rural touring project- interim deadline

Interim stage meeting to discuss Boat Gypsies project on 18th May. So imagine i’ll have to get draft done by the end of the first week in May. Giving twp a few days to circulate.

Might just make it. I dont HAVE to get one done, this is simply a ‘where are you at, lets have a look at the pages and then discuss it’ meeting  but I like to get a draft out so I can get a sense of what I am doing and then move on from there.  It is also really important for me to get this feedback so I can see how many of the ideas I am exploring are hitting home for the reader, to hear new suggestions and to buy myself some thinking not writing time before embarking on the next draft.

This draft is surprising me even though I’ve written a treatment but think I will struggle at the moment to sustain the story as the driver I have is a little weak and unsustainable.

rural touring project Boat Gypsies

Received contract and deadline for rural touring project writers lab 09. This is a theatre writing partnership initiative in conjunction with rural touring theatre companies Eastern Angles and New Perspectives.
I have posted earlier about the feedback I received from Ivan Cuttings and I have now embarked on the script. Only 8 or so pages in but things are developing all the time as new ideas spring into my head. Mainly concerned with sorting out the plot driver. Deadline is end of May for a rehearsed reading in June to an audience of rural touring producers.

August Wilson Century Cycle

Completed August Wilson’s century cycle by finishing Radio Golf. Funny play. Enjoyed that alongside , Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom, Seven Guitars, Two Trains Running, Fences and Piano Lessons the most.
I felt at times that the language was too similar but put this down to intention and the fact that I was reading them all back to back without the gap of the years between their writing.
Will read them again in five years or so.

Decibel 09 selection

I’ve been selected to take part in the Decibel Performing Arts showcase 2009. This Arts Council supported event provides a showcase to artists to discuss/perform their work to a select audience of arts officers, programmers, booking officers worldwide and of course to other performers.
The showcase provides three distinct slots tour-ready, work-in-progress and the pitch slot.
I applied to the take part in the pitch slot with my latest project 57 Images of My Father. It is a piece about memory, anecdote, family, time, place and hope. Using 57 images a son tries to recreate his father. My twist is that neither the son nor the father exist.
I have ten minutes to describe the project and I hope to secure interest to develop a commission from interested parties.
The showcase takes place in Manchester from the 15-18th September.
Check out the website www.decibelpas.com for more details.
I’ve developed a number of ideas for my pitch that I’ll talk about closer to the date.

57 Images Of My Father

Finished the Barack Obama book Dreams From (of?) My Father yesterday. Lots of parallels with my project 57 Images of My Father. This is a stageplay I have been developing. Its about memory, photography, family (as ever for me) and perspective so to read Obama’s thoughts on similar issues was good. I have started but not finished the Audacity of Hope (great title) yet which again I think will be useful for the project. These books are not deliberate attempts at research as I usually write first and research later but the first one certainly has turned out useful.

the hounding of david oluwale

Just saw The Hounding of David Oluwale at Nottm Playhouse. Adapted for the stage by Oladipo Agboluaje the play is based on a book by Kester Aspden.
Really dynamic show, lots of excellent staging, doubling and tripling by the eight cast members. Lots of lighting changes. The show is an eclipse theatre production directed by Dawn Walton. The main character starts off dead and the show brings him to life as he comes to life to reclaim his story. Has parallels with a stageplay I am currently developing and will be pitching at the Decibel performing arts showcase in manchester, september.
Its treatment of time, space and character had similaraties but sufficiently different from the way I envisage mine to but feel like we are covering the same territory.
A good show. Unfortunately it comes to the end of its run after Nottingham but the play text is published by Oberon Modern Plays so you can track it down if you so wish.
A good show. Having a good run with shows with this and empty bed blues by stephen lowe recently.

carcass feedback

Received my feedback from BBC Writers room today. Some really good notes that have given me a sense of how I can develop the story. Lots of potential to ‘broaden’ the world. The reader got a lot of the subtext so feels pleased about that. Also got my acknowledgement letter from UK film council development fund. 8 weeks before I hear back about that so once I have gotten my first draft of Boat Gypsies out of the way I can look to try and implement some of my new thoughts about carcass.

Mark Devenport Edinburgh Film Festival entry success

Filmmaker Mark (Digs) Devenport has debut feature film has recently been accepted for the 2009 Edinburgh film festival. The film was shot for only £4000. Mark and his cast and crew worked in the classic, low-budget way making the film over two years at weekends, and/or when money beame available to have slightly more concentrated shoot periods. Many film-makers have worked in thsi way, Peter Jackson (Bad Taste, King Kong, Lord of the Rings Trilogy) is one of many examples.

Mark’s film was subsequently successful in receiving a further £25,000 from EM Media to clean up the image and sound, etc.

I’ll do further posting as and when the festival programme is announced.