To celebrate the fact that we have Ellie back for a little while I asked her to write the blog...and here it is in all it's thoughtful glory...
2010 has already been a year of huge upheaval for me. Saying goodbye to Edinburgh and all the wonderful friends I had there still gives me a knot in my stomach. Regardless of the fact that they are both only a train journey away it’s still not the same as being amongst them everyday. And being back home has all changed too. Not only is Wakefield covered in new buildings and gaping holes where I thought other things should be, but so many of the people I was hoping to see have all gone too! However, it was lovely to have the Black Company to come back to and it I was both nervous and excited about what the new term would bring.
Without the safety net of Chinazo and Poppy and Nadz, I was feeling slightly uneasy. Although, it was lovely to see some old faces I felt nonetheless daunted by a group that had been working together week after week without me. But somehow, it felt like I’d never been away at all!
In the Black Company, we are currently looking at the concept of ‘Secrets’- a subject pregnant with connotations. After brainstorming in our first session we were broken down into groups and given a genre of theatre and three of the words that we had made associations with and devised pieces centred around these. Each of the performances dealt with different interpretations of secrets and ranged from the abstract to the humorous to the darkly beautiful and sombre. Some of the pieces were genuinely heartening and thought provoking. ‘Secrets’ could have been played in a very straight and obvious way but all of the groups came up with an interesting and original spin on it and I think it will be really interesting to build on these further and see how they can be developed into a longer piece.
Sarah hit upon one particular aspect of a performance, which was the idea of ‘polished memories’- the idea that sometimes we perhaps deliberately forget bad aspects of our pasts or of people so that we are left with only happy memories. I really like this, the idea of a conceived idyll where all isn’t as it seems…but there are still so many different things to explore that I’m struggling to get my head around it.
On Wednesday, Sarah held a question and answer session with the comedian/ writer/ actor Ray Peacock. It was held in the Orangery, which is a lovely, quaint building hidden behind Westgate Train Station. It was really interesting to hear Ray’s perspective on the industry. He has an almost overwhelming confidence and an incredible presence, which must translate wonderfully on stage. Although his experiences may not be directly applicable to what I hope to do in the future, I think that there were many things that came out from his answers that apply to most people who work creatively: most crucially, to work at it; that the quick way may not be the most fulfilling and to always enjoy what you do. Personally, I think I need to become more disciplined with my writing and set aside time every day to make sure I get something down… anything down.
So to conclude, this term has got off to what I feel is an exciting, intriguing start. To mirror Michael in the last blog: Yew Tree is now my best of the week.
2010 has already been a year of huge upheaval for me. Saying goodbye to Edinburgh and all the wonderful friends I had there still gives me a knot in my stomach. Regardless of the fact that they are both only a train journey away it’s still not the same as being amongst them everyday. And being back home has all changed too. Not only is Wakefield covered in new buildings and gaping holes where I thought other things should be, but so many of the people I was hoping to see have all gone too! However, it was lovely to have the Black Company to come back to and it I was both nervous and excited about what the new term would bring.
Without the safety net of Chinazo and Poppy and Nadz, I was feeling slightly uneasy. Although, it was lovely to see some old faces I felt nonetheless daunted by a group that had been working together week after week without me. But somehow, it felt like I’d never been away at all!
In the Black Company, we are currently looking at the concept of ‘Secrets’- a subject pregnant with connotations. After brainstorming in our first session we were broken down into groups and given a genre of theatre and three of the words that we had made associations with and devised pieces centred around these. Each of the performances dealt with different interpretations of secrets and ranged from the abstract to the humorous to the darkly beautiful and sombre. Some of the pieces were genuinely heartening and thought provoking. ‘Secrets’ could have been played in a very straight and obvious way but all of the groups came up with an interesting and original spin on it and I think it will be really interesting to build on these further and see how they can be developed into a longer piece.
Sarah hit upon one particular aspect of a performance, which was the idea of ‘polished memories’- the idea that sometimes we perhaps deliberately forget bad aspects of our pasts or of people so that we are left with only happy memories. I really like this, the idea of a conceived idyll where all isn’t as it seems…but there are still so many different things to explore that I’m struggling to get my head around it.
On Wednesday, Sarah held a question and answer session with the comedian/ writer/ actor Ray Peacock. It was held in the Orangery, which is a lovely, quaint building hidden behind Westgate Train Station. It was really interesting to hear Ray’s perspective on the industry. He has an almost overwhelming confidence and an incredible presence, which must translate wonderfully on stage. Although his experiences may not be directly applicable to what I hope to do in the future, I think that there were many things that came out from his answers that apply to most people who work creatively: most crucially, to work at it; that the quick way may not be the most fulfilling and to always enjoy what you do. Personally, I think I need to become more disciplined with my writing and set aside time every day to make sure I get something down… anything down.
So to conclude, this term has got off to what I feel is an exciting, intriguing start. To mirror Michael in the last blog: Yew Tree is now my best of the week.
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