamic shows. One thing is sure: the release of Andrew’s catalogue of work over the coming years is sure to provide a number of new challenges, help build audiences and give many performers and audiences alike a lot of enjoyment. When it comes to taking that first step though, check out the new website and then if you have any questions just ask. David and his team are there to help. School production photos courtesy of R&H Theatricals: An Imagem Company
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TRAINING
COMMON MISNOMERS
Schools and Youth Groups sometimes think that they are exempt from having to obtain performance licenses. Amateur Stage answers some common questions to clear the air. Over the years many schools and youth groups have operated under the impression that special rules apply to them when it comes to performing rights. Sadly many of these pre-conceptions are wrong. Amateur Stage looks at some of those pre-conceptions to set the record straight. With the recent release of “Schools Editions” of major shows schools need to be aware of the law pertaining to performing rights now more than ever. Unfortunately, ignorance is no longer an acceptable excuse so it’s best to know where you stand when it comes to staging a show for your school or youth group. WE ARE A SCHOOL WE DON’T NEED TO GET PERMISSION? Wrong, if you are looking to stage any work be it play or musical chances are you will need a contract with the rights holder. Most of the major shows are represented in the UK and it is your responsibility to locate the rights holder and negotiate a contract. Rightsholders usually want you to perform their shows so they’ll be more than happy to guide you through the process and make it as easy as possible for you. WE DON’T NEED TO PAY ROYALTIES IF WE AREN’T CHARGING FOR TICKETS. Wrong, there are very few circumstances in which you would not be liable to pay royalties. People wrongly believe that audiences at dress rehearsals, free performances and outdoor performances are exempt. Usually they aren’t. Just because your show is free you will still need permission and a royalty contract. WE CAN’T FIND THE RIGHTSHOLDER THEREFORE WE CAN STAGE THE SHOW WITHOUT PAYING. Most shows in the UK are represented by Josef Weinberger, Samuel French or Really Useful Group or any number of smaller rightsholders. If the show isn’t on their books in most cases they can refer you to the correct person. Most can usually be found by Googling the show you are looking for. If after extensive research rights still cannot be found proceeding comes with its own risks. If you do decide to proceed you may be hit with a request for payment after the show has finished or worse still you may be asked to cease the production in the middle of the run or before you open. Any money spent in pre-production would then be lost and you might still find yourself the subject of legal action. Be careful!! WE DON’T NEED TO BUY SCRIPTS OR SCORES WE CAN PHOTOCOPY THEM. Absolutely not. Unless you have specific approval from the rightsholder this is a definite no no. Scripts and scores are copyright material. IT’S OK TO MAKE AN ARCHIVE VIDEO RECORDING OF THE SHOW FOR OUR RECORDS. This is another no no. That said certain rightsholders can grant you permission but 90% of the time any recording is not permitted. Again, if illegal copies fall into the hands of rightholders you may find yourself in a spot of bother. BUT OUR PARENTS LIKE TO VIDEO THEIR CHILDREN IN OUR SHOWS Regardless, unless you have specific permission any video footage taken violates the terms of most licenses. It is your responsibility to ensure that parents leave their video cameras at the door. This also includes footage taken on mobile phones. We know its
difficult to police but like with most professional shows you are wise to issue a warning prior to the start of the show asking that no videos or photos be taken. WE ARE A CHARITY OR PERFORM FOR CHARITY Again, this makes no difference. If you are performing a show you are responsible for getting a license for performance. DO WE HAVE TO PAY IF WE ARE ONLY DOING SOME OF THE SHOW Unfortunately, cutting a show down may be more problematic than you think. Certain rules apply for concerts where you are performing one or two songs from a show but you would need to clear this with the relevant rightsholders. WHAT DOES IT MEAN WHEN A SHOW IS RESTRICTED It’s pretty self explanatory. Sometimes shows are not available for performance. This could be because a professional tour is pending or perhaps a new version of the show is about to be released. Don’t assume you will be able to get rights. Always secure rights before you start!! If a show is restricted don’t touch it!! I’VE SEEN SHOWS LABELLED AS “SCHOOLS EDITIONS”. WHAT ARE THEY AND WHAT RESTRICTIONS APPLY? We spoke to Ryan Macauley at Josef Weinbergers who license a large number of “Schools Editions” in the UK to get some feedback. “Designed with educators in mind, School Edition™ musicals embody a bold new idea in creating and licensing adaptations of grand scale, symphonic musicals in versions adapted for performance by high schools and youth groups. These adaptations, while smaller in size, retain all of the scope and glory of the originals. The first School Edition Musical, Les Misérables School Edition™, was released in 2002 to great fanfare and has already become a huge success around the world. Many schools that thought they would never be able to mount a production of Les Misérables found that this new adaptation of the great Broadway show provided them the ability to stage a production that was a triumph in their district. For Les Misérables School Edition™, the show was edited so that its total running time is just over two hours, songs are offered in alternate keys that allow younger voices to shine, and a detailed Director’s Script offers technical advice that makes the sets, lights, sound and props a manageable proposition. The result: An emotionally rewarding experience that is bringing students and communities together wherever it plays. “ Other school editions currently available include:RAGTIME SCHOOL EDITION, RENT SCHOOL EDITION, SWEENEY TODD SCHOOL EDITION. AVENUE Q SCHOOL EDITION and MISS SAIGON SCHOOL EDITION are currently being developed for future release. NOTE: Some School Editions have certain restrictions, please check the Josef Weinberger website for current restrictions. IF IN DOUBT ASK! What comes out loud and clear when you speak to rightsholders is that they are there to help not hinder. If you have problems and questions just ask. Chances are they have heard the question many, many times before and will know the answer. Rightsholders can be a major resource to groups staging shows and it’s in their best interests for your show to be a success. Don’t be afraid – they don’t bite (usually!!).
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publishernews
BACKSTAGE
All the latest from the publishers.
This month we are bringing back our News From the Publishers feature in an effort to give you the widest possible choice of plays and musicals available for production.
METHUEN DRAMA
www.acblack.com Methuen Drama have just released the Amateur Rights for some of our 2010 plays. Please visit our website, www.acblack.com/amateur, to see the full list of available rights and to download full performance details of the play, its characters and set. Please contact us at amateur-rights@bloomsbury.com if you have any queries. THE MAN by James Graham Tax is really, really taxing for Ben Edwards. Self-employed. And afraid And now he must face his dreaded self-assessment form, with every receipt evoking the good times and the bad – memories of things gone wrong, gone right, the journeys he’s been on, the relationships that have begun and ended and the people he has lost. Cast: m1 f1 Script: ISBN 9781408132166 Performance Licence: £40+VAT per performance A DAY AT THE RACISTS by Anders Lustgarten A Day at the Racists is a brave and perceptive piece from awardwinning playwright Anders Lustgarten. It both attempts to understand why people might be drawn to the BNP and diagnoses the deeper cause of that attraction. Cast: m9 f8 Script: 9781408130582 Performance Licence: £56+VAT per performance EMPTY When you’re only sixteen, could the events of one night really shape the course of your life? Divert you from becoming the man you might have become, stunt you, burden you, trap you, destroy you, change the very core of you? Leave you empty. Cast: m2 f3 Script: 9781408130575 Performance Licence: £56+VAT per performance DITCH Stark and imperative, but shot through with a sense of warm compassion, Beth Steel’s debut play Ditch is a clear-eyed look at how we might behave when the conveniences of our civilisation are taken away, and a frightening vision of a future that could all too easily be ours Cast: m4 f2 Script: 9781408131381 Performance Licence: £56+VAT per performance THE WHISKY TASTER The Whisky Taster is a contemporary, subtle and witty exploration of feeling and perception in the modern world of advertising. Barney and Nicola are advertising wonder kids. They win accounts with wit, charm and a secret weapon: Barney’s ability to feel, smell and taste colours, and to translate these sensations into words. Cast m5 f1 Script: 9781408130049 Performance Licence: £56+VAT per performance
SPOTLIGHT PUBLICATIONS
www.spotlightpublications.com New authors at Spotlight this year include Nancy McPherson, husband and wife Simon and Joy Davis, Bob Bishop and Jane Lockyer Willis. Nancy McPherson has followed up her first script, The Night I Danced With Cyd Charisse, with Waste Management, a comedy/drama about a couple who meet at a recycling bank after a split-up. The play was highly acclaimed at this year’s SCDA Scottish Finals in Inverness, and was described in Scene Magazine as “a beautifully written, thoroughly absorbing and very clever piece”. Please note that this play is available in both Scots and Standard English versions. Nancy has also ventured into panto writing with her very funny version of Jack & The Beanstalk which she describes as “a pantomime with a Scottish flavour”. Husband and wife Simon and Joy Davis run Starstruck Youth Drama group in the Gloucester area and both have had pantomimes published in recent months. Joy’s version of Rumplestiltskin was
described in AS Magazine as “a sparkling adaptation with gloriously silly humour... the laughs just keep coming”. Simon has had two pantomimes published this year, Ali Baba and Sinbad & The Magical Mystery. Both shows have specially written lyrics, the former to Abba songs, and the latter to Beatles songs. Bob Bishop, as resident playwright for the Fossick Valley Fumblers company from 1981 to 2001, had many of his plays premiered at the Edinburgh Fringe. He has also ventured into musicals and pantomimes with great success. Two of his pantos are now published by Spotlight, Beauty & The Beast and The King’s New Clothes. Both works feature original music composed by Robert McNeil Watson and lyrics by the author. Jane Lockyer Willis is a member of the Society of Women Writers & Journalists and an associate of LAMDA. Three of her one act plays, Cinderella’s Time Out, Visiting Hours and Half A Crown, are now published by Spotlight.
LAZY BEE SCRIPTS
www.lazybeescripts.co.uk In 1963 a mail train carrying £3 million was stopped by a gang (who had modified a signal) on the West Coast Main Line. Amongst the gang was a substitute train driver recruited by Ronnie Biggs to move the train half a mile down the track to the bridge where the gang’s vehicle was waiting to be loaded. Whilst the majority of the gang members were subsequently caught and gaoled, the substitute train driver was never identified (and little of the money was recovered). This is the starting point for “A friend of Ronnie’s”, a newly-published one-act play by David Barry, in which an investigative writer finds the train driver. (Written for a cast of one man and two women with a single domestic setting.) Friends of a rather different sort are the subject of Pat Baker’s one-act murder mystery “With Friends Like These”, set at a school reunion where old rivalries, relationships and jealousy revisit a set of old classmates with a vengeance. The setting is a school hall, so the play could be mounted on a stage with a formal set, or performed in the body of a hall where the setting is the set. A cast of four women and four men (who, by the nature of the piece, need to have approximately the same playing age.) I should stress that this is a play rather than an interactive murder mystery where the audience participates in detecting who dunnit. (We do those as well, but we treat them as a different category.) Graham Jones has gone for gritty realism in his most recent oneact play, “On the Street”, set amongst the residents of a cardboard city and providing a window into the lives of six residents. It’s not the sort of subject that lends itself to a happy ending (or even any real resolution), but it provides plenty of thoughtful insight and acting challenges. In another part of the forest, despite the lateness of the season, we are still adding to our stock of pantomimes (most recently with revised traditional shows by Bob Heather, and a Wild West “Snow White and the Magnificent Seven Dwarfs” by TLC Creative). As usual, all our scripts can be read in full on the Lazy Bee Scripts web site (www.lazybeescripts.co.uk), where there are lots of other goodies, including the opportunity to get your society or show logo embroidered onto clothing!
STAGESCRIPTS
www.stagescripts.com A BIT OF DIALOGUE FROM DAVID : If your musical society can’t rely on the old standards to pull in an audience, then you could argue that you’re no worse off producing something new and fresh. In these increasingly turbulent times it’s heartening to see that some societies are still willing to produce shows that are new to an audience. This can be a huge boost – these productions can be interesting and challenging for the cast, and, with the right level of publicity, the opportunity exists to both secure your existing audience members and to develop new ones too. I mention this because we’re seeing an increase in licenses being issued for, and general interest in, many of our big production musicals (notably ‘Witchfinder’, ‘Pride And Prejudice’ and ‘Wuthering Heights’). ttfn! NEW PLAYS ‘The Essence of Love’ (3m, 2f) by Philip Ayckbourn (Sir Alan’s son).
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publisher newsnov11.indd 2
05/12/2011 13:12
BACKSTAGE There’s a lot of interest being shown in this two act comedy play from a writer with an interesting pedigree – see our advert in this issue for further details. ‘Crazy Horses’ (7m, 3f, 3m/f) a full length comedy play by Mark Norman. Staging a coup against God is all very well, but only if the people staging it know what they’re doing. Which the ‘Four Horsepeople of the Apocalypse’ don’t. To make matters worse, Satan proves not to be quite the evil genius they were expecting, and there’s more to God than meets the eye … For those of you who like long one act plays (about 60 mins) with a small cast, these might be of interest … ‘Two Sisters’ (2f) a black comedy by Caroline Harding. Dark secrets hidden in the grey mists of time are reluctantly revealed in this excellent black comedy, set in a small village in 1880’s Russia. On the bizarre discovery of an empty coffin in Anya’s lodgings, she and friend Sonia are goaded into recollecting some things they’d rather forget from their earlier years. ‘Lucky Dip’ (2m, 1f) a comedy by Stuart Price. Meet two losers, Doug and Fran. You name it, they will compete for it - holidays, cars, spending vouchers, TVs, electrical goods and cash, cash, cash. But their drive for tangible reward masks their inability to relate to the rest of the human race until, finally, they compete against each other.
NICK HERN BOOKS
www.nickhernbooks.com Now available for performance: EDGAR & ANNABEL by Sam Holcroft A young couple prepare dinner – but something isn’t right. A Noises Off-type satirical farce with political resonance. First Staged: National Theatre, London, 2011 Cast: 3f 4m Staging: various interiors, kitchen and meeting places FIRST EPISODE by Terence Rattigan Terence Rattigan’s first play, written when he was studying at Oxford. First Staged: Q Theatre, Kew, 1933, then Comedy Theatre, London, 1934 Cast: 2f 6m Staging: various interior settings - can be simply staged LILIES ON THE LAND by the Lions part A revealing, funny and wonderfully moving portrait of four women who sign up to join the Women’s Land Army during World War II. First Staged: Arts Theatre, West End, 2010, on tour from April - July 2012 (available before and after the tour dates) Cast: 4f doubling (large cast possible) Staging: Flexible staging, minimal requirements LITTLE PLATOONS by Steve Waters Takes the pulse of Coalition Britain – a group of parents set up a free school. Funny and recognisable characters. First Staged: Bush Theatre, London, 2011 Cast: 5f 6m Staging: various interior and exterior settings THE SEAGULL by Anton Chekhov, in a new version by Charlotte Pyke, John Kerr and Joseph Blatchley A striking version of Chekhov’s classic play, restoring to the play the cuts demanded by the Russian censor in 1896, very clear and powerful. First Staged: Arcola Theatre, London, 2011 Cast: 6f 7m Staging: various exterior and interior settings TAPE by Stephen Belber An unsettling and unpredictable drama about the love-hate chemistry that endures between friends – great for the festival circuit. First Staged: Soho Theatre, 2003, following off-Broadway run Cast: 1f 2m Staging: Single interior set THERE IS A WAR by Tom Basden A miniature epic that explores the mad savagery of war with biting black comedy, and takes us into the dark heart of a strange and surreal conflict. First Staged: National Theatre, 2011 Cast: 5f 9m, doubling (large cast possible) Staging: various interior and exterior settings VERNON GOD LITTLE by DBC Pierre, adapted by Tanya Ronder A darkly riotous, superbly fast-talking adventure, adapted from the Booker Prizewinning novel.
First Staged: Young Vic, London, 2007, revived there in 2011 with cast of ten Cast: 4f 5m doubling (large cast possible), 4f 6m for re-issue Staging: Flexible staging Just published, enquire about availability: RATTIGAN’S NIJINSKY by Nicholas Wright, based on a screenplay by Rattigan The extraordinary story of the relationship between the famous dancer Vaslav Nijinsky and the impresario Sergei Diaghilev, drawing on an unproduced screenplay by Terence Rattigan. First Staged: Chichester Festival Theatre, 2011 Cast: 4f 7m, doubling (large cast possible) Staging: various interior settings - can be simply staged THE VEIL by Conor McPherson Set around a haunted house hemmed in by a restive, starving populace, The Veil weaves Ireland’s troubled colonial history into a transfixing story about the search for love, the transcendental and the circularity of time. First Staged: National Theatre, London, 2011 Cast: 5f 3m Staging: various interior and exterior settings WE ARE THREE SISTERS by Blake Morrison Poet, playwright and novelist Blake Morrison evokes the lives of the Brontë sisters, with a nod to Chekhov’s Three Sisters. First Staged: The Viaduct Theatre, Halifax, 2011 Cast: 5f 5m Staging: various interior and exterior settings
SAMUEL FRENCH
www.samuelffrench-london.co.uk Samuel French Ltd are pleased to announce a release for ENRON by Lucy Prebble which premiered at the Minerva Theatre, Chichester before moving to the Royal Court and then opening in the West End and Broadway in 2010. ENRON tells the tale of one of the most infamous scandals in financial history, by mixing classical tragedy with savage comedy it’s transformed into a theatrical epic. There are also releases for REALLY OLD, LIKE 45 by Tamsin Oglesby, IF I WERE YOU and MY WONDERFUL DAY both by Alan Ayckbourn, and THE PRIORY by Michael Wynne. Another new title is CHESHIRE CATS by Gail Young. This play follows the Cheshire Cats team as they train and take part in the London Moonwalk. To date all groups who have performed this title have admirably raised money to donate to a cancer related charity or hospice and the author hopes that this charitable approach will continue in all future productions. For more information visit www.cheshirecats.org.uk Due to the forthcoming production at the Old Vic there are heavy restrictions on NOISES OFF by Michael Frayn and THE MADNESS OF GEORGE III is also restricted at the moment due to the current UK tour; all enquiries will need to be checked with the Amateur Rights Department at Samuel French Ltd. DEATH AND THE MAIDEN is currently unavailable for amateur performance due to the current West End production at the Harold Pinter Theatre.
NEW THEATRE PUBLICATIONS
www.plays4theatre.com More Tea, Vicar? by Geoff Buckingham - 1A comedy, 2-4m 5-9f This comedy is fun to perform as well as fun to watch! The bumbling committee of St Cedric’s Church invite the leading moral campaigner & philanthropist, Lady Porchester, to their garden party, in the hope of a donation. However, the vicar’s attempt to impress her with an announcement of his intended marriage badly backfires. Loverivals` handbags fly & the committee are at each others` throats, prompting Lady P to threaten a walk out. The day is saved, though, when a startling revelation about her love life elicits a very large donation. The play ends with her in a highly-charged sexual state, thanks to her being mistakenly given a powerful aphrodisiac, as she chases a trouserless vicar out of the garden! This play received much acclaim, and a nomination for a comedy award. The Hex Factor by Ian Hornby - FL farce, 3m 3f More goings on at New Copse Farm, where Brendan has brought his lady friend Carol for a romantic weekend. Except that Brendan’s widowed mother June - a selfprofessed white witch - mustn’t know or he’ll lose a lot of money. Cue June’s phone call, announcing her visit. Lecherous farmhand Ron adds to the mayhem as Brendan tries to keep Carol and June apart - not easy with June’s mystical (claimed) sixth sense. But is Brendan’s father really dead? A séance should find out, yes? As in the first play of this series, The Ex Factor, the all-pervading scent of farmyards is never far away. A great comedy/farce for the audience and the cast alike. Three Little Pigs by Tim Kenny - 1A comedy, 3m 3f (multiple parts) Once Upon a Time there were three little pigs who suffered horribly at the hands of the Big Bad Wolf. But one day the Big Bad Wolf was brought to trial… With surprising consequences for the characters and the audience! This unusual comedy, requiring a minimum of props, is for a mixed cast of about six playing 15 characters. It is aimed at actors who like the challenge of playing multiple
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diarynov11.indd 7
05/12/2011 13:51
the last word
CURTAIN CALL W is t e r ia C ot t a ge G a r r ic Lk a ne
D e a rH e a rts , f ro l ong
I c ont inue C a m pt on R yao l a s t , m y hope
t o eb s or e l y t r ie d by m y f e l l ow t he s pi a ns a nd t he en w c onc e p t of a c om m it t e e l A m a t e ur P l a ye r s , but t he r e is a gl im m e r fo l ight a t t he e nd o f t he t une l. A t d f or pr duco t ion fo D a nge r uso C or ne r is on t he hor iz on a nd w it hi n m y r e a c h.
At the most recent gathering, it was finally agreed that we should choose a play for our s pr ing of f e r ing. V e r a br oke t he s il e nc e , uns ur pr is ing s inc e t ha t is a s t a t e t ha t doe s not c om e na t ur a l l y t o t he w om a n, a nd e xpr e s s e d t he vi e w t ha t w e s houl d do s om e t hi ng m ode r n. N ikki pi pe d up t ha t s he l ike d t he w om a n w ho c oke d he r hus ba nd. I s a id t ha t w ho s he c hos e t o be f r ie nds w it h w a s no t r e l e va nt t o t he di s c us s ion, onl y t o be t ol d t ha t t hi s w a s t he na m e of a pl a y . I r e m a in t o be c onvi nc e d, but , e ve n if t hi s w e r e t r ue , I doubt our a udi e n c e a r e r e a dy f or c a ni ba l is m . O t he r s uge s t io ns inc l ude d O ne F l e w ove r t he C uc ko’ s N e s t – t o m a ny m e n a nd no A m e r ic a n I ndi a ns ; T he R oya l H unt of t he S un –s e e pr e vi ous c om m e nt ; L e s L ia is ons D a nge r e us e s a nd T h e C r uc ibl e , bot h r e j e c t e d f or ha vi ng t o m a ny c os t um e s a nd f a r t o m uc h s e x. S o, D a nge r o us C or ne r w on t he da y a nd c onve r s a t ion t ur ne d t o s o ur c ing t he a l l im orp t a nt m us ic a l c iga r e t t e bo x in t he c ur r e nt s m oke - f r e e c l im a t e . I a m pa r t ia l t o t he oc c a s iona l s m a l l c iga r m ys e l f , H a m l e t obvi ous l y , a nd r e a l l y e nj oy w ha t I c a l l m y ‘ G - s t r in g m om e nt s ’ . I onc e c ons ide r e d t a ki ng up a pi pe , but t he ne c e s s a r y e qui pm e nt t ok up t o m uc h r om in one ’ s handbag. It was then that Jeff began shaking his head and produced an official-looking paper be a r ing t he ne w H e a l t h a nd S a f e t y c ondi t ions of our us ua l ha l l . I t s e e m s t he c ounc il ha ve hi r e d s om e j um pe d- up, w h ippe r - s na pe r of a j obs w or t h t o m a na ge t he pl a c e . M y de a r s , m y bl od pressure rocketed at the regulations that danced before my eyes! No smoking, no naked flames, though whether it was the flame or the nudity that offended, I know not. No paint would be allowed, so our few flats would remain eau de nil in perpetuity and, I ask you, what is the art class to do? The final nail in this strait-jacket was that one has to take a course before being permitted to set foot on a ladder! Presumably we will be obliged to hire a gymnast, proficient in r ope - c l im bi ngt oa dj us t our l ight s . f a c e of
This production is obviously going to be a challenge, but I am determined to fly in the H e a l t ha ndS a f e t ya ndgr a s pt hi s ne t t l e w it hbot ha nds .
Yours, in defiance,
Doris Richardson-Hall P .S .I w onde
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08/12/2011 10:28