News

I’m working with Keeper’s Daughter Theatre Company and Play Nicely Theatre Company on the Arts Council funded Research & Development of two new plays. Volunteers in the Huntingdon area are gathering information that will be used to inspire and create new scripts which will explore different aspects of The English Civil War.

Writer Mark Finbow said: “The research collated by the community research group will feed into the creation of two new scripts which will then be taken forward into rehearsed readings at The Key Theatre in Peterborough.”

The first play will explore the assassination attempts on Oliver Cromwell focusing on Edward Sexby and members of the Miles Sindercombe Group.

The second play will explore the fascinating lives of women who dressed as men in order to fight on the frontline during the English Civil War and highlight women’s roles in society during this time of conflict.
To find out more about the projects contact Mark Finbow at
civilwar1642@gmail.com

Great to catch-up with playwright Aisha Zia last week at the National Theatre Studio. Aisha is working with Good Chance Theatre (The Jungle) on the development of a new script exploring what it’s like to be a British Muslim Man in today’s world. Really enjoyed watching the first sharing of this work and talking to the cast about their own experiences and seeing their stories and devised movement incorporated into the rehearsed reading.

Over the past few months I’ve been working with rural touring theatre company Stuff of Dreams on their Spring Tour, An Honest Gentleman. Having seen Christchurch Mansion used as a venue for talks and theatre productions I knew it would make the perfect setting for Stuff of Dreams tale of 18th Century highwaymen (and highwaywomen!) With help from the brilliant staff at Colchester & Ipswich Museums we’ve just staged two sell-out performances of the show in the atmospheric entrance hall of this beautiful building. With the help of funding from Arts Council England we were also able to employ BSL interpreter Caroline Smith to make the second performance accessible to all our audience members. It was great to see arts and heritage combining to create a really fun, immersive and site-specific evening’s entertainment!

Just booked my place at the National Rural Touring Forum 2019 Conference taking place from July 2th – 4th in Bangor. Which led me to watch this great film showcasing the work of Artsreach who bring live performance to rural Dorset….

It’s been a real treat to work with Artistic Director Cordelia Spence, and the rest of the Stuff of Dreams Creative team , over the past few months as we have busily booked venues, struck deals, gained funding, and madly marketed the theatre company’s latest production, An Honest Gentleman. Cordelia has done so much more than this of course, in her additional roles as co-writer and director! In my part-time producer capacity, I have introduced the company to some new people and places that will hopefully become regular features in the future. And so, Friday saw the first night of the tour….at the wonderfully warm and welcoming Beccles Public Hall….and then a suitably rousing response from the people of Sudbury at St Peter’s Church on Saturday night….hurrah!

The show is now on the road until May 24th and all the details are here: http://www.stuffofdreamstheatre.com

Now looking forward to working on their summer/autumn programme!

Great to hear Murray Lachlan Young reviewing the papers on BBC Radio 4 with Paddy O’Connell on Broadcasting House yesterday morning….yoga, Eeyore, and BBC Radio 2 veteran ‘Diddy David Hamilton’ all featured…..“podcasting is swearing with a bit of radio thrown in”, said Murray.