I wasn't altogether happy with the posters I'd designed previously, so I got some advice from a professional poster designer on what may have been wrong with them.
His advice was spot-on and helped me to see some of the mistakes I'd made.
The concept was OK, and I've kept that (thanks Jo!) but the old poster was too 'busy' and cluttered and one's eye didn't know where to look next. Hopefully I've addressed the issues and made a design which is clearer, more concise and easier to read.
Click the poster over to the right there and let me know what you think...
Friday 28 December 2007
Thursday 13 December 2007
Character Notes
I spent some time recently going through the play making notes on each of the characters. Nothing too in-depth yet, but enough for people to know how to pitch a performance at audition and to give us something to build on in rehearsals.
It's nearly Christmas now and though we don't start rehearsals until early March, the time seems to be slipping past very quickly now. Auditions will be in late February and we will have a read-through in January so that the whole group can hear the play and decide whether they want to take part, or not.
I've also put together my rehearsal script. I take a photocopy of my script, blown up from A5 to A4, with the text on the left-hand page. The blank right-hand pages can be divided into columns for recording ideas about characters' actions, motivations, moves and any other ideas or notes which come to mind. This works alongside the 'official' prompt copy which our SM will keep and acts as a useful aide-memoire for discussions on characterisation.
It's nearly Christmas now and though we don't start rehearsals until early March, the time seems to be slipping past very quickly now. Auditions will be in late February and we will have a read-through in January so that the whole group can hear the play and decide whether they want to take part, or not.
I've also put together my rehearsal script. I take a photocopy of my script, blown up from A5 to A4, with the text on the left-hand page. The blank right-hand pages can be divided into columns for recording ideas about characters' actions, motivations, moves and any other ideas or notes which come to mind. This works alongside the 'official' prompt copy which our SM will keep and acts as a useful aide-memoire for discussions on characterisation.
Friday 7 December 2007
Audition Dates
I've booked the hall for the auditions (Feb 25th and 28th, if you're interested), so now I just need to forge on with putting together an audition pack. I can't quite decide whether I will include extracts from the play in the pack to use as audition pieces. Part of me wants to do something different this time around. I may use some extracts from a different Wilde play and spend some time playing games and doing improvs, just to see how people react to that.
In other news, my very favourite stage manager has agreed to SM the show. Thank you Lyn! I can't emphasise enough how secure it makes me feel to have a good SM on board from the get-go. Not only do I know that the show itself will run like clockwork, from the tech rehearsal onwards, but there's also the small matter of knowing that all those decisions made in rehearsal will be diligently recorded in The Book for ongoing reference. It's also grand to have an extra pair of eyes, able to catch things that I may not spot straight away.
Actually, I'll have TWO extra pairs of eyes helping me in this production. One of the group, Lisel, would like to start learning about directing and has asked to be assistant director for the production. I'm glad to help and very willing to share my meagre knowledge, but I do worry slightly that I'm not a natural teacher by any means. I'm sure Lisel would be glad to do any odd jobs that may need doing - and I'll be glad of the help - but I have to make sure that I don't take that assistance for granted!
In other news, my very favourite stage manager has agreed to SM the show. Thank you Lyn! I can't emphasise enough how secure it makes me feel to have a good SM on board from the get-go. Not only do I know that the show itself will run like clockwork, from the tech rehearsal onwards, but there's also the small matter of knowing that all those decisions made in rehearsal will be diligently recorded in The Book for ongoing reference. It's also grand to have an extra pair of eyes, able to catch things that I may not spot straight away.
Actually, I'll have TWO extra pairs of eyes helping me in this production. One of the group, Lisel, would like to start learning about directing and has asked to be assistant director for the production. I'm glad to help and very willing to share my meagre knowledge, but I do worry slightly that I'm not a natural teacher by any means. I'm sure Lisel would be glad to do any odd jobs that may need doing - and I'll be glad of the help - but I have to make sure that I don't take that assistance for granted!
Tuesday 20 November 2007
Only 6 months to go!
I've been making some progress on the pre-production of the play.
A tentative schedule has been mapped-out and I've started working on a scene breakdown.
I've also created a couple of poster designs which you can see at my other blog.
A tentative schedule has been mapped-out and I've started working on a scene breakdown.
I've also created a couple of poster designs which you can see at my other blog.
Thursday 20 September 2007
Friday 14 September 2007
Scripts
This week I’ve ordered the scripts for our production. Sixteen of them, for the ten actors and various backstage depatrments (stage management, lighting, sound, costume, design, props).
Being members of NODA we’ve got a decent deal on the scripts; normally they cost £7.50 each, plus delivery. But NODA are able to get them at 15% off, with free delivery too.
Being members of NODA we’ve got a decent deal on the scripts; normally they cost £7.50 each, plus delivery. But NODA are able to get them at 15% off, with free delivery too.
Thursday 6 September 2007
License To Kill
Received the license quotation from Samuel French today. £75 per performance, or £300 in total.
Wednesday 5 September 2007
Accepted
Well, Lord Arthur Savile's Crime has been accepted as Ottershaw Players' May 2008 production at the Rhoda McGaw theatre. Which is nice.
And lucky, as it means that this little blog will continue to exist!
Quite a bit of pre-production work then to look at over the next couple of months. I need to prepare a budget and design some artwork for the posters.
I will also make an early approach to our design team to think of imaginitive ways of avoiding the box set. I always think that a box set has to be done superlatively well to look good. An open set can look more stylish, more easily and for less money. I was particularly struck by some pictures we saw of the set for The Big House at the Abbey Theatre, Dublin, recently. Can't find any good ones online, but they conveyed a rather grand salon-type room with free-standing windows and doorways and used scrims behind these to project birch trees and leaf gobos. Very effective.
I've approached a potential stage manager and I'm waiting for their answer. Fingers crossed, as a good SM makes all the difference between an average and a great show.
And lucky, as it means that this little blog will continue to exist!
Quite a bit of pre-production work then to look at over the next couple of months. I need to prepare a budget and design some artwork for the posters.
I will also make an early approach to our design team to think of imaginitive ways of avoiding the box set. I always think that a box set has to be done superlatively well to look good. An open set can look more stylish, more easily and for less money. I was particularly struck by some pictures we saw of the set for The Big House at the Abbey Theatre, Dublin, recently. Can't find any good ones online, but they conveyed a rather grand salon-type room with free-standing windows and doorways and used scrims behind these to project birch trees and leaf gobos. Very effective.
I've approached a potential stage manager and I'm waiting for their answer. Fingers crossed, as a good SM makes all the difference between an average and a great show.
Wednesday 29 August 2007
Proposal
I've put forward a proposal to the Ottershaw Players' committee to produce this play at our slot at the Rhoda McGaw theatre next May.
Below is an extract from that proposal to show what the play is about:
Introduction
The play is Lord Arthur Savile’s Crime, by Constance Cox, based on the short story by Oscar Wilde.
This proposal is for the slot at the Rhoda McGaw from 25th May to 1st June, 2008. Performance dates would be 28th – 31st May.
License
I’ve spoken to Samuel French and the amateur rights to this play are currently available for next summer.
Synopsis
The play is a black comedy, in three acts, requiring 5 male and 5 female actors.
Set in 1890, all action takes place in the drawing-room of Lord Arthur Savile’s house in Grosvenor Square, London.
Lord Arthur Savile is engaged to be married to Sybil Merton. Her mother, Lady Julia, brings Mr Podgers to a soiree being hosted by Arthur.
Podgers is a cheiromantist (not to be confused with a chiropodist!), or a palm-reader. He has become a celebrity in society by exposing scandals which have wrecked several marriages. Lady Julia wants Podgers to read Arthur’s hand to ensure that he has never done anything which would disgrace her daughter.
Podgers reads Arthur’s hand and declares him to be a good suit for marriage. However, in private, he tells Arthur that he is doomed to commit murder at some time in the future.
Arthur decides (with typical Wildean logic) that it would be best to commit the murder before he gets married, to save Sybil the embarrassment. So he plots, with his butler Baines and a German anarchist named Winkelkopf, on the best course of action.
A poisoned sweet, intended for his bankrupt aged great-aunt, Lady Clementia, finds its way into Arthur’s drink and he narrowly escapes death.
An exploding clock, intended for his Uncle, the Dean of Paddington (who should be performing the marriage ceremony, eventually) misfires, as does an exploding umbrella, also intended for the Dean.
With each failed attempted murder, Arthur is forced to postpone the wedding, leading Sybil to believe that he does not love her.
[The rest of the synopsis has been removed to avoid posting spoilers!]
Characters
A brief set of character sketches. To be expanded upon before auditions.
Lord Arthur Savile. A prototype Bertie Wooster. Posh, thick, but good-hearted, despite his inclination to murder. Age 30-40 (stated as 30 in the script, but I’m sure we can bend this if necessary). The largest part, but by no means enormous.
Baines, the butler. At least as old as Lord Arthur. Very much a Jeeves-type figure, though not infallible!
Sybil Merton, Arthur’s fiancé. Younger than Arthur. Pretty.
The Dean of Paddington. An old, but spry senror churchman. Some memory problems. Age 50+.
Lady Windermere. Arthur’s kindly great-aunt. Age 60s - 70s. Fond of gambling, she relies on Arthur for her income.
Lady Julia Merton, Sybil’s mother. Very much a “Lady Bracknell” type. Fiercely protective of Sybil and utterly dismissive of Arthur. Age 60s - 70s.
Lady Clementina Beauchamp. Age 40s - 50s. Arthur’s aunt. She knows what’s what and has a tongue to match Lady Julia’s.
Mr Podgers, the fortune-teller. Neatly dressed, fussy little man. Think Capt. Mainwaring. The opposite of the airy-fairy mysterious fortune-teller you would expect. Must be over 40 years.
Nellie, the maid. Any age. Attracted to Baines.
Herr Winkelkopf. The German anarchist. Any age, 30+. Totally incompetent, though we mustn’t know that at first.
Set and Furniture
Would conventionally call for a closed box-set, but I think we can do it with two large doorways L & R (similar to our recent Habeas Corpus, though one of the entrances is necessarily ‘grander’ than the other, plus a fireplace u/stage. Walls can be suggested. We would need some period furniture, but that’s no problem if we talk to Joy early enough.
Lighting
Very simple. Nothing in the script except for each lighting state at the start of the scenes (5 of them).
Sound
A few door knocks to be done by SM offstage, plus a piece of music and a couple of explosions are necessary to the story.
Costume
Period 1890s costume will be essential.
Props
As well as the usual business (handbags, drinks, etc) this could be fun for the props department as a ‘smoking bomb’ is required. That apart (and I’m hugely confident that Claire could handle this if she wanted to) I don’t see anything tricky.
Stage Management
Some minimal striking of small props between scenes. Nothing that the actors themselves couldn’t handle. No movement of furniture or set to worry about.
Auditions and Rehearsals
Provisionally I would envisage auditions taking place just after the Farrago (if we go for the middle/end of Feb there) with rehearsals starting ASAP afterwards. This gives an 11-12 week rehearsal schedule.
Summary
This is very much a black-comedy, though with the emphasis on the “comedy” rather than the “black”! There are the expected verbal barbs and repartee you would expect from a piece based upon a Wilde story. There are also many good opportunities for excellent physical comedy.
It’s not just a comedy though. There is enough depth in the play to bring some genuine questions to the fore that still have relevance today. How far would a privileged person go to achieve their goals? How much do we really believe in fortune-tellers and mystics? To mention just two from the top of my head… We all know that the best comedies have real bite to them, and I think that this play comes into that category.
None of the characters really comes over as likeable or sympathetic, with the possible exception of Nellie, which will be a great challenge to the actors. How do we portray someone who is trying to bump-off his relatives? The audience will need, on some level, to want him to succeed! If we make them uncomfortable in feeling that way, then we’ve succeeded.
It’s a lesser-known play, which may be advantageous for those people who have seen Ernest many times, but the name of Wilde carries a huge cachet which we should emphasize in the publicity.
In the absence of any other options for the May 2008 slot, I hope that this suggestion is not merely a fait accompli, but can be regarded as a genuinely exciting opportunity to try to get “bums on seats” for our summer production.
Below is an extract from that proposal to show what the play is about:
Introduction
The play is Lord Arthur Savile’s Crime, by Constance Cox, based on the short story by Oscar Wilde.
This proposal is for the slot at the Rhoda McGaw from 25th May to 1st June, 2008. Performance dates would be 28th – 31st May.
License
I’ve spoken to Samuel French and the amateur rights to this play are currently available for next summer.
Synopsis
The play is a black comedy, in three acts, requiring 5 male and 5 female actors.
Set in 1890, all action takes place in the drawing-room of Lord Arthur Savile’s house in Grosvenor Square, London.
Lord Arthur Savile is engaged to be married to Sybil Merton. Her mother, Lady Julia, brings Mr Podgers to a soiree being hosted by Arthur.
Podgers is a cheiromantist (not to be confused with a chiropodist!), or a palm-reader. He has become a celebrity in society by exposing scandals which have wrecked several marriages. Lady Julia wants Podgers to read Arthur’s hand to ensure that he has never done anything which would disgrace her daughter.
Podgers reads Arthur’s hand and declares him to be a good suit for marriage. However, in private, he tells Arthur that he is doomed to commit murder at some time in the future.
Arthur decides (with typical Wildean logic) that it would be best to commit the murder before he gets married, to save Sybil the embarrassment. So he plots, with his butler Baines and a German anarchist named Winkelkopf, on the best course of action.
A poisoned sweet, intended for his bankrupt aged great-aunt, Lady Clementia, finds its way into Arthur’s drink and he narrowly escapes death.
An exploding clock, intended for his Uncle, the Dean of Paddington (who should be performing the marriage ceremony, eventually) misfires, as does an exploding umbrella, also intended for the Dean.
With each failed attempted murder, Arthur is forced to postpone the wedding, leading Sybil to believe that he does not love her.
[The rest of the synopsis has been removed to avoid posting spoilers!]
Characters
A brief set of character sketches. To be expanded upon before auditions.
Lord Arthur Savile. A prototype Bertie Wooster. Posh, thick, but good-hearted, despite his inclination to murder. Age 30-40 (stated as 30 in the script, but I’m sure we can bend this if necessary). The largest part, but by no means enormous.
Baines, the butler. At least as old as Lord Arthur. Very much a Jeeves-type figure, though not infallible!
Sybil Merton, Arthur’s fiancé. Younger than Arthur. Pretty.
The Dean of Paddington. An old, but spry senror churchman. Some memory problems. Age 50+.
Lady Windermere. Arthur’s kindly great-aunt. Age 60s - 70s. Fond of gambling, she relies on Arthur for her income.
Lady Julia Merton, Sybil’s mother. Very much a “Lady Bracknell” type. Fiercely protective of Sybil and utterly dismissive of Arthur. Age 60s - 70s.
Lady Clementina Beauchamp. Age 40s - 50s. Arthur’s aunt. She knows what’s what and has a tongue to match Lady Julia’s.
Mr Podgers, the fortune-teller. Neatly dressed, fussy little man. Think Capt. Mainwaring. The opposite of the airy-fairy mysterious fortune-teller you would expect. Must be over 40 years.
Nellie, the maid. Any age. Attracted to Baines.
Herr Winkelkopf. The German anarchist. Any age, 30+. Totally incompetent, though we mustn’t know that at first.
Set and Furniture
Would conventionally call for a closed box-set, but I think we can do it with two large doorways L & R (similar to our recent Habeas Corpus, though one of the entrances is necessarily ‘grander’ than the other, plus a fireplace u/stage. Walls can be suggested. We would need some period furniture, but that’s no problem if we talk to Joy early enough.
Lighting
Very simple. Nothing in the script except for each lighting state at the start of the scenes (5 of them).
Sound
A few door knocks to be done by SM offstage, plus a piece of music and a couple of explosions are necessary to the story.
Costume
Period 1890s costume will be essential.
Props
As well as the usual business (handbags, drinks, etc) this could be fun for the props department as a ‘smoking bomb’ is required. That apart (and I’m hugely confident that Claire could handle this if she wanted to) I don’t see anything tricky.
Stage Management
Some minimal striking of small props between scenes. Nothing that the actors themselves couldn’t handle. No movement of furniture or set to worry about.
Auditions and Rehearsals
Provisionally I would envisage auditions taking place just after the Farrago (if we go for the middle/end of Feb there) with rehearsals starting ASAP afterwards. This gives an 11-12 week rehearsal schedule.
Summary
This is very much a black-comedy, though with the emphasis on the “comedy” rather than the “black”! There are the expected verbal barbs and repartee you would expect from a piece based upon a Wilde story. There are also many good opportunities for excellent physical comedy.
It’s not just a comedy though. There is enough depth in the play to bring some genuine questions to the fore that still have relevance today. How far would a privileged person go to achieve their goals? How much do we really believe in fortune-tellers and mystics? To mention just two from the top of my head… We all know that the best comedies have real bite to them, and I think that this play comes into that category.
None of the characters really comes over as likeable or sympathetic, with the possible exception of Nellie, which will be a great challenge to the actors. How do we portray someone who is trying to bump-off his relatives? The audience will need, on some level, to want him to succeed! If we make them uncomfortable in feeling that way, then we’ve succeeded.
It’s a lesser-known play, which may be advantageous for those people who have seen Ernest many times, but the name of Wilde carries a huge cachet which we should emphasize in the publicity.
In the absence of any other options for the May 2008 slot, I hope that this suggestion is not merely a fait accompli, but can be regarded as a genuinely exciting opportunity to try to get “bums on seats” for our summer production.
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