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Showing posts from December, 2012
And James B sent this a little too late to enter our competition but I felt it was too nice not to share with you... So describing yew tree, I couldn't do that. It's not tall or small It's not thin, it's not fat. Instead it is something, Much different to these. For its bold and it's brave But I'll spare you the cheese. So we started quite small. And went on to grow. To thornes and to Wakefield! We put on our shows But that isn't all, For now we've branched out. We help those in need. And that's a good shout. So the small little reaches of those drury lane Have expanded. So quickly. And now it's quite plain... That yew tree is awesome, and brilliant, a ball. Doesn't have to thin, fat, tall or small. And I know it's been short, But I'll leave you with this. In a world with depression, We're one sign of bliss.
A guest blog from a parent is a joyful thing...so here you are! This blogs from a parent and its true to say Yew Tree Youth Theatre get in my way Now don't get me wrong Don't shake your fists in the air What I need to say is that I'd like to share All the good stuff they do, they dance and they sing They read poems out loud they act, write and everything! On a wednesday they meet to write all manner of stuff Sometimes they perform it and its never rough Their standards are high and this is clear to see In polished performances at Nostell Priory They are a delight to behold time and again As You Like It, my favourite, a real gem Now these young people are bright shining stars Nurtured by Yew Tree, they're sure to go far In whatever they do whichever path they take They are sure to succeed make no mistake For I've watched them grow, sulk, laugh and cry But at the end of the day Yew Tree taught them to fly So thank you Yew Tree for getting in my way Im really very ha

YTYT 2012

Every week we bring you up to date with our adventures with a blog from me and at least one from a member of the youth theatre - as we approach a brand new year I thought it might be nice if a whole heap of people got to share their YTYT highlight of the year...so here you go... So many good things happen at Yew Tree that I've found it too difficult to pick a highlight of the year. For me, the highlight of coming to Yew Tree is the feeling you get when you walk through the doors and sit in a circle. It's also the feeling you get when you're performing with your company - a big performance on a stage in front of an audience or just a tiny five-minute improvisation for your group on a Saturday morning. The highlight of coming to Yew Tree is when you've said your best and your worst and you can let go of everything that's happened in your week, seeing everyone else letting go of all the chaos that they carry around with them in their day-to-day liv
And our final guest blog is by Michael Brown! Ladies and Gentlemen, welcome to my blog. This particular blog is focus’ on one thing we all know and love… Me. I am of course joking; this blog is about Christmas, more specifically Yew Tree Christmas (The best kind). I think I’ll start by once again congratulating everyone in Yew Tree for doing so well in the Christmas performances. ‘Round of applause’ It just reminds you how talented young people can be. I however did not get the pleasure of viewing any of the other performances on the actual night as for the fist time I was in three of the Christmas shows. That’s a lot of shows. I did however get to watch some during the all-day tech rehearsal which was a joy. The tech always makes me feel Christmassy. Anyway after the experience of the Christmas shows another Yew Tree year was over… Oh, wait… What’s that? There’s still the morning games session? Well that’s not half bad is it? And so a short while passed and we found our selves at Th
And Bobbie sent this lovely entry So, it’s a Monday morning and Sarah asked if anyone wanted to do a blog. I jumped straight in there. The main reason is because this year at Yew-Tree has been different from the other four. Which, in a way, is a good thing. As I’m sure a lot of you know, I was in Green Company since I was 11 (and if you didn’t know you do now.) I loved Green so much and it was so much fun. But this year, it had to close. We didn’t have enough people and at the end of the school year at least half of us would be leaving because we were turning 16. The last session of Green was lovely though. All of us broke into our piggy banks and got a little something for Danny, Alice and Charlotte to show our appreciation for each of them. We even roped in some old members to sign some of the cards. I loved Green, and I miss it a lot, but if it hadn’t have been for it closing then I would never have gone to Gold, and met some of the most amazing people ever, and get to be a f
Hannah who left officially quite some time ago but thankfully keeps coming back to us also blogged... I’d had a bit of a stressful week the last week of uni. One of my modules meant I couldn’t come see the Christmas shows, I had an assessment on the last day of term, the rest of my housemates had already gone home for Christmas and it was really icy so I kept slipping. By Friday night I wasn’t in a good mood because I was also going to miss the Christmas games session and I really wanted to play drama games and just have a bit of Yew Tree in my life…so I got on a train and came home a day early. And left all my stuff in Hull, which my dad wasn’t too pleased about. But I made it for the games session. Which was lovely and Christmassy and it was so nice to see people. That’s the lovely thing about Yew Tree, you can go off to uni and be away for absolutely ages but you’re always welcome back. Its like a second family. The games session was brilliant, I really don’t think we could’ve f

Merry Christmas 2012

I was watching Strictly last night – a guilty pleasure, try not to judge me – and I was struck by the amount of superlatives used to respond to the dancing that was going on.   The words amazing, excellent, brilliant, perfect, superb were rolled out with ridiculous frequency…so much so that their meaning became diffused and diluted.   It made me think about how this applies to the youth theatre, how audiences and people involved, including myself, respond to the work that is produced, the distances individuals and companies travel and the way you all work together.   Often I find myself searching for new words that will truly capture your achievements and then find myself falling back on those overused superlatives…but I’ve now decided that this is ok and I’ll tell you why… First they are used by someone who has an awareness that not everything to do with YTYT is brilliant or perfect, nothing is in the real world.   I am aware of the sacrifices people make to be ab
Hannah from Sapphire wrote this lovely blog... Okay so I may have only started Yew Tree in September, but when Sarah needed some bloggers I thought I may as well volunteer. When I started Yew Tree, I was so nervous- I mean whenever you start something new, your nervous, right? I guess I just really wanted to fit in! Everyone at Sapphire was so lovely, and really made me feel really welcome. I never imagined I would love coming to Sapphire so much, but it's just so fun, you know? Like when we do best and worst, you just automatically end up in hysterics, because there is always someone with some completely random and crazy thing that has happened to them that week. And on the other end of the scale- if you've had some really rubbish thing happen, coming to Yew Tree just seems to put you in a good mood! The competitiveness of Ninja Warriors always makes me laugh, and I love Danny's voice warm ups, although Lottie and me are usually laughing so much it
And finally Jack with his take on the Christmas shows... So another year is nearly gone, and with it another round of Yew Tree Christmas shows. And here’s a blog about them. For starters, well done. Everyone who was in one of the shows did brilliantly and demonstrated the absolute wealth of talent we have in yew tree. Course, it hasn’t all happened in a week. The shows were being worked on for months, and it really showed. We had audience members laughing and crying, totally in awe of what they were watching. So yeah. Be proud.   To get a bit more in depth, last Sunday, when we went for the techs, it didn’t feel like it had been a year since we’d been there last. It felt like we were somewhere familiar and somewhere we knew we could show what Yew Tree is all about. Since i decided to go for the full day of the techs, being a Yew Tree junkie and all, it was a day filled with a great atmosphere, from the younger companies with their amazement of being on a stage, through to the veteran
Mr James Budenburg Ladies and Gentlemen The games session was great. I love yew tree. Wish I could stay forever. Sure we’re all thinking that after Saturday but it was just great. The level of support that everybody gave to everyone was brilliant and also weird in way. Just because you wouldn’t expect a bunch of people to gel like that on first meeting one another. I’ve been at YT three years now and there were still new faces in the room. That’s something that I think made it even better, made it new.   On Saturday when we we’re making the Christmas jingle we took input from every person and in all the sessions in creativity there’s normally someone that sits back. There wasn’t on Saturday and we got a ton of ideas because of it. We started with an idea that had been had previously and through everyone’s inputs and a mean girl’s quote we made something that I think we can all be proud of. I mean. In our group there was a member of crimson, gold, Sapphire and black and one that didn’

It's all about the company...

Oh the joy of the Yew Tree Youth Theatre Christmas shows!   It really is the most wonderful time of the year!   Such happiness and accomplishment and entertainment and in such abundance too!   As I sit here typing in a house that is the quietest and sleepiest it has been able to be in weeks I am aware of how fulfilled the whole event has left me…there really is nothing else quite like it… One of the main reasons for this is the ethos of being a company that runs through everything we do…that sense of unity we have is priceless and provides the foundations that allow anything to be possible. Let’s start with the artists…having directors of the calibre of Gemma and Danny directing and creating theatre with the expertise of Oz heading up the technical aspects of the show means from the start the bar is set high.   However at the centre of our creative process is an approach that scaffolds and supports the actors journey to meeting that high standard not demands th
Olena wrote this blog after being a genie all week... All that glitters in here is gold, or ruby, or SAPPHIRE... So, it’s that time of year again; shopping for presents, putting up the tree, open mic night and the famous Yew Tree Youth Theatre Christmas productions. The past few weeks have been marvellous (for me anyway). Rehearsals went by fast and before we knew it we were all off script and performing in front a live audience. The performance itself was fantastic and both nights ran smoothly, timing was perfect and I’ve been told volume was really good as well.   Personally, I think Sam played the part of Aladdin fantastically well and I can’t think of a better person for the role. Both teams of narrators told the story beautifully and I thoroughly enjoyed watching it all unfold on the TV screen backstage. The Genies were particularly magical, if I do say so myself, and Brittany and I really are going to miss being able to dance on stage like it was the na
And the Christmas shows inspired Mel to write a blog... The christmas shows have come and gone And how they were a treat With 7 different companies Who were made buns galore to eat Over 170 members Within the 2 short days Brave enough to stand up tall And perform their plays on stage Sarah, Gemma and Danny (Plus all the volunteers) Helped each week to raise the bar And how the audience cheered For many of us it was the last Because of things to come Time for us to finally grow up So little ones, enjoy the fun We promise you we will come back Year upon each year Because for every single one of us Yew Tree is so very dear!
Amy Winder sent me this on Thursday night... After the Christmas shows, I'm tired, aching and still too buzzing from being on stage to even think of going to sleep. With fairies, caves, elves, soldiers, Hansel and Gretal and Christmas songs, this years performances will be memorable for all the right reasons. It's been amazing to be a part of two plays this year and seeing them come to life has been extraordinary, especially being able to see Aladdin from the narrators perspective (and seeing my brilliant brother play Aladdin). I loved the one play I got to see (a downside of being in two companies) and everyone I've asked loved the performances they saw. Playing Poppy has been a great experience for me and I've loved every minute of it. I enjoyed playing such a bold character because in real life I would never have the chance to repeatedly declare my love for someone. I'm proud of everyone at sapphire and gold and I'm really proud of how far I've
Yasmin volunteered to do the blog brilliant person that she is! So this week was everyone’s last rehearsal before the dress rehearsal on Sunday. We had a very intense rehearsal at Black Company but it was all worth it because I think we’ve got a brilliant play to perform on Thursday night! I’ve found this one of the most difficult rehearsal processes I’ve had so far at Yew Tree because of the serious and real nature of some of the scenes and relationships between characters. For me, a lot of it has been about finding a balance between playing situations with such high stakes naturalistically and convincingly. ‘The Bridge’ is completely different from last year’s Christmas performance which I think makes it even more exciting.   Another company who had their last rehearsal on Thursday were the lovely Ambers!!! This week Gemma filmed their performance so that they could watch it back and some of them definitely surprised themselves with how wonderful they can be!! (and had a

Having a voice...

I’m writing the blog on Friday night…a rare thing…mostly I write the blog on a Sunday, occasionally on a Saturday night if I get chance but this week it’s being written a day or so early… There are a number of reasons for this… 1.   I have a jam packed weekend – Saturday = Gold + Filming + Connections…Sunday = a whole day of tech/dress rehearsals for a whole load of brilliant Christmas shows… 2.   I literally can not talk…I have no voice at all…when I try to talk normally a pathetic hoarse whisper emerges – which means the normal wrapping up of the day/week that would usually occur with Oz at about this time is out and our planning for the weekend is too much like hard work so that’s gone by the wayside too…this, as you can imagine, has sparked a whole host of thoughts for me… It’s the strangest of feelings… twice this evening (my voice only went at 6.45 tonight when I finished teaching) I have wanted to seriously challenge someone on something they said but I

Things I'd say to you everyday...

It’s that time of the year when I start to feel a little crazed…I have seven Christmas performances in rehearsals that are almost on the brink of being good…almost but not quite…it’s so frustrating!   The desire to create Christmas Camp is overwhelming…get all of the performers out of school for a week so I can work with them full time to achieve the huge potential they all have to be brilliant…but apparently that’s not allowed so instead I have written a list of the things I want all Youth Theatre actors to have at the front of their head during their last week of rehearsals but possibly more importantly in between – if they could think around these things for some time every day that would my ideal situation… So here we are…Yew Tree Youth Theatre members please: Say your lines every day out loud…in your head doesn’t get it done – it means they are theoretically learnt not practically learnt…it has to be out loud…only then will you have the confidence to apply in