UK Theatre Professionals

Intros

Sun, 07 Sep 2008 18:41:27 GMT

I know a few of you, but as for the rest: who are you all?

An Overview of Me: London-based American actor who specialized in Shakespeare but has done and will do anything performative as long as it pays the bills. It's been far from perfect, but I've not done too badly.

Ultimate goal: to be able to make enough/work regularly enough as an actor/performer that I don't have to do shitty day jobs.

Dream job: to perform a season at Shakespeare's Globe.

Your turn!

proposals for an event in Chester

Wed, 27 Aug 2008 11:12:55 GMT

I tried out a new piece for Chester Performs' "Roam the Rows" earlier this month and had a very positive experience. I don't know my schedule will permit me to participate in their next event but thought I'd post it for anyone who's interested.

Up the Wall - a happening at twilight

Thursday 2nd – Saturday 4th October 2008

Artists Brief

Deadline for submissions: Friday 5th September 2008

Introduction

Following the success of last year’s Up the Wall with 3,500 dedicated visitors, Chester Performs is once again planning a ‘twilight happening’ on Chester’s Walls.

Up the Wall is a glorified mass and sometimes subversive promenade along the city’s most famous feature. Along the interactive route audiences will be treated to an extreme range of the interesting, offbeat, unusual and sometimes bizarre. It is a site specific celebration of the city’s heritage and architecture presented as a moving festival of installation and live art.

The event will take place on three evenings in October, Thursday 2nd, Friday 3rd and Saturday 4th, between 7pm and 10pm. Audiences are invited to join the route at Chester Cathedral, and take in the cloisters and then the city walls, ending in Rufus Court at Alexander’s. They will go in one direction, moving past and interacting closely with artists on the way.

An integral part of the event is to provide a background for the region’s installation, visual, live and new media artists. It is suitable for professional and aspiring artists, individuals and community artists.

Chester Performs

Chester Performs is the leading producer of diverse performance and media events in and around Chester. We work closely with local, national and international artists to deliver a range of unusual projects, offering a host of opportunities for audiences and participants.

Completed projects this year include Screen Deva, a film a digital media festival in unusual venues, and Roam the Rows, a spectacular and intimate festival which took place in August on Chester’s Rows, in which 270 artists presented work in and round the famous covered shopping streets..

Brief

Chester Performs is looking for artists to take part by contributing personal and relevant work to the route either through existing work or site specific installations.

Along the route there are a number of places/opportunities for work to be displayed and/or presented. They include the paths on the walls, in and amongst trees, in the cathedral cloisters, on cobbled streets, in cathedral gardens, by a canal, on railings / posts, a medieval tower, under arches, on steps.

Audiences will be generally very close to artists and their work. The event will be highly visual, with the route lit and with interpretation panels.

Whilst there will be some music and ambient noise, including sonic installations, there will not be much sound pollution, as audiences are generally in close proximity.

We are also interested to hear from artists interested in working with community groups and schools to develop content for the route; and we would very much like to encourage artists to work across art forms and provide a platform for collaborative work.

Power can be supplied, and both covered and open / semi sheltered sites are available.

Bursary

£360 (for all three days of the event)

We will also cover some material and technical costs. Please give a breakdown of these costs in your proposal.

Proposal

Those artists wishing to be considered for participation in this event should submit a short proposal (less than one page) plus any supporting images and website links by Friday 5th September, giving details of what and how they would like to contribute to this year’s event. Technical requirements and costs should also be detailed in this proposal.

We will respond to all proposals.

Please Note

Whilst Chester Performs will make every effort to offer assistance and support we are not able to take responsibility for the following:
• Accommodation and storage arrangements
• Transportation of works
• Loss or damage to works before, during or after the event
• Invigilation / supervision of work

As Up the Wall is an outdoor event there is always a chance that the weather will not be on our side, this will therefore need to be considered when installing / planning work.

All work will need to be installed and ready by 6pm on Thursday 2nd, Friday 3rd and Saturday 4th October, work will need to be taken down each evening and reinstated the following day. The event starts at 7pm and ends at 10pm each day.

If you have any questions please do give me a call on 01244 409113

We look forward to hearing from you!

Louisa Scarre

Programme Co-ordinator (Up the Wall)

louisa@chesterperforms.com

Up the Wall is created by Chester Performs and supported by:

Arts Council England, Chester City Council and Cheshire County Council

£10 ticket offer-Arcola Theatre!!!

Tue, 05 Aug 2008 14:04:33 GMT

Hi All,

Arcola Theatre has a £10 ticket offer for the first week of The Collector an adapted play from the John Fowles Novel. Just call the box office on 0207 503 1645 and quote "online offer" to receive it!

THE COLLECTOR

By MARK HEALY
Adapted from the novel by JOHN FOWLES
Directed by BEN CAPLAN

Presented by Arcola Theatre

26th August - 20th September 2008
Starting time: 8.15 PM
STUDIO 2
NO LATECOMERS ADMITTED

Ever since he first saw her Frederick has been obsessed with Miranda. But Frederick’s a repressed, introverted butterfly collector, and Miranda is a beautiful, privileged art student. The opportunity to invite her to his new country house goes horrifyingly wrong, and in the tense, claustrophobic reality of the cellar prison, their relationship leads to a devastating climax.

“This is an intense and compelling piece of theatre… an excellent two hander that stands out because of its fine, and eerie, central performances.” William McEvoy, The Stage

This haunting production comes to London after an unforgettable run at Edinburgh 2007.

CREATIVE TEAM:

Written by Mark Healy
Adapted from the novel by John Fowles
Directed by Ben Caplan
Designed by Beck Rainford

TICKET INFORMATION

£15/£10 Concessions (no concessions on Saturdays)
Tuesdays 'Pay What You Can' (subject to availability)

PLEASE NOTE: TICKETS ARE NON-REFUNDABLE

www.arcolatheatre.com

Casting Call

Fri, 18 Jul 2008 11:16:15 GMT

I am involved in putting on a performance of Mort at the Edinburgh Fringe, but one of the actors has dropped out at very short notice. I.e. this morning. Part is that of Goodie Whelper and other minor female parts. The show is going to be fabulous, on the top floor of C Main. Paul Kidby is donating his artwork for the posters, and a large chunk of money going to charity. Everyone involved with the production will have C passes, allowing them free tickets at C shows, for the duration of the festival.

We are urgently seeking someone who is

1) Female, youngish,
2) Available in Oxford a.s.a.p
3) Available in Edinburgh 25th July -> 25th August
4) Can act
5) Preferably can pay towards accomodation ~ £500 for the month, or sort their own. If you can't do this, still get in touch as the production may decide to cover cost of accomodation in order to y'know have a show.

If interested, call RHYS 07825957161 or email rhyslewisjones@gmail.com asap

petition

Mon, 02 Jun 2008 08:40:55 GMT

I saw the following in a community and thought it was important for the entire performing arts community. Thanks for signing and passing it on. Hope you all are well!

Traditional folklore dances in England since as far back as 1700s have been known to use props such as sticks and sword as part of their dances. Currently, the government does not recognize dance as either a Historical re-enactment or sporting activity and therefore dancers are not included within the exemption for the purchase & use of swords with regards to the VCR (Violent Crime reduction) bill. These dances are forms of art that are of great historical & cultural relevance, Banning the use of these swords will inevitably cause them to die out. It is crucial that they are preserved & allowed to continue. I have written a petition which is up on the home office website

Please show your support and sign my petition to get dance included so that we can continue preserving the beautiful art of sword dance.

Whether you are a dancer or not, we need your support!

We desperately need more signatures!

The link: http://petitions.pm.gov.uk/dancers/

Tue, 06 May 2008 15:29:09 GMT

wondering...

sometimes I get various calls for actors / performers etc come through arts groups I am on the mailing list of. I wondered if it would be okay to foward them on to this group (they range between paid and unpaid and are UK based)... in case its helpful.

Fri, 25 Jan 2008 14:32:46 GMT

I hope everyone is off to a good start this year! Mine's very quiet, but due to lengthy travel plans in the Spring, there isn't much that I'm able to apply for at the moment.

I also wanted to give the actors in here a heads-up. I just posted an entry in my own journal about the Method, Heath Ledger, and acting techniques if anyone is interested in reading it.

Happy holidays

Wed, 26 Dec 2007 01:02:02 GMT

I hope everyone is having a great holiday season. I'm enjoying my panto much more than I thought I would and wish my contract went beyond 6 Jan. After that it's back to the grind of looking for work. Have a safe and fun New Year's Eve!

Sat, 01 Dec 2007 15:45:18 GMT

Just a question.....does anyone if there are specific regualtions saying that ordinary pat testing of elctrical items is not valid for theatre equipment - lights etc, as i have just been told that we have to get someone especially versed in testing theatre equipment rather than just general electrical stuff..... Is this true? I have never heard of this before when hiring theatres in the past, its just come up now.

semi on-topic..

Thu, 11 Oct 2007 11:18:25 GMT

For those of you interested in making music, or who are doing so, there is an excellent free magazine you can get, you can get it in the mail, free hardcopy subscription at http://www.soundcontrol.co.uk/mod_1/pages/mod_1.8/pages/index.php. is absolutly free and stuffed with technical stuff, tutorials, vocal tips, the works! :)

And no I dont work for them, I have signed up and get the magazine, and both as someone trying to make music I find it handy, and also as an actress with the vocal tips in it.. Thought it might be of interest to some of you...

TIE

Sat, 06 Oct 2007 21:24:32 GMT

Has anyone ever worked with Kinetic Theatre? Any good/bad experiences you'd like to share?

I'm considering auditioning for their forthcoming primary TIE tour. They perform sketches and plays to enhance the UK Science Curriculum at key stages 2 and 3.

Sat, 06 Oct 2007 17:36:03 GMT

Just a question for my postgrad studies (probably will post more as time goes on!) hehe. This question is mainly for people in the UK, though I would be most interested to know how things are in other countries, if that comes up!

I am having to bulletpoint (and reference) key aspects of relevant current legislative requirements and codes of practice as they affect being both a performing arts practitioner, and a teacher of performing arts in the post compulsory (age 16+) education sector!

I have bulletpointed things like censorship, political correctness, discrimination, health and safety, teaching requirements, etc from my actual practice as an actress and theatre director, but I can find nothing on the teaching side of things, and need any official websites to reference... It would be fine to spend ages googling, but I have been ill and busy with my theatre company and just not had a chance. eeep/cringe.

So any handy links and sites you can reccomend will be most handy!

Wed, 19 Sep 2007 12:31:24 GMT

What's everyone up to now that we're leaving the slow summer season?

I'll be working as a scare actor for the month of Oct. at Thorpe Park, then touring with Chaplins pantos from Nov. to Jan. Is anyone else working on a panto?

Theatre course for teens and adults (Devon)

Tue, 11 Sep 2007 20:35:21 GMT

Hi everyone,

I am just letting you all know about the 10 week theatre course I will be teaching at Brixham Community College. Its going to be basic, ideal for a beginner or to brush up. It will concentrate upon

- character development

- working in a team

- speaking/performing in front of an audience

- voice and warm-ups prior to performance

the course will culminate in a rehearsed play reading in front of friends and family.

If you are interested, all the blurb is below, and you need to contact the community college within the next week or so. Please pass this info on to anyone else you know (teenager and adult) who may be interested in the course.

______________________________________________________________________

Are you looking to gain self confidence?

and to develop team skills?

Are you available on a Tuesday Evening?

Then consider coming along to a new 10 week course starting at Brixham Community College in September!

Start Date: 25^th Sept 07

Ref. No: Tu18

Title: An Introduction to Performance Art

Tutor: Laura Jury

No. of Weeks: 10

Fee: £52

An Introduction to Performance Art is taught by a local actress and writer, and is of use to those interested in acting and performing, but by its very nature also has many transferable skills, of use in daily life and the work place.

No experience or qualifications are required; the course is for two hours per week on a Tuesday evening, in a friendly environment. You will not only learn the basics of acting and stage work but also how to work in a team, present yourself with outward confidence to others and even participate in a rehearsed script reading in front of an audience of family and friends, thus gaining experience in speaking in front of an audience.

To enrol, call 01803 853302

or pop into Adult Learning (entrance off Westover Close).

Adult & Community Learning, Brixham College, Higher Ranscombe Road, Brixham, TQ5 9HF

Tel: 01803 853302

e-mail: adulted@brixhamcollege.torbay.sch.uk

TIE: Italy

Sun, 02 Sep 2007 13:28:25 GMT

I have an audition on Saturday for a TIE tour to Italy (to perform sketches etc and promote learning English). They don't want a prepared monologue or anything. Does anyone have experience of this kind of audition and what I might be asked to do?

Mon, 13 Aug 2007 13:33:19 GMT

I have just finished being in a brilliant bit of open air theatre. A true story, of the fort built here in Brixham to defend the town against possible attack by Napoleon. In fact, before being finally sent off to St Helena, Napoleon was for a time anchored off Brixham. This was open air theatre, directed by one of the producers of the Onedin Line, and its been a marvellous weekend... Just wanted to share pics:). Not sure how "correct" all the costumes are, they were got from a place that hires out repro period military costumes...and this isnt the era of history I am expert on, but it was still great fun to do. (I played Mary, the main whore).

Photos from Brixhams Castle dress rehearsal (bear in mind a lot of us were playing two roles. Like Kez and I, depending on the scenes we were whores, or French Revolutionaries)

In which the soldiers learn to march....

The primeminister arrives

Captain Mercer, in charge of the Fort..

get ready for more marching........

The fencing lesson

if you loose your musket.........................

stand up straight!

Adam poses for a picture....

The King, and the Prince Of Wales. with all the harlots in the background..

A fishwife and the seargant relax behind the scenes.

Horsie!

THE FRENCH REVOLUTION:

Kez leads the howling mob!

The mob execute a filthy aristo!

NAPOLEON

Napoleon makes a speech.

TWO OF THE WHORES!

Me.

Kez.

Casting Websites

Thu, 09 Aug 2007 15:21:26 GMT

Does anyone use casting websites?
Can you recommend any? Any bad experiences with them?

agent interview/audition

Thu, 26 Jul 2007 16:49:57 GMT

I've been invited to audition for an agent in 2 weeks' time.

While I'm extremely giddy about this, I have THE FEAR.

I've never auditioned for an agent before. They asked me to prepare 1 two-minute monologue and while I think I've decided what to do, I'm not certain. I'm a classically trained actor (which is ideally the type of performance I want to primarily do) so should I audition with a classical piece? There's always more work in contempory theatre/film though, so I'm leaning towards doing a contemporary piece, with having a classical one ready should they ask to see an additional piece. What do you think? I'm also struggling with the fact that there's only so much range you can show with 1 monologue.

Also, they will be interviewing me. What can I expect?

Thu, 19 Jul 2007 10:38:41 GMT

So, what's everyone doing at the moment? Anything cool?

I'm auditioning/looking for work.

Rada Audition - entry for 2008

Mon, 02 Jul 2007 20:08:19 GMT

Hi, I'm starting to properly prepare for entry into acting schools (mainly rada, but I'm also looking into LAMDA & Saint Martin's drama course), I'd like some advice from people with that kind of experience...

Thankyou in advance :)

panto

Fri, 29 Jun 2007 10:48:18 GMT

I have an audition coming up for a TIE touring company's (M&M Productions) panto season. I've never done, or even seen, a panto before and they haven't asked us to prepare much, only an acapella verse and chorus of a popular song. I'm not much of a singer, but they said not to worry as there are loads of non-singing roles and we'd be given part of the script to read at the audition. I imagine pantos to be like a musical for children, but with fewer songs than your average musical with larger than life archetypal characters. Am I correct? Is there anything else I should bear in mind at the audition?

tips?

Wed, 20 Jun 2007 11:02:00 GMT

How do you all cope with being in between engagements? I've been home for about a month now after finishing a 4 and a bit month tour, and am quite depressed because I'm not working (other than day-jobbing). I'm submitting myself for everything I'm able and have had a few auditions, but so far the only thing that came through is an expenses-only student film in Brighton.

I feel quite guilty for even feeling down as the average Equity actor works 11.3 weeks a year, and so far I've worked 15 and the year's only half over. I'm being as proactive as I can, but still feel stuck.

So, what do you do to cheer yourself up (without spending much money) when you're not working?

Also, what are you all working on at the moment?

reach for the stars...

Fri, 15 Jun 2007 12:55:06 GMT

What's your dream job?

Mine's acting at Shakespeare's Globe, but I'd settle for the RSC. :-)

Link suggestions

Wed, 13 Jun 2007 11:03:41 GMT

I'd like to make a list of useful professional links on the info page. I can cover the acting-related ones (job sites, Equity, etc.) but I don't know what would be important to include about other professions in theatre. Also, any theatre links that are vital or interesting to a UK theatre professional would be great.

Thanks in advance!

Threat?

Mon, 04 Jun 2007 11:46:16 GMT

In a recent interview, Elaine Paige was asked, "What's the greatest threat to theatre today?"
Her answer?
Reality TV shows like Any Dream Will Do. Actors already striving in the theatre wouldn't dream of putting themselves on these shows; it means that only about 10% of the talent out there is being auditioned for parts.
What does anyone else think about this? Do you think Any Dream Will Do is taking away the importance of the traditional audition and casting process or is it a good way to find new talent that wouldn't otherwise get the chance?