Education Pack 1
Contents Introduction Who are we?
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Why do we make theatre?
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What will you fnd in this pack?
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A bit of background
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The Pamphlet
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Some of our favourite quotes
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Activities and questions
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Further resources
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British Values
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Our Process Production Timeline
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Q&A with John Walton – director and producer
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Q&A with Dan March – performer and co-creator
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'How the GIs got to grips with Britain' The Telegraph
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Workshops
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Who are we? Fol Espoir is a touring theatre company dedicated to creating new and exciting work that connects directly with its audience. Our frst production was the clown show Dr Brown Because, which was an underground hit at the 2010 Edinburgh Festival and went on to sellout performances in the UK and abroad. We then produced the surreal comedy Marcello al-Dente Relives a Catastrophic Moment in His Life, the English-language premiere of Yoroboshi by Nobel Laureate Yukio Mishima, and the coming-of-age adventure story Winston On the Run. Instructions for American Servicemen in Britain is our second touring show, and it will travel to over thirty venues this autumn. To create the show we joined forces with the sketchcomedy troupe The Real MacGuffns.
Why do we make theatre? There are many ways to tell stories, so why not flms? TV? comics? novels? Our work draws inspiration from all of these but what makes theatre special for us is the direct connection between the performers and the audience. In a great piece of theatre, the actors and the audience are like long-lost friends taking an epic journey together. Hand-inhand they travel into an imaginative world full of the thrills, fears and joys of a beautifully told story. In a world increasingly dominated by digital landscapes and fractured communities, theatre remains a way for us all to come together and experience story-telling at its purest. For us, that is magic.
What will you fnd in this pack? This pack has been created to support your visit to our show. We hope it will help you to: - understand the historical context of the show - explore ideas of 'Britishness' - understand our creative process We've put together background material, interviews, links to further resources, and suggested activities to help you do this. You can also follow our blog at www.afoolishhope.wordpress.com or check out our website at www.folespoir.co.uk, where you'll fnd further resources and links to our Facebook and Twitter accounts. Stay in touch!
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A bit of background In today's Britain we take things like democracy, freedom of speech and cultural diversity for granted. In 1941 the world was a very different place. Huge parts of Europe, North Africa and Asia were occupied by the German and Japanese armies. These military dictatorships crushed any resistance to their rule and murdered million of people whose religion, race or political beliefs was different to their own. Every night waves of German planes dropped bombs over British towns and cities. Every day, British men and women queued for hours to get essential items like food, clothing and even soap. The only thing protecting them from invasion was the English Channel - life was a constant battle for dignity and survival. In contrast, America in 1941 was enjoying relative peace and prosperity. This all changed on the 7th December, when Japanese attacks at Pearl Harbour obliterated the US Naval Fleet. Thousands of American sailors died. The United States could no longer stay out of the war, and from then on British and American soldiers fought side-by-side. The two countries may have shared a common language, but they were very different. Britain was a small, rainy country obsessed with social class and its Empire. America was youthful and prosperous - a geographically immense nation united by the 'American Dream': the idea that anyone could succeed as long as they worked hard enough.
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The pamphlet Soon after the Pearl Harbour attack, the frst American personnel began arriving in Britain. Many of these young men and women had never left their home towns before. Thousands of miles from friends and families, they would have to adapt to their new surroundings very quickly. Hitler was desperate to split the allies apart, and the arrival of hundreds of thousands of GIs had to be handled carefully. Small misunderstandings between the Americans and their British hosts could easily escalate into full-blown arguments - if this happened, the war effort could be fatally damaged. Because of this, the US War Offce issued every GI travelling to the UK with the pamphlet Instructions for American Servicemen in Britain. A crash course on the quirks and customs of British life, it featured sections on Britain's geography, climate, food and history. It compared British and American money, customs and language. It warned that Hitler would stop at nothing to split the allies apart. It even explained that after three years of war, Britain's inhabitants were keen to point out that their country wasn't looking 'its best'. By 1945 the pamphlet had done its job - the allies held strong to defeat the Nazis. It's easy to dismiss this victory as inevitable, but in 1942 the situation was desperate. If the Second World War teaches us anything, it's that nations are strongest when they put aside their differences and stand together for what they believe in.
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The Instructions are a fascinating snapshot of 1940s Britain. Below are some of our favourite quotes - how much do you think Britain has changed? "The British don't know how to make a good cup of coffee. You don't know how to make a good cup of tea. It's an even swap." “The British are tough - the English language didn't spread across the world because these people were panty-waists.” “Most people get used to the English climate eventually.” “When you see a girl in khaki or air-force blue with a bit of ribbon on her tunic – remember she didn't get it for knitting more socks than anyone else in Ipswich.” “The frst duty Hitler has given his propaganda chiefs is to separate Britain and America and spread mistrust between them.” “Be careful not to criticize the King.” “It is always impolite to criticize your hosts. It is militarily stupid to insult your allies.” “In 'getting along', the frst important thing to note is that the British are like the Americans in many ways – but not all ways.” “Remember that crossing the ocean doesn't automatically make you a hero.” "British money is in pounds, shillings and pence. They won't be pleased to hear you call it 'funny money'. They sweat hard to get it. “I f you are invited into a British home and the host exhorts you to 'eat up, there's plenty on the table', go easy. It may be the family's rations for a whole week spread out to show their hospitality."
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Activities and questions - In 1944 millions of Americans men and women were stationed in Britain. Were any Americans based near you? What can you fnd out about them? - How are Britain and American different? Make a list including things like geography, culture and sports. Do you think the countries have become more or less similar since 1942? Why? - Relationships between the Americans troops and their British hosts were not always perfect. Imagine it's 1942 and you see a British and American soldier arguing. Why might they be arguing? What could you say or do to help solve the problem? - You're a young American who has just arrived in England in 1942. Write a letter to your family back home describing you experiences and feelings. How is Britain different to the US? What are the people like? Is there anything you miss from home or are you enjoying the adventure? Are you scared about the war? - What do you think life was like for someone your age in 1942? Would you still have gone to school? Would you have been able to play with your friends? What kind of food would you have eaten? Describe your daily routine.
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Further historical resources: If you want to learn more about the Second World War, the BBC has an excellent site at: http://www.bbc.co.uk/history/worldwars/wwtwo If you want to learn more about American GIs in Britain, these are some of the videos we used to research the show. “A Welcome to Britain” - 38 minutes http://tinyurl.com/awelcometobritain “What impact did the Americans have on Britain in WW2?” - 6 minutes http://ww2history.com/videos/Western/GI_Brides “The Century: America's Time - 1941-1945: Homefront” http://tinyurl.com/americanhomefront This BBC History Magazine article about American GIs in Britain is also very good: http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/magazine-20160819 And if you want something a bit more in-depth, Helen Millgate's “Got Any Gum Chum?” is an excellent source of information and photos.
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British Values It has been suggested that the following values are fundamental to British life: - democracy - the rule of law - individual liberty - mutual respect and tolerance of those with difference faiths and beliefs What do each of these values mean to you? Do you agree that these are fundamental British values? Can you think of any other values you think are fundamentally British? Or that are important to your own life? Choose one value that is important to either Britain or yourself. During the Second World War was this value threatened? How? What was done to protect this value? Are there any values important to you that are under threat today? If so, how could you stand up for what you believe in? Imagine you have an friend who is moving to Britain from abroad. Write a list of the ten most important things they need to know before arriving. For example – in Britain we speak English, we drive on the left, and it rains a lot. What differences do you think they will be most surprised by? What do you think they will most enjoy about Britain?
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Production timeline 2010 – Our Artistic Director John Walton spots Instructions for American Servicemen in Britain, 1942 in his local bookstore and buys a copy. 2012/2013 – We create and tour Winston On the Run – a show about Winston Churchill's youthful adventures in South Africa – Planning our next show, John remembers the Instructions booklet. Spring 2014 – John pitches the idea to sketch comedy troupe The Real MacGuffns and potential partner venues. The Theatre Chipping Norton offers us rehearsal space, mentoring and the opportunity to perform a 'work-in-progress' presentation of the show. Spring/Summer 2014 – We successfully raise the funds needed to start development. November 2014 – We spend a research week in Steeple Aston Village, Oxfordshire. We hear wartime stories from elderly residents, explore the village's history, visit the nearby site of a former US Air Force base and brainstorm ideas. January 2014 – Our second week of development, followed by a 45-minute 'work-inprogress' presentation of material. We flm the night and create a video trailer. Spring 2014 – We send information on the show to theatres throughout the UK in order to put together tour dates. Meanwhile we tweak the material we wrote in Oxfordshire and perform the frst-half again at the Bath Comedy Festival. Summer 2014 – We begin the fundraising campaign for the main tour - applying to organisations like the Arts Council, approaching businesses for sponsorship, and setting up a crowd-funding campaign to get small donations from friends and families. We also return to Steeple Aston Village for another week of research and brainstorming. September 2014 – Two weeks of fnal rehearsals and opening night of a two-month tour!
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Q&A with John Walton, director of Instructions for American Servicemen in Britain Why did you choose to adapt this 1942 pamphlet for the stage? I stumbled upon the Instructions in Waterstone's a few years ago, and I've been wanting to make a show based on them ever since. They're such an endearing and loving snapshot of the country at a unique moment in its history. At the same time, they just seemed perfect for comic exploration. How true have you kept to the original instructions? It's always tricky to make something theatrically interesting yet still true to the source material. When we adapted Churchill's auto-biography into Winston On the Run we knew it was more important to keep to the spirit than the actual letter of his words. It's the same with the Instructions. Fortunately Dr Samuel Fanous - the force behind the Bodleian Library's decision to re-publish the instructions – came along to our work-in-progress performance and loved it, so we must be doing something right! Why did you want to work with The Real MacGuffns? I knew they'd be a perfect match for the material. They’re a fab comedy trio full of ridiculous witticisms, idiotic imaginations and a wonderful on-stage dynamic. Also, they share my passion for working directly with an audience, so I knew that together we could create a joyous evening of entertainment. What were your inspirations when making the show? I grew up adoring Dad's Army, and that kind of tongue-in-cheek nostalgia is defnitely at the heart of the show. I also have some very close American friends, have travelled lots in the US, and used to work as a tour guide for Americans in London. There's something so wonderful about their attitude to life, which is so completely different to our own; I wanted to explore those differences. In addition, as I was doing my research on the period, I was constantly moved by the tales of bravery and fortitude exhibited by the men and women of that period. Our show is very funny, but I would be devastated if people thought it was disrespectful. You started work on the show in November 2014. What has been the journey of this production? We always knew that this show would tour to a mix of urban and rural venues, so one of the key aims was to develop the show in residence at a local village hall. The Theatre Chipping Norton helped us fnd a host venue, and we spent two weeks in Steeple Aston Village - meeting residents, hearing their stories of the war, exploring the local history and visiting the nearby USAF base. We had a brilliant time, and the experience fed directly into the show. Also, early on we had a couple of 'work-in-progress' performances, which 11
helped us test ideas and see what was working. I fnd it impossible to make a show without trialling versions in front of an audience. They tell you everything you need to know. Then it was just a case of refning what we had and trying to make it as funny as possible. What attracts you, as a director, to comedy? Much as I adore to laugh, I used to think there was something a little cheap about comedy, as if it wasn't a quite grown-up enough thing to spend one's life doing. Fortunately I've got over that, mainly because I think there's so much misery in the world, and if I can bring a little joy and fun, then that's a pretty amazing contribution. Also, as a comedy director, my job is essentially just to sit there while a group of actors try and make me giggle. It's not a bad way to spend my time! What do you want the audience to leave having experienced? I want the audience to have had a joyous, fun evening; to have bonded with each other and the MacGuffns; and to leave with a big smile on their face. Perhaps they'll also remember that actually, Britain has never stood strongest alone, but always hand-in-hand with its international allies. Ultimately though, I just want them to laugh.
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Q&A with Dan March, actor, comedian and co-creator of Instructions for American Servicemen in Britain How did you start out as a performer? I always enjoyed performing as a child but it was when I was 15 that I knew I wanted to be an actor: I performed the 'pivotal' role of English Ambassador in my school's production of Hamlet - essentially coming on at the end of the four-hour play to say 'And Rosencrantz and Guildenstern are dead'. I was bitten by the acting bug. I went on to join my local amateur group, performed plays at university, at the Edinburgh Fringe and eventually drama school in London. You've been in hit TV programmes like Miranda, EastEnders, Casualty, Doctors and Pramface. How different is performing to a live audience? Which do you prefer? Acting for TV requires as naturalistic a performance as possible and an awareness of technical things like the size of shot (close up, wide angle etc), as these all dictate how much you can do in front of the camera and still appear believable. Miranda was slightly different as it was recorded in front of a live studio audience – allowing performers to walk a tight-rope between theatre and TV. I personally love the energy and immediacy you get from theatre - you have to be just as truthful, but it's a truth that needs to be transmitted to the last row of the auditorium. As well as performing in Instructions for American Servicemen in Britain you also wrote a lot of the script. How did that work? 'Instructions' is a wonderful historical document but also a hugely rich jumping-off point for creating the world of 1942. We worked incredibly hard with our director John Walton to understand the period, to workshop and improvise the potential scenarios the GIs would have faced, and to write various sections of the show. I come from a background of sketch comedy - but I have also written some full length plays - and 'Instructions' is a joyous marriage of both styles. Was it diffcult to play an American character? How did you research your role? We did a lot of research – a lot – from reading about the period, watching 1940s war movies, meeting people who remembered 1940s US soldiers and visiting old US airbases. Without that work it would have been incredibly diffcult to get into the mind of a 1940s US solider and create a realistic character. Another major aspect is the accent and personality, and again that requires research and rehearsal - and American friends to test your accent on! 13
Comedy is often looked down upon compared to drama. Do you think that's fair? No! Comedy is just as valid an art form as drama, requiring immaculate precision and timing. An actor performing drama to a quiet, unresponsive crowd may feel he has succeeded; whereas a comedy actor performing to a quiet unresponsive crowd will know he has failed. Do you have any advice for budding comedians or actors? I once asked the great Shakespearean actress Jane Lapotaire if she had any advice for young actors and she replied 'Yes - don't do it!' What she meant was, if there's anything else you'd rather do than be an actor, then do that instead. Working in the entertainment industry is incredibly hard work and if you just want to be famous or rich, then this defnitely isn't the career for you. But, if you have a burning passion, if you love transforming yourself into different characters, if you wake up every morning desperate to act - then go out and do it. Perform at school, make short flms, write plays - discover, learn and develop your skills. For me, this is the greatest vocation in the world.
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How the GIs got to grips with Britain Taken from The Telegraph, 29th March, 2005 A guide written in 1942 for American servicemen makes fascinating reading, says Eluned Price 'Every light in England is blacked out every night and all night. Every highway signpost has come down and the barrage balloons have gone up. The British have been bombed, night after night and month after month. "Thousands of them have lost their houses, their possessions, their families. Soap [is now] so scarce that girls working in the factories often cannot get the grease off their hands or out of their hair. And food is more strictly rationed than anything else." In 1942, every GI preparing to leave for Britain would have read those words. They were part of a guide called Instructions for American Servicemen in Britain which was issued by the American War Offce. On seven pages of foolscap, in under 6,000 typewritten words, the unknown author drew up a guide to wartime Britain, and an Ordnance Survey map of its psyche. "The British know that gasoline and food represent the lives of merchant sailors. And when you burn gasoline needlessly, it will seem to them as if you are wasting the blood of those seamen - when you destroy or waste food you have wasted the life of another sailor." The guide has recently been republished as a book by the Bodleian Library. Samuel Fanous, head of the Bodleian's publishing arm, says: "It is a remarkably astute and pithy look at wartime Britain. But it also has strong contemporary resonances. We know soldiers can behave badly, but we expect them to behave with honour. Sometimes they need guidebooks to remind them how to do that." The sorts of things that would count as bad behaviour now would have been undreamt of then. There is an innocence about both these worlds on opposite sides of the Atlantic that is part of the guide's charm. "It isn't a good idea to say 'bloody' in mixed company in Britain - it is one of their worst swear words." It was designed to save the unsophisticated GI from gaffes - "I look like a bum" is not the phrase to use "if you are trying to shine in polite society" - but more importantly to save him from ostracism or a punch in the face: "British money is in pounds, shillings and pence. 15
They won't be pleased to hear you call it 'funny money'. They sweat hard to get it... [and] won't think any better of you for throwing money around. The British 'Tommy' is apt to be specially touchy about the difference between his wages and yours." The guide does not specify the dire consequences of "showing off - or swanking as the British call it"; rather, it overtly appeals to the American sense of honour and respect. With a clear understanding of the national characteristics of both people, at that time "Don't brag or bluster"; "Don't eat too much" and "NEVER criticise the King and Queen" it is as much a guide to the American psyche, as to the British, and it is telling that the author should advise on situations that might leave the hearty, hungry GI consciencestricken. "If you are invited into a British home and the host exhorts you to 'eat up, there's plenty on the table', go easy. It may be the family's rations for a whole week spread out to show their hospitality." Parcelling warm beer and BBC newscasters saying "hyah" instead of "here" with a sociopolitical education is no mean feat - "The British enjoy a democracy even more fexible and sensitive to the will of the people than our own." Neither is uprooting entrenched prejudices: "A British woman offcer or NCO can - and often does - give orders to a man private. The men obey smartly and know it is no shame." Fanous and his department are part of a new direction for the Bodleian. "In the past, most Bodleian publications were scholarly, and," he says tactfully, "of restrained appearance." The guide had previously appeared only once and on "folded sheets of buff A4" for the beneft of Oxford scholars, but Fanous decided to publish it like a wartime hardback in brown craft paper, and distributed and sold it in bookshops. He is not totally surprised to see sales of this revelation of "plain, common horse sense" take off beyond the world of academia, necessitating a third reprint in as many months. The guide's apparent simplicity belies its complexity. It deserves to be a set text in schools and universities, and should be compulsory reading for all philologists: "Don't be misled by the British tendency to be soft-spoken and polite... they can be plenty tough. The English language didn't spread across the oceans and over the mountains and jungles... of the world because these people were panty-waists."
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Workshops Fol Espoir offers 90 minute workshops on the following topics, both of which can be adapted for either primary or secondary school participants. The Friendly Invasion: How Britain and America discovered shared values during WWII. Uses archive audio footage, games, role-play and interactive reenactments to allow students to imagine life in 1940s Britain and America. Focuses on the cultural differences between the two nations, and how these were overcome. The workshop links to various parts of World War 2 history studies - especially the Blitz, rationing, and life on the home front. It also explores Britain and America's shared values of democracy and respect for other peoples - this links to government requirements that schools incorporate 'British Values' into their teaching. "It gave a great view on the collision course between British and American culture in World war II." Oscar (10), John Radcliffe Primary School The Idiotic Actor: Finding your feet in comedy improvisation Takes the students through the games, techniques and approaches that Fol Espoir uses to develop comedic material. Suitable for groups interested in developing performance skills. This workshop links to the devised and physical theatre elements of drama and performing arts syllabuses. “Very entertaining, interactive and informative. PLEASE COME BACK!� James (17), Colchester Sixth Form College
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