A Clockwork Orange
February 2007
Directed by Julie Grant
Anthony Burgess wrote A Clockwork Orange in 1962. It was, and is, shocking not only because of the individual violence it portrays but because of the violence used by the state to 'reprogram' Alex, the protagonist, taking away his free will by making him unable to commit acts of violence. The issues it raised then are still pertinent - is it 'good' to take away man's right to choose 'evil'; is violence inherent in human nature, part of the process of growing up?
But, frankly, you probably aren’t interested in that – you want to know what opportunities there are for you as part of the team.
The acting ensemble will consist of eight to ten performers - six actors playing 36 parts (most of whom will need to be able to bluff their way through a song), ideally four male and two female, and from two to four muso-actors (who will be involved in some of the action and produce all the sound-effects apart from the pre-recorded Beethoven excerpts).
The backstage team (doing all the work and getting none of the kudos) includes stage management (Anne Fairpo leads the team), sound (Sue Dyson’s on board), lighting, film (Matt Jeffs leads the team), costume (we’ll need from 8 to 10 vaguely chinese peasant suits with a variety of things stuck on them), set (I have sketches of what I want but no idea how to achieve it!) and props (minimal, though we do have to produce a bust of Beethoven).
Casting will take place in late October. There will be a workshop which will give me a chance to see how people work together and also for people to see what I’m like to work with. This is open to all (including folks who don’t want to act in the show but think they might be interested in being involved in a backstage role). I’ll use the workshop as the basis for casting the ensemble. In the first rehearsal(s) we’ll then decide who plays which characters.
Rehearsals will be from November to February, with a break for Christmas. Performances will be in mid Feb.
Three months till we start and I’m already ridiculously over-excited!
To register your interest in A Clockwork Orange, please click here
The Merchant of Venice
April/May 2007
Directed by Imogen de la Bere
Not so much a play about Jewishness, more a play about money.
In The Merchant of Venice Shakespeare is fascinated by money and its power. Money drives everything in the restless, materialist world that is his Venice. Over in Belmont, where women rule, different values predominate, but even there, they are fettered by money. Suitors queue for Portia not because of her brilliance or beauty, but because of her wealth. Only Shylock, who lives by money, is capable of freeing himself from it. He demands flesh; he demands revenge.
Merchant is about justice and mercy, but also about fundamental values by which we choose to live: money, love, honour.
The style of the production will be sparse and Brechtian with minimal set, live music (Venetian Renaissance and Jewish liturgical) and stylised costumes. As with The Winter’s Tale, the character parts will be shaped so as to make them rewarding for the actor. As with Cherry Orchard, there will be a strong emphasis on company work.
We are planning performances of Merchant at four theatres in Hertfordshire, from mid-April to mid-May 2007.
Get involved with a masterpiece – get on board the Merchant.
To register your interest in The Merchant of Venice, please click here
Twelfth Night
June/July 2007
Directed by Adam Nichols
Those of you who have worked with me before will know that I don’t do Shakespeare straight. So you may be asking yourselves what crazy idea I have come up with for this one. Well, I am pretty pleased with myself…
Our production will be set on a 1920s cruise liner. The play will be presented cabaret style, with the audience sitting round tables as if in the main ballroom and hopefully plenty of interaction between the audience and the cast. There will be a live jazz band (led by our own Ed White) pumping out the wonderful music of that period and lots of song and dance from the cast.
We are hoping to tour the production to a number of non-theatre venues that have more of a cabaret flavour. A pleasure boat down the Thames has been mentioned (those of you who are doubting me at this point should remember that I managed to get a VW Beetle on stage the last time I did a musical Shakespeare!).
As well as providing an innovative and interesting take on the play, I also believe this setting will add a great deal to the audience’s appreciation of the text. A motley crew of high society figures – the likes of Sir Toby and Sir Andrew; a classic romance between toffs – Olivia and Orsino; a collection of vaudeville entertainers – Viola and Sebastian (who were the entertainers of another cruise liner that has sunk) and Feste, the darling of the SS Illyria.
Twelfth Night does of course present some of the funniest and well drawn comedy roles in Shakespeare. I don’t have any fixed views about how I want these characters to be played and there is scope for a wide variety of ages and interpretations. I am looking forward to being surprised and persuaded at the audition workshop.
In addition to the 12 or so main named parts I will be looking for a chorus of 8-10 people for the big company numbers and to take on other supernumary roles such as waiters and waitresses and deck hands.
So dust off your flapper dresses and your straw boaters and get ready to Charleston!
To register you interest in Twelfth Night please click here
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