Making Halloween Happen...

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I have a strange job…it’s great but it’s strange…the Halloween at Nostell project has been a perfect illustration of the strangeness...and as I sit here on the eve of the week in which it will actually happen I’m reflecting on all the things that have been done to get it to this point…

Months in advance…

There were the preliminary meetings – just a couple - where I planned with one of the Nostell team how things were going to work…this all went smoothly…should have known this wasn’t a good sign…from this an artistic idea for the courtyard theatre emerged and further consultation with another member of the team was planned for the attics…

I wrote up the concept for Little Beth and was pleased with it – the second draft anyway – and then hit writers block…the worst case I’ve had in a while…well that and the fact that I had about 3 other scripts to write too didn’t help…

In the meantime I started recruiting youth theatre members to take part – the take up was slow at first but gradually the pace picked up and by the end I’d got a team of about 20 actors from 3 different companies a lot of whom had not taken part in extra Yew Tree Youth Theatre work before…delighted by this I pressed on with the planning…

Still suffering from writers block for Little Beth I managed, after a lot of persistence, to find some time with the other member of the team and set up a meeting to discuss the attics tour.  Again I emerged from our chats thinking I had a clear idea of where we were going with it…

Weeks in advance…

Still creatively challenged regarding the script writing I sorted costumes, started writing the attics scenes…tried to compile a rehearsal schedule…got really annoyed with my inability to find the time and inspiration to write Little Beth and juggled all the rest of the projects until…

Final meeting with Nostell…all is well with Little Beth planning – all I still needed to do with that was actually sit down write it but I realised once I started talking to the team at Nostell that what I thought was happening in the attic and what they thought was happening were very, very different ideas…momentary panic on everyone’s parts.  Then thankfully something beautiful happened and instead of everyone getting territorial and angsty about it all parties sat down and worked together until a plan that suited everyone was constructed.  The feeling of relief as I left was significant as was the wish that all stumbling blocks in life could be negotiated so effectively…I was only a little sad as I tore up the attic scripts I had written that were no longer needed and started to redeploy actors and then…

HAPPY DAY!!!…seized with inspiration Little Beth was written with no further hitches and if I say so myself I’m pretty pleased with it – not my most polished work but we can smooth the rough edges in rehearsal…finally I feel like it’s all possible and that it’s all going to be rather good…

Days in advance…

However…when the cast arrive it all gets interesting once again…there are misunderstandings about the schedule, sudden announcements of necessary  absences, costume challenges, people who find that they can’t do it at all at the last moment, last minute sign ups, people who have a particular idea of what they want to do that doesn’t necessarily fit in with what Nostell want.  I’m sensitive and empathetic to people’s situations and I hate the thought of people not enjoying being part of it but I’m also working to commission and have to produce something that suits Nostell.  Consequently there is a final week of many exchanges via text, facebook and sometimes even in person culminating in a Sunday in negotiations with at least four of the cast to find a plan that suits everyone…I hope they are the last because I’m going to see Skyfall in an hour and so will be out of touch…so please everyone else be ok with everything…

A strange job indeed, producer, writer, director, casting agent, administrator, costume, stage management, props …you name it…over the last couple of months I’ve done it all and this is just one project of many…still one thing is certain, it will be worth it in the end…and tomorrow I have that lovely thing to look forward to when I start to hand it all over to the immensely talented cast of performers…so if you’re not in it come and see the fruits of our labour…Nostell Priory…31st of October to the 2nd of November 6 – 9pm I’ll be the one on the sidelines looking less and less anxious as the week progresses and the event takes on that magic that happens when my youth theatre get on stage…see you there hopefully…


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