This week at Yew Tree

Breakthroughs

2012-01-29T15:34:00.004Z

This week has been agood week…we’ve been successful with some funding bids which means in the nextmonth or so YTYT will expand to encompass not just one new group but two…one inNormanton and one in Portabello. It’s also been a good week artistically as we have had realbreakthroughs in the rehearsal room.

Firstly ourConnections production, “Journey to X,” jumped into a whole new phaseyesterday…scenes and aspects of the play that had been evading us werevanquished and discoveries were made that will in turn shape the rest of theplay. It’s at times like this youglimpse sight of the quality of performance that might be possible and alsobecome aware of just how much effort you’re going to need to achieve it. However when you catch that glimpse itgives you the motivation you need to get there, or at least it should. I know that when I saw scene 1 speedingalong at a place that was both breathtaking and necessary it inspired me towant to help the actors make everything that good.

It feels like I can’tnot mention Encounters this week…this Thursday sees the VIP launch and Sunday,the public premier of possibly my most high profile production to date. To get the chance to write and directsomething like this is at once a privilege and a responsibility…I’m so very excitedand equally pretty terrified. However there were breakthroughs in the rehearsal room for that thisweek too…we made a discovery that in addition to the actors needing to knowtheir characters and present them with integrity they also needed to focus onthe interaction that lies between them…the resulting development in the openrehearsal performance was significant…suddenly there was something that theaudience could really engage with, respond to, relate to. I so hope all of you will support isand come and see it one Sunday at the Hepworth in February.

Is there a wider pointhere…I think so and I think that it is this…no matter how much experience youhave and how many performances you’ve been involved with and indeed what levelof production you’re working on the key to success will never just showitself. You have to search andexperiment and reflect and discover and in tat process you’ll find the key tothe breakthrough you need…as I said so very exciting and pretty terrifying…

2012-01-29T15:34:00.001Z

Our second in the series of drama at higher education blogs...thanks to Alex...

Alex Palmer - Studying Drama at theUniversity of Exeter.

My experience of studying drama has beenbrilliant. The course here in Exeter has a great divide between the academic/theory based work (which is normally one lecture and then a follow-upseminar a week) and then practical work which is structured into 3 three hourlong sessions.

The beauty of the course here is that no matter if you are interested in thetheory or the practice, they are never very far away from each other. When youare in a lecture learning about a practitioner, you are thinking also aboutputting the theory into practice on stage or in a session. Also, whilst in apractical session you are always thinking about the theory behind what you aredoing.

The course gives a great grounding in allsorts of theatre practices. You learn pretty much all the influentialpractitioners of the 20^th and 21^st century. Also, youlearn how to analyse performance – which was especially exciting for me as Ihave aims of becoming a director. And this is just first year! But it’s not alltheory! The diverse range of staff here offer so many choices in what you wantto do practically!

Not only do you get a broad choice ofmodules because the department is so large, you also are assured that they aregoing to be quality as the staff at Exeter are world-leaders at what they do.

No matter what you want to go into thecourse is so broad and you have the option to keep it broad, or choose yourmodules (in year 2+3) specifically tailored to you. From the degree, peoplehave gone onto be TV presenters, journalists, directors, producers, andpractitioners or have got in to drama school. What attracted me to the coursespecifically was the amount of theatre companies that came out of the courseand the societies. Companies such as ‘PunchDrunk’ (an immersive theatre company),‘Wrights and Sites’ (a site specific theatre company) and ‘Theatre Alibi’(mainly working with children’s theatre).

The societies also have a lot to offer,even if you’re not studying drama, anyone can get involved. There is a ‘Writers Bloc’ where you can decide to write,direct or perform in an original piece of work – performed to the public everyfortnight. (this is really easy to get involved with!) There is also a ‘COMPROV’ night based at the Bike Shedtheatre, run by Exeter students, which is an improvisational comedy night heldonce a month. And there are obviously the theatre companies (societies) that anyone can get involvedwith; the biggest being EUTCo(Exeter University Theatre Company) and they put on straight plays that areplayed to the paying public at the Northcott Theatre (Exeter’s biggest theatre)– with EUTCo you can do pretty much anything from perform, to direct, to stagemanagement, to producing, to painting the set!

You are never far away from theatre andperformance in Exeter, you can choose how much or how little you want to throwyourself into things, the department is great and the societies andopportunities for students is superb!

2012-01-29T15:31:00.004Z

Rhiann Blogs with a Journey to X update...

In less than a month, we’ll perform Journey To X (crazy or what?!). So with all this pressure, we’ve made so much progress since the last time someone blogged about Connections, and we’ve come so far with the whole piece.

This is my second year of Connections and this year, I’ve learnt so many new way of acting and building my character up – since my character, Sarah, is the one who says things at inappropriate times as you’ll see. One of the big things I’ve learnt is to never compare a character you’re playing to one in the past that you’ve played since they are all unique and this has made me see that Sarah is totally different to Lilly who I played in Shooting Truth so I had to stop comparing them. I’ve learned to make sure that you don’t drop lines, even the really small ones since they can hint at massive parts of the story and relationships between the characters such as how Sarah makes other characters feel and how she reacts. Another thing I have learnt from this play is how to deal with subjects that are very delicate as I have never acted in a play which is based around these topics so it was a big jump for me, yet I’ve picked up how to treat it and understand the context which we help me if I ever have to take part in a play around these subjects again. I’ve realised also that my character relates to people in my life too but also Sarah’s 14 which makes it less than a year ago that I would have been like her with the characteristics.

So that’s my views on Connections 2k12 so far but it’s not the end since after the performances at Cathedral (which I’m hoping you’ll all come to so you can cheer us on!), we have Kendal which is really exciting! And one last thing, I’ve loved every minute of it so far and I hope you’re all as excited as we are for Journey To X to be shown.
Bye for now lovelies! xo

Technique v. Art

2012-01-22T19:44:00.002Z

I’ve been thinking a lot about therelationship between technique and art this week…it’s something that has comeup in a number of different guises both in rehearsals and workshops.

Probably the most obvious one was the stagefighting workshop at Gold…after outlining six very basic techniques Danny and Iasked the participants to use them in a creative way…the results were variedand brilliant…of a much higher standard than I expected as I thought the taskwas going to prove pretty challenging. What was really very clear though is that the best moments inall of them were those where both technique and art were in perfect balance…toomuch of the first and a performance comes across as empty, unengaging andultimately pointless…too much of the latter and at best the performance lacksfocus at worst in the case of stage fighting it is simply unsafe.

In acting and the making of performancetechnique allows us to stand on the shoulders of those that have come beforeus…who have identified that in order for a performance to reach an audience andbe received in the way that the writer, director, performers intended…vocal,communication, physical, mental, emotional elements of acting need to beharnessed, developed, perfected and embedded. Without projection for example the most exquisiteinterpretation of a scene is lost, without the realisation of character thebest script in the world remains one dimensional…the list goes on…

This term for most companies is all aboutintroducing and developing your technique, enriching your knowledge andbroadening your experience. Thoseof you who are prepared to really commit to the workshops and be open to whatthey might teach you have the chance to grow significantly as a performer andpractitioner…and who knows where that might take you!

2012-01-22T19:43:00.002Z

Hello Wonderful People Of Yew-Tree! Bobbie from Green here!
Let's just kick of by saying, I love physical theatre.
I didn't just say that because I was being random. No, Monday's session was focused around it and it's been so long since we've done any of it.
I actually love Physical Theatre, but I can't quite place my finger on why. Maybe it's because of the concentration that was in the room, or the way we all moved, with so much grace or maybe even the music that played while we were, for want of a better word, creating. It was surreal, to see the people who you least expect, moving with purpose and grace, even the self proclaimed, Kayleigh managed not to fall over and was fantastic at it. True, all of us have to make more of an effort with creating effort while performing with physical theatre at the base, but everyone needs to start somewhere and this weeks session were brilliant base blocks for that.
I wanted to mention something about me having to move away from Green and up to Gold, but I don't really know how... I've tried but every time I put it in I think it's miss placed and I want to start it over again... so this will have to do. I'm turning sixteen in May (SIXTEEN!) so I'll be leave Carleton, which mean I have to leave Green, but I'll be moving up to gold so it's all good.. but that isn't the reason I mentioned it. The reason I mentioned it is because, I love Green and everything that it has introduced me to. Green was the first Yew-tree group that I joined and I've been there for five years now and, yeah, I'm going to miss it. It introduced me to so many wonderful people (I'm talking about all you little Yew-tree people.) And it's been a part of my weekly routine for ages. Look at me, talking about it as though it's a real person or something... any how, my confidence has grown so much the last five years and, anyone who knows me, may hate that because I am now rather hyper and wappy but I'm glad , who wants to be normal, not me! Yew-tree is a wonderful thing to be a part of, like I'm sure you're all aware off and I never want to leave, although I'm sure it's inevitable, but I'll be there for as long as I can be!
I cannot wait for another year at Yew-tree and I hope you all have a fantastic 2012, the (supposed) end of the world. Make it a good one! (I know it's a little late as we're half way though January but so what!)
So that's all I wanted to say, I suppose. About how wonderful Physical theatre and Yew-Tree is...I'm going to stop typing now... Bye!'

2012-01-22T19:41:00.003Z

Jonny is the first offer to an insight into life studying drama in higher education...

Alright, life as a drama student and potential outcomes as a result.

First thing to mention is the journey of applying and getting in. It’s relentless and cruel. It takes a lot of self belief and determination, it cost a lot of money and it requires a lot of train tickets and in my case a few years of my life. However, it makes to feeling of being accepted so much more poignant.

Once you’re in, you spend a lot of your first year examining yourself, looking at what components make you, what things have shaped you, stuff like this. After plenty of crying and laughing together as a group, you move on to plays. The approach to plays is much more mathematic then I ever imagined. Before you even stand up you spend the first week of two reading, understanding, uniting, cutting, dividing and actioning. You start to learn the theory behind thought; ‘what the character wants’ and ‘how does he/she get it’. This is something that we have always done regardless and I’m still undecided to whether being aware of it is productive or detrimental to the final outcome because it can just over complicate the whole scenario, although different horses for different courses innit.

Second year is all about trenching through different styles of plays and different styles of theatre. Second year is very much the learning year. It completely widens your knowledge of theatre and it gives you a taste of what it is like to be a part of different things. Second year has a lot more of a professional feel as, in contrast to first year, where you very much feel like a student, you get treat as professionals and the process reflects a much more accurate portrayal of the ‘real world’. The motto for this year is ‘fail, fail again, fail better’, which actually is a pretty accurate description of what to expect from second year. We learn from our mistakes. It’s so so difficult, the work load is heavy and the turn over a plays is so quick and the tutors do not hold back when it comes to their opinion, which, again is helpful yet hurtful, which again, requires a lot of determination and focus.

Third year is predominantly about preparing for getting cast into the industry. Learning audition technique, networking, sorting out your actors CV, headshots, showreels, contacting agents, writing loads and loads of letters to loads and loads of potential employers and most importantly, preparing for showcase. The showcase is an evening put on in a theatre in London, where you invite agents to come and watch you. Hopefully, from this, the agents will like your look and your style and offer you representation and a place on their books. They then will put you up for auditions and find work for you – however, it is important to know this is not the only way to reach a successful career in acting - it is also possible to find your own work, or even create your own work.

Getting a degree in acting is a lot different to getting a degree in something more academic. It really doesn’t matter about the point system of the degree and it really doesn’t matter about whether you get a 2:1 or a 2:2 or whatever. It is a lot more about the learning process and how you have developed as an actors; what skills you have learnt to put on the CV and what you can offer to a production. The main thing is to leave with the stamp of a drama school’s name on your CV – obviously if you’re knocking about London with RADA or LAMDA inked on your CV, people are going to take you seriously and you will have more opportunities. However, if you get a degree in any of the top drama schools you give yourself a good foundation and it definitely gives you a good shot at a successful career.

Drama schools offer so much in a way of outcomes – nowadays they have courses in pretty much everything: Acting, Contemporary Theatre (which is very good for getting your own writing noticed), stage combat, physical theatre, community theatre (which is very much all Yew Tree-y stuff, school, youth theatres… etc), musical theatre, world performance. So it offers a wide range of skills which can benefit you and lead you into a wide variety of different jobs when you leave. Also, you might find after leaving with the degree that you don’t want to go into acting at all and you may chose a different direction – however, the skills you have learnt over the three years are relevant in most walks of life and… after all, as actors we study human behaviour, history and life…. What is not relevant about that! Ha!

(warning: drama school can turn you into a pretentious preacher like me…jokes!!)

It’s one of them things where, if you want it hard enough, you will endure the put downs and work load and competitive nature (and noobs), embrace the buzz of doing plays, meeting amazing friends and people in the industry, watching amazing theatre and, by the end of the 3 years you will have learnt so much through education and that whole ‘that that don’t kill you’ thing and the training will support you as you venture out into the real world… which is a whole other blog (about the risk of having no work, lack of money and a lot a bar/waiting experience)

Lots and lots of love yew tree.
x

Reflection...

2012-01-15T15:15:00.002Z

It’s one of those odd phenomenon ineveryday life that things get established and become part of our everydayexistence and then in time you become aware that they have faded to the pointwhere they have almost slipped away entirely…

A little dramatic perhaps but it’s occurredto me in the early stages of the new year that in amongst all the headypreparations for Christmas shows the older companies have to some extent losttheir ability and desire to reflect…so this blog is sent out to you in the hopethat it reminds you if the value in meaningful reflection and inspires you withthe confidence and interest to start engaging in it more often…

So…firstly, “Why reflect?” simple reallywithout thinking what we’ve done we just do the same thing over and over againwith no chance of improving, developing, moving forward, knowing more,furthering understanding etc etc etc. We repeat the same mistakes, revisit the same frustrations, follow thesame paths regardless of whether they lead us anywhere useful. At Yew Tree we try and create opportunitiesfor this to be avoided…by simply asking you to think about the process by whicha piece is reached, or the performance or the impact of something you observeyou are given the chance to reflect on your experience and share yourdiscoveries with those who went through the experience with you. What’s more we give so manyopportunities to do this…in the sessions themselves, on the various socialnetworking sights and in reading and indeed writing the weekly blogs…there’s awealth of chances to be taken advantage of…

This brings us to the second aspect of myproposition…having the confidence and interest to reflect. Firstly you should know that when I askfor your thoughts I am genuinely interested, I actually want to know. Secondly it’snot as tricky as it might seem…all you have to do is think about what youliked/didn’t like, what discovery you’ve made or something you’re not quitesure about and voice it with a reason for your thoughts…you shouldn’t worryabout trying to encompass the whole of something in your reflection…just asaspect of it will do very nicely…you also shouldn’t be worried about beingcorrect or wrong either…all you need to do is be prepared to engage indiscussion with people who may or may not agree with you…a discussion withpeople who think differently but who are open enough to debate is invaluable…

Be brave, have an opinion in rehearsals andworkshops and be courageous enough to talk about it, or even write about it andgenerous enough to share it with others…engage in the process of individual andjoint reflection and everyone’s a winner…hurray for such things…

2012-01-15T15:14:00.003Z

James Loughlin with his debut blog...

Hithere Yew Tree members and Yew Tree followers, yes this is my first blog afterbeing a part of Yew Tree for about roughly 7/8 months it’s about time I finallydid one so just bear with me whilst I get my thoughts and feelings on trackthroughout this.

Soto really get into things I will have to back up a bit to talk about the NewYear that is 2012. Now me being who I am I can’t help but look back on thingsthat have happened within the past year and see what I really enjoy aboutmyself. This year was a bit different for me I had life decisions tomake which took a lot of looking into, I decided that I would quit my extra 3^rd year at 6^thform because it wasn’t going to help me in my future endeavours. Whilstdeciding this I wasn’t sure what I would do with my time apart from try andearn money and my Gold and Black sessions, luckily Sarah came to my rescue andnow I couldn’t be happier with everything I have going on.

This is the first official week back at Yew Tree for all companies, and I havehad the pleasure to see from the perspective of an onlooker, a volunteer and amember. It has been a hard week for me but one I have really enjoyed and makesme look forward to all future projects I will be a part of. Not to mention Ialso turned 19 but that’s another story.

Soto step aside from how good Yew Tree is, I would like to tell you all somethingI have encountered within this week of Yew Tree. It is that of letting yourselfbe free and open to all possibilities. Whilst working with several year 4 classes at Normanton itmade me think to what I was like when I was their age, a shy little boy whowould cry whenever he had to go up on stage or had to do any form of acting(and look at me now haha) but these children were excited and enthused to bedoing something on their feet and energetic whilst learning new skills andtechniques. When given theircreative task I didn’t see any of them say they didn’t want to perform it orshy away from the task at hand, they embraced it and made it into their own(even if it did involve a lot of boys “play fighting”) it opened my eyes to howwhen you are that age you are open to take more risks and enjoy yourself more.

My next point in this is that of helping with the current filming of the scenesof Encounters being performed by Danny and Joanna at the Hepworth nextmonth. Whilst I was doing the verymenial task of holding the boom mic, I found out that transferring stage tofilm can be uncomfortable for the actor but once you have gotten over that factyou are creating something good and beautiful for the camera which is ratherdifferent to a stage audience, so being open and willing to work with thecamera itself will help create the same feeling as if it were on stage (that issomething to bear in mind for those who would like to turn to the screeninstead of the stage).

And finally what I have witnessed and experienced within Black and Gold companyas well as Journey to X, is that of don’t be afraid to experiment with yourcharacter and movements, if you feel stupid and wrong doing it you are mostprobably doing the best thing you can do. It’s one thing trying to get the roleand position and movements perfect the first time but unless you try and overdo them and exaggerate them you will never truly know how much more animatedand enjoyable your character/role can be, because let’s face it if you go toofar you can always pull it back to something more reasonable.

NowI know this is probably ridiculously long for a blog and there is a lot to readbut it is my first time and I would love it if everyone could read this(especially the older ones) and realise that there is still room for thatfreedom and randomness with your work and life to make things more enjoyableand exciting. And as my last point I would like to say that even though YewTree is a Youth Theatre it is more of a Youth Company in my opinion, where aYouth Theatre helps people gain confidence and helps those gain greater actingskills and everyone is close friends, a Youth Company looks out for the Youthof today making sure they enjoy themselves and learn new and exciting things onthe way whether it’s what they want to do or not and thus becoming more of afamily on the way.

So thank you for reading the far and hope I could enlighten and open some mindswithin this massive piece of text.

Anticipation...

2012-01-08T17:33:00.000Z

It’s all about theanticipation at Yew Tree at the moment…New Year, new term…lots of planning andpreparation and beginnings as we get 2012 up and running…

For that reason therewas something very rewarding about Black Company on Thursday as we wereactually able to get things started. We’re working on “Spirits in the Landscape,” for the next 7 weeks and sothe first session of the New Year was devoted to initial devising…developing apalette of ideas that will help us create our piece of theatre.

There’s always an airof uncertainty at this point in a production, especially something that isn’tscripted…a little insecurity mixed in with the novelty of starting somethingnew. It’s so difficult to imaginewhat the finished product will look like and for some people that’s anissue…but I like it.

The thing is I neverknow what something will emerge as at the end of the rehearsal process. I have sort of half an idea…a sense ofit with maybe a couple of factors in place but apart from that I just try things,experiment…build it as I go along and see what happens. This, I feel is a much more interestingprocess than creating a perfect vision and then painting it by numbers and thenultimately being disappointed when it doesn’t match up to your impracticalnotions of what it should be…

So as we take Journeyto X into the mid stage of rehearsals – pause for breath while everyone getstheir head around the fact that all the scenes are now sketched out - and as webegin creating theatre out of a children’s story and as the 9 other companies ofYew Tree start their journey for this term I give you this thought…or challengeeven…for the beginning of this year enjoy the discoveries, embrace theuncertainty and make the most of the adventure…

2012-01-08T17:32:00.003Z

Our blog this week is by Jess Hopwood...

So I’ve been sitting here, considering allthe different things I could have written about. I think this is my 5^thor 6^th attempt…sooo I’ve decided to just mash it all together in onecondensed appreciative blog about how brilliant Yew Tree is. I am grateful tobe a part of Yew Tree for so many reasons; I may not want to study drama at unior go for acting schools, but I have learnt so many skills and gained so manyqualities from being a member of this company that I believe have got me whereI am today. Without meaning to sound all soft, I am so hugely appreciative ofthis. Here’s a brilliant thought for you, whoever you are, and whichevercompany you belong to; just take a moment and consider what you’ve learnt,realised or gained from being a member of Yew Tree, whether it be a new skill,quality, or even a new friend. I can guarantee that there will be something.Personally, I can say that my individual growth and the friends that I have gainedare things that I will always appreciate. Another thing I love about Yew Treeis that whatever kind of week I am having, that 2 and a half hour session on aThursday always manages to be one of the highlights of my week. Something thatmanages to give you a time-out when you need one, that gives you something tolook forward to every week, and that inevitably puts a smile on your face eachweek can only be a good thing, right? (I realise this blog is a little/very soppy,but that’s what 4 hours of Greys Anatomy does to you on a Sunday afternoon. ButI mean it. So I’m not even sorry.)

So thank you Yew Tree, just for being, you know…Yew Tree,and for being just here.

So This is 2012

2012-01-01T15:02:00.002Z

“So this is the New Year,” cue everyonesinging the next couple of lines of Death Cab in their heads (if you don’t knowwhat that opening sentence is on about Tom and Jonny have both referenced it ontheir facebook.) However if you’reexpecting a reflective blog from me this week you’ll be disappointed…I reckonthat’s covered with the contributions generous people have made on the YouthTheatre facebook wall and maybe you could even add yours. Also you gotsentimentality from me last week and that’s quite enough for now…

So the New Year is here…hurrah…now lets geton with it…my blog tends to be mainly about what’s at the front of my mind atthe time and so this week I’m going to philosophise a little about being aplaywright…

My professional work is usually a strangeand complicated entity where I seem to spend a lot of my time juggling many things of wildlydisparate natures all of which are punctuated with wonderful regularity bydelightful, creative youth theatre workshops and rehearsals. However over the last 2 weeks as YTYTwas scaled down and other work ceased for the festive season I have mainly beena playwright (when not taking time off to be with my lovely family) This luxuryof being able to concentrate on one discipline, on one project has made me veryaware of how fascinating the whole process of writing is.

As some of you know I have recently writtena book, a children’s book, “Spirits of the Landscape,” inspired by thepaintings of Clare Woods. I foundout this week that the copies I’d put in the Hepworth gift shop had soldout. It’s such a strange thing tothink that copies of it are in the hands of strangers and I’ll never know whatit made them think of, what reactions positive or negative it inspired.

Writing a play like “Encounters,” is adifferent experience altogether because as soon as it is written it goesstraight into the hands of the actors who not only react in a reflective moretheoretical way to it but also in the way that they then practically realise itin the rehearsal room. Equally Ihave given it to people whose opinions I respect for feedback.

Receiving the feedback from all those sourcesis a vaguely terrifying and yet fascinating business…but the overriding thingI’m taking from it is how much I learn about myself as a writer and about thewriting itself from the responses…the whole thing about listening to everythingand responding to the things I think important has very much come into play andI’m fully aware as I prepare myself to finish the final draft today that it hasdefinitely made me a better writer and a more assured practitioner…

All sounds a bit too perfect doesn’t it, abit too happy and complete…don’t worry…there is always the element ofuncertaint,y the things that stops it being all polished off in a perfectway…because now it’s the New Year I have the increasing awareness of the factthat the next set of responses will be from the audiences and that’s a wholedifferent kettle of fish…

2012-01-01T15:01:00.003Z

Rhiann Tintor here with a cheeky insight to Connections.

On Thursday, we had a full six hours or so of developing scenes. First of all, we rehearsed scene 2 and 3 which we had off script for the first time - which was crazy considering it went great without it despite us all been a bit nervous and even if on the second time of doing scene 2, someone ended up hitting Ed and Merv pushed me (and somehow we all ended up in an evil angry mood). It was weird seeing how we’d made our characters react and generally come across in these scenes as we’d learnt so much more about them. Then we had a go at scene four which always makes me laugh as Sarah is just the best clueless character I’ve ever played. Scene five came along which we’ve never rehearsed or looked at so we had to take in so much (as we did with scene 4) so it made us think everything over and over such as how we spoke to each other and acted around other character.

In all, it was a great day of Connections rehearsals so far, and I’m SO excited about the show and it’s two months away (actually less than that around 54 days if I’ve worked that out right) so BRING ON CONNECTIONS! And hopefully you guys reading this will be as excited as us to see the finished production on 23rd February!

So that’s my blog done, hope you all have a super duper New Years Eve and see you all in 2012 with Yew Treeee!
Bye!
xxxxx

Cheers...

2011-12-24T13:41:00.002Z

Christmas eve eh?

How’s everyone doing? Presents all wrapped? Food prepared? Destination where you’re going to spendthe festivities reached? Filmviewing timetable agreed?

The Yew Tree Office is officiallyclosed. It has been since Thursday,although it’s 8.30 on Christmas Eve morning and I’ve changed the profilepicture on the facebook page, uploaded the final jingle, written my 99 words,collated all the entries I’ve got so far ready to add any last minute ones andthen make my decision and in a minute, when I have written this, I’m going towrite some of my play…so not as closed as you’d imagine it might be…

This year I’ve been one of those irritatingpeople who, when people asked me what I wanted for Christmas, responded that Ididn’t want anything…thing is I genuinely didn’t…(obviously when pressed I cameup with something) and I’m going to explain why in this blog…

This has been a tough year for so manypeople, the world we live in is changing for all sorts of reasons and forsomeone who graduated in the mid 90’s with an acting degree and a whole load ofhope the landscape I look at as a creative practitioner now is a very muchbleaker…Arts, education and health, the three areas I do the majority of my workin have taken a real beating and there have been times, very real times overthe last 18 months when I have been scared that the repercussions of that wouldhave a serious impact on me, the brilliant people I work alongside and theprecious people I work with. However, another year has passed and despite the challenges we’ve faced…we’restill here and I still get to do the job I love with people that inspire meevery single day…

Genuinely there is nothing in the world Iwant as I have the best job imaginable and that’s thanks to you…all the peopleI see every week, all the people that come back whenever University or grown uplife allows…and not forgetting my team of exceptional artists - who I amcontinually delighted by and grateful for. The whole community of Yew Tree and every person within itis wonderful and inspirational and I am the luckiest person in the world…whatelse could I possibly ask for?

Thank you for a fantastic 2011 and let’ssee what we can do with 2012 eh?

Merry Christmas

2011-12-24T13:40:00.001Z

Emma took the responsibility of the Christmas Blog this year

Hello from the Fretwell abode. It’s all getting very festive around here: we’ve managed to clean and shop and I’ve just got myself settled in front of my laptop, with a mince pie and Michael Bublé’s Christmas album. This is far from the norm on a Saturday morning - usually it’s all systems go at Thornes Park (St Swithuns for Mili, who attends Purple company)….

And now I’m faced with the task of a Christmas blog, I really don’t know what to talk about. I could ramble on and on about how brilliant Connections was at the beginning of this year. We got a lovely script with Shooting Truth, the Ensemble set it off beautifully and it was just so much fun to perform. Then Kendal was perfect, from performing to playing That’s Out and making a wall of fielders to catch the ball (think it was captured on camera, and the pictures can be found on Facebook somewhere). I’m certain that the memory of Merv dancing will never leave me…. Yew Tree has done loads of things with the Hepworth Gallery this year too. A favourite of mine was the Physical Theatre workshop in the Black Cloud structure outside the gallery - again, there’s a video. All of the summer workshops were fabulous, and I enjoyed looking more closely at Pinter as a playwright. Oh, who remembers Dumbwaiter/Blackout? That was a pleasure too. Obviously the Shakespeare Festival at Clarke Hall… for someone who struggles with Shakespeare (me, me, me, me), it’s the best place to absorb it, watch it, perform it, play with it. I looooove being at Clarke Hall and there were some really spectacular performances this year. Another of my favourites is the Christmas week in Castleford - my own highlight was watching Purple Company’s mime act, and seeing Mili perform. But out of all of the brilliant things we’ve done this year, I’ve got to say that the games session last week where there were a good sixty people present and playing lovely games and making Christmas jingles…. That was my favourite.

Looking back, what stands out for me is the sense of togetherness, that lovely snuggly family feeling you get at Yew Tree. Mili and I were discussing it after the Christmas shebang, how ‘together’ we all are as companies and as one great big youth theatre. There’s a lovely atmosphere all the time and we’re supported to be the best we can possibly be (as actors and as people) by Sarah, Danny, Gemma, volunteers and by each other. I know Yew Tree acts as a buffer for me when I have a bad week, it always cheers me up and when I have a good week, Yew Tree just adds to it. It’s such a positive force…… And I think a thank you is in order to everyone who is a part of it in any way.

I hope you all have a very merry Christmas, and that you’re in bed at reasonable o’clock with your stockings hung so Santa visits. Lots of love, ho ho ho! x

Too much...

2011-12-18T15:21:00.003Z

I’m proper tired. Proper end of term, going down with a cold, need aholiday tired and despite the fact that I could have slept in I got up at halfseven anyway. I’m blaming the factthat the last two weeks have held just too much. Too much in the way of experiences, sights, revelations,performances, challenges to be met, logistics to be tackled, conversations,highs, act of generosity, laughter, risks to be managed, anticipation,frustration and last but not least too many wonderful, wonderful Yew Treemoments…

I’ve decided my head is going to need afull couple of Yew Tree down time weeks to process all of this (and write aplay of course.) I am going to look properly through the photo’s instead offlicking through them. To reflectfully on the development of each group and individual I work with over thislast year. I’m going to spend timeenjoying the sense of achievement I feel with everything we’ve done and tostart finalising plans for 2012. So this short blog is saying this week I have very little to articulate– thank goodness for Sam and James, who still seem to be on the case with thewhole thinking thing - but give me a week and I’ll emerge rested and cold freeand with the ability of articulation once again…in the meantime…enter thecompetition, enjoy the jingles and generally feel good about yourselvesYTYT…you deserve it.

2011-12-18T15:21:00.000Z

James Budenburg with his annual games sesh blog

I wrote this blog last year, how time flies. Except I probably did it much earlier in the morning as I’m growing lazier in my old age.
Anywho
The games session had so much to live up thanks to last year’s hilarity and even with the lack of ratchet screwdriver; I think we’d all agree it did more than live up to its expectations. I was expecting to be writing about the games now, as normally I tackle my blogging in chronological order, but the creative task has to come first… so the brief was a jingle. Short, sweet, Christmassy and Yew Tree related. Looking at the casting I was anticipating finished products of a crazy and ridiculous nature, but what we came up with, I just don’t think there is a word in the English dictionary to describe it. BUT, I believe they are being put up one by one in the lead up to Christmas and if you manage to get through the entirety of MC Murphin’s escapade without laughing, then credit to you, you have Scrooge potential. Also, the action figures sketch, if someone would get me the Sarah Osborne one for Christmas I’d be eternally grateful. I’m going to have to finish that paragraph short because there are about three pages worth of highlights replaying in my head and to list them all would take me hours and unfortunately my chemistry revision guide is calling from downstairs, so I better move onto the first half of the session.
The games, so good, so so good. I don’t even know what to call that ninja game or for that matter how to describe it. But it deserved a mention. Onto ninja warrior, well done Tom Osborne for defeating the bullies and taking victory. Going to move on now as to evade too much thought of my what can only be described as terrible performance in that game. Not that winning matters, it’s the taking part that counts obviously. I share coconuts victory though, so it’s not all bad.
So on that I leave you, Merry Christmas

2011-12-18T15:18:00.002Z

Sam has been generous and blogged for the second week in row

As we break up for Christmas I ponder to myself. What would a week be like without Yew Tree, I daresay that I shall miss Sapphire despite the food, festivities and, if you will excuse my ridiculous use of alliteration that for some reason I just can’t help myself to include, fun I shall find myself missing the hilarity, happiness and hold on a minute there I go again with my stylistic devices.
I have done with alliteration perhaps imagery can be slotted in... I find that Yew Tree is a light at the end of the tunnel that we all call Monday. You could say it is a field sewn with a million seeds, each one ready to burst into its own unique flower. It is a jewellery box of precious gems that are different every time it is opened. Looking at these descriptions, it is clear that this is all very much true.
Have you ever been to a Yew Tree session that has been the same as the last? Each one has its’ own character, personality almost, as if it is a living thing. Each one is planned but it is us, the youth with the guidance of the wonderful Sarah, Danny and Gemma, that shape what happens. Yew Tree roulette is a perfect example, anything could be born from the words and laws set by the slips of paper. And it shows that the mind is both powerful and beautiful.
It is quite amazing what can happen with the right people when they all brought together. What we learn every week boasts pure excellence. We are given the gift of confidence, the gift of friendship, and the gift of imagination. Drama is a skill that helps with all manner of things: Language, the words which sculpt us as humans, that allows communication, which tells us of our present and our past, that predicts our future; Drama has certainly given me confidence, allowed me to bloom as a flower might with the right nutrients. Would I have recited poetry (Please don’t ask) before my year group without Yew Tree? No. Would I have started a band? No. Would I be the person that is sat here writing these (so far) 379 words? No.
So what I could have said with the word “Thanks” I feel is much more meaningful in this form and so I must tell you Sarah, Danny, Gemma, everyone who helps at Yew Tree, you are all amazing people

Distanced Travelled...

2011-12-11T15:36:00.001Z

This blog could just ramble for a goodstrong amount of time about how wonderful you all are…The last weeks has beentiring to say the least but so very rewarding and left me “chock full” of nicethings and happiness to share with you.

However over the last week I’ve had areally strong sense of what I wanted to talk to you about in this blog…it’sbeen such a strong theme of the weeks leading up to the shows and theperformances themselves…because to me the last few weeks have been all aboutdistance travelled…

Yew Tree has never been about who is betterthan someone else, partly because it’s entirely against our culture and values,and partly because it’s a ridiculously subjective measure anyway. It’s about rising to the nextchallenge, it’s about making discoveries, it’s about gradually gainingconfidence, self belief, control of your body and voice, opening up, being boldenough to try things, to stretch your creative muscles, being brave enough toinvest all you have…so easily said (or typed) but so infinitely more difficultto actually do.

The Christmas Shows have allowed people arich opportunity to do this and some of you have taken the opportunity withboth hands and made the absolute most of it…this blog is in honour of thosepeople…never think that I don’t recognise your efforts and achievements…howeverlow key or slight…as I hope you know I think you’re all magic…but what follows aresome of the journeys of this term that I’ve been particularly impressed with:

The first journey is about confidence anddetermination…Dillon and Josh are my heroes of the Christmas shows…both of themvictims of self doubt and both of them looking like they might not be able todo their parts 2 weeks before the show. However, both of them listened to advice and direction and put in animmense amount of graft ultimately creating performances that they could beutterly proud of…

The second one is about never thinkingyou’re as good as you can be…let me bring on Mr. Michael Brown for my exampleof this one…someone who already had found a level of quality in his actingskills but who invested all of it, every drop into creating an unforgettableperformance…and as a result emerges a better performer than he was at the startof the process. A mention needs tomade here of Nick who stepped out of his comfort zone and into a whole wealthof brilliance. Week in and week out he got gradually better and better and becomingthe perfect companion to Michael. As a team of narrators they were second to none, an absolute pleasure towatch. Related to this there isthe journey of the Keepers of the Legends…two actors who have nothing to prove,whose track record is more than good but who worked hard and took nothing forgranted…and in so doing created acclaimed and unforgettable performances…

I can go on and on and on and on…as therewere actors who found their voices for the first time…actors that pushed throughphysical barriers…companies who produced some of their best work yet…teams (forexample my brilliant Jack and the Beanstalk doors) that made memorableperformances out of the most humble of material…

I put on the facebook page last night Iadore Gold company, this is true but it needs to be noted that in actual fact Iadore the entirety of my youth theatre…the companies I direct and the ones Ijust get to visit occasionally. I have the best job in the world and amconstantly astounded and amazed by you (see what I did there) You inspire meand fulfill me and I want the absolute best for all of you as a consequence. I invest all I possibly can…hence thehigh demands and the challenges I sometimes hand out…but you never cease tomake me feel like the luckiest person in the world. So yeah YTYT, take a moment all of you to feel immenselyproud of yourselves…every single one of you…and then when you have fully enjoyedthat think about what your next challenge might be…the next thing you’d like toachieve because if I possibly can – I’ll help you get there…

2011-12-11T15:01:00.001Z

This brilliant blog is by Mel...

'Twas the night before Christmas with Yew Tree and everyone was scared,
Even though lines were learnt and everyone prepared.
With over 140 people that made up our cast,
And everyone excited to perform at last.
With Jack and the Beanstalk with giants so tall,
And 'Twas the night before Christmas with a mouse so small.
Purple with mime so clear and perfected,
To crimson with bullies where lives were affected.
Gold with Sleeping Beauty so stunning and resolute,
To green with the Grinch that stole Christmas as he climbed down the chute.
Last of all was robin hood, with the bravest and boldest of men,
With sword fights and dances, from the poor to the merry men.
No better than we could of asked for an audience such as ours,
Who sat there taking everything in and playing their part for hours.
So thank you yew tree for making our Christmas, we are very grateful - its true,
To sing and shout and act about and that's all because of you...

2011-12-11T14:59:00.001Z

As she puts away her evil fairyness Natalie has blogged for us...

I figured that today was the perfect day to man up and write a blog for two reasons. A.) It’s been a year since I’ve done one and B.) This week has been an absolutely amazing week for Yew Tree and therefore there is just loads to talk about.

So this week has been the week of the Yew Tree Christmas Spectacular and it certainly has been a spectacle. Every single one of the performances I have witnessed over the last few days has been fabulous, all unique performances which have two main things in common, performers who share a passion for drama and a whole load of Christmas spirit. From the hilarity of Jack and The Beanstalk and The Grinch to the absolutely adorableness of Rudolph the Red Nosed Reindeer and 'Twas the Night Before Christmas, all seven plays were fantastic.

Just before I sign out of this blog, I would just like to mention the performance of Sleeping Beauty we did in Denby Dale. The audience was made up of extremely loud children with very short attention spans and it would have been so easy for Gold company to just accept defeat and mutter their way through the play as quickly as possible. However as everybody knows this is far from the Yew Tree way and everyone worked twice as hard to do the play justice.

Finally, I just wanted to say how much I have enjoyed playing Lyla this week (the best part I have ever had), making small children cry was just a small consequence of her wonderful personality as demonstrated with the children in Denby Dale

2011-12-11T14:56:00.001Z

Sam Winder...door player extraordinaire ladies and Gentlemen...

As I sit here writing this on a cold morning, writing with only one hand due to the bandage wrapped around the other, I look back and am amazed at everything Yew Tree YT has achieved this week.

I wish to congratulate everyone who took part in the performances, we saw a multitude of characters and stories which were all equally entertaining:

From the Grinch - which I have to say was rather a rhyming bundle of hilarity. Well done to the Grinch with your hops, skips and dramatic... and dramatic... Grinchness.

To Rudolph the Red Nosed Reindeer, a musical delight that I couldn’t help but sing along to.

And of course the performance of one of my all time favourite Christmas poems... T’was the night before Christmas.

From Jack and the Beanstalk, which I daresay was the best of the whole night... but there again I was in it.

To Sleeping Beauty, a tale already weaved with a thread of... of... epic-ness. And with added fairies!

From the school based Christmas Carol, with such a true to life drama lesson and caretaker...

To Robin Hood which again is already a field sown with seeds of... of... Robinhoodness and with simply amazingly choreographed fight scenes it was made all the more thrilling.

So I fear that it may be time for me to conclude and to anyone still reading this tedious chunk of text... Merry Christmas to all and to all a good Night!

2011-12-11T14:52:00.001Z

I'm always gladdened that people that go off to University keep in touch...Hannah is a lovely example of this happy thing...

Thursdaydidn’t get off to the best of starts: I missed my lecture and then there was atorrential downpour and I had to sit in 3 awkwardly silent seminars. Not a goodday. And then it got to 3 pm and uni was over for the week and I could get onwith feeling all Christmassy, and more importantly get myself to the Yew TreeChristmas Shows to see Purple, Sapphire, Gold, Orange and Black perform!!

It allkicked off with Purple doing Rudolph the Red nosed Reindeer through mime. Andit was brilliant; the little boy who was miming to the song was just too coolin his sparkly waistcoat. And then Sapphire did Jack and the Beanstalk with theworld’s most ineffectual mum. My favourite part of that was definitely the magicbeans playing the bean game. And I did fear for Jake’s life when he threwhimself across the stage. He sooo nearly fell off! And then Gold did SleepingBeauty, which was a lot darker than the previous 2 performances. I loved thefairies costumes in that and Natalie absolutely smashed it as Lyla the evilfairy. Next were Orange doing T’was the Night before Christmas and they wereunbelievably cute in their pyjamas with their teddies and I just wanted to takethem home with me. Finally it was Black company’s turn, and they did RobinHood. The sword fighting was brilliant and I was actually a little bit scaredof Tom and Aaron. But it all turned out okay because everyone had enough foodfor Christmas.

I feelreally Christmassy now, despite the fact I’m back in my halls which have nodecorations other than my 1 foot tall Christmas tree. It was a brilliant showand everyone did really well, and I hope the Friday was just as good. My Dadwatched the last 5 minutes of Robin Hood on the screens outside while he waswaiting for me and it said it looked great and that he loved the swordfighting. He could’ve come in and seen the whole of the second half but hedidn’t want to intrude so he sat in his car for most of it… I’m now gettingexcited about coming for the games session on Saturday because I haven’t playedany drama games and I really need to. But for now Happy Christmas Yew Tree,you’re all brilliant!

Chorus actors this is your call to arms!

2011-12-03T21:28:00.001Z

Today I am excited about chorus! I know…that’s an odd thing to beexcited about but I am…Why? Because it can be really exciting…if you needed proof of this you onlyneeded to have been there to see me jumping up and down at the end of Gold’srehearsal this morning trying to get the energy needed in the final scene…thefairies of Sleeping Beauty are so close to being where they need to be but theycould be amazing…and I want them to be amazing…

Being in a chorus should be adrenalinecharged, it should literally be buzzing…there should be a mutual feeding frenzyof energy, bouncing off each other, working as a unit, picking up on cues…creatingtension when the story needs tension, drama when it needs drama, vitality whenit needs vitality…you see where this is going? You’ll know if you’re doing it right because it will feel asgood as only true team work can feel.

And so beans, market crowd, party goers,fairies, merry men, villagers, storytellers and all my other brilliantchoruses, the pressure is on…I expect great things and to deliver you will needto work as hard artistically and technically as you’ve ever worked…and if youdo both of these things the audience and you will reap the rewards…so nopressure but…DO IT YEW TREE!!!!!

2011-12-03T21:19:00.001Z

Ash with a perceptive insight into our artwalk adventures this week:

On Wednesday, Yew Tree was at the Hepworth gallery taking part in the Wakefield Artwalk. The evening was comprised of live Nu Folk music and original poetry, which was written and performed from scratch hourly. Essentially, we gathered the thoughts and opinions of the Hepworth and the artwork inside it from visitors that evening, and then used it create poetry, which was then performed back to the people who contributed. Im not exactly the most extrovert person so at first I found the concept of approaching members of the public a little daunting, but after a few minutes it was really enjoyable. I loved being able to have honest and intellectual conversations with people and everyone had such diverse and contrasting opinions. it was really interesting listening to what people had to say about the Hepworth, what they liked or disliked, which pieces stood out to them and why and what they think of art in general. People seemed to be really enjoying the new exhibition by Clare Woods, Unquiet Head, often commenting on how well it suited the gallery with the vibrant colours juxtaposed against the white walls. The writers once again had me awestruck by just how talented they are, taking fragments and snippets of thoughts and opinions and turning them into poetry on the fly, taking as little as 5 minutes in some cases. It would take me about a week to write some of the things they did, and it would probably only have a fraction of the eloquence. The end results were fantastic to say how immediate, raw and unrehearsed the whole process was. I was lucky enough to be both a performer and an audience member, and it was so rewarding when you noticed people recognise some of their own contributions in the pieces. I liked how accessible it was, young or old there was something for everyone. On the whole I really enjoyed the evening and if I had to choose a favourite part about it all it would definitely be the little girl who said that one of the painting reminded her of the tooth fairy and her look of excitement when her poem was read out.

No ringing in sick for me...

2011-11-27T08:50:00.001Z

I’ve been ill this week as pretty mucheveryone who’s come into contact with me knows mainly because a) I’ve lookedawful and b) moaning and complaining have seemed to be a major symptom of thisparticular cold…situations like this always seem to emphasize the oddity thatis my job because I can’t ring in sick…don’t get me wrong I could…people (verybrilliant, talented people) would cover for me…would be happy to cover for me…butI can’t do it…I’d feel as if I was missing out on too much…for example if I’drung in sick this week I wouldn’t have been able to see Sapphire really startto put everything in place for their performance of Jack and the Beanstalk…Iwouldn’t have been able to see Orange’s reaction to the Christmas decorationsand tree going up in their rehearsal room, I wouldn’t have been able to shoutat Black so that by the end of the rehearsal we were getting there with RobinHood and I wouldn’t have been able to watch Sleeping Beauty blossom into theepic tale it will be in performance…and I wouldn’t have been able to answer themyriad of individual questions, concerns, needs and hopes of young people thathave come my way…who would want to miss any of that?

All of those things that I couldn’t missonly get compounded by all the things and projects I do that the youth theatrehas very little idea about (unless you ever come on work experience or takethat next step into the company and start to volunteer and/or (eventually) workfor us…) so yeah I have a job that is absolutely brilliant…so brilliant I can’ttake time off and that’s not a martyr thing, the not taking time off is all formy own benefit…so thank you team YTYT for making it another inspiring week…

2011-11-27T08:49:00.001Z

And Michael wrote the second...he was press ganged but only a little bit...

So today was the first run-through of Yew Tree's 2012 connections play, and even though we only did a read through of the script, people already seem to be getting to grips with thier characters, which is pretty ace...
This connections is VERY exciting for me, as it will be my first time having an official part of the connentions play, (By official I mean having an actual designated role) I have been a part of connections for the two previous years, Sparkleshark, and Shooting Truth, but I'm just so excited have a role in the actual play... To be honest I'm excited to be a part of it in any way.
Todays read-through was, how shall I put this, brilliant, just after this first session, already we have loads of different views and opinions on so many different aspects of every character, and the cast is just perfect, so many talanted young people working together on project like this is something not seen very often nowadays...

So yeah, to sum up, Connections 2012=Absolutey brilliant...

From Michael...

2011-11-27T08:46:00.001Z

Joanna Nicks wrote the first blog of the week...without being press ganged...I love a voluntary blog...

I buzzed off Black Company this week… here’s why:
-So far I’ve found Robin Hood and my character in the play really challenging because she says so little in a situation where I’d find myself so angry that I’d want to shout. After a pretty flat and demoralising run we talked about being brave and helping other people to be brave and knowing who our character is and where they are going to and coming from. The things it made me think about meant that I spent the next run deciding why she didn’t say much- there were the obvious but general answers, but I realised I needed specifics, each time another character spoke I needed to know why she didn’t reply or save them and what she thought of that person and of what they had said and how everything affects her and her agenda. Saying less made her interesting. Every character thinks that they’re the main character and I’d forgotten that up till now.
-Another reason I find Robin Hood a challenge is the heightened language. It’s really hard to own and mean the words we’re saying because they don’t feel natural; it’s not how we speak any more. In the last run when everyone was braver and made a conscious decision to commit it felt like the emotion was bigger so the language seemed to fit, the play felt fast and exiting. It felt like it was kicking off.
-I absolutely committed in Cowboys and Indians as well and was speedy mc speedyson… and I almost won… I drew
So it turned out to be an excellent session.
Although I now have a bruised spine which really hurts, I think I committed to beans on toast a bit too much.

A director's request...

2011-11-20T12:04:00.001Z

Obviously this week there have been somepretty important auditions but I don’t want to concentrate on those in thisweek’s blog…I want to focus on something much more universal for the YouthTheatre. In 2 weeks time over 110performers will be doing their tech rehearsal at the Phoenix Theatre inpreparation for the Christmas shows…so I thought give you some top tips for howto help yourselves and as an incidental happy thing also help your director overthe next fortnight…

1. Make sure you are utterly secure on your lines, not just that you knowthem but that you are so sure that no matter what curve ball you are hit withyou know how to rescue the scene because you know the lines, the scenes and theplay inside out and back to front…this is the way to becoming your directorsfavourite person in the world…this involves time and effort and should be doneout loud, learning lines in your head doesn’t get it done…

2. Make sure you understand what every line you say or is said to youmeans, why it is said and in the case of your lines who it is said to…spendsome time analysing your script, thinking what it says about your character andthe situation…there is still time at this point to check anything you’re notsure about with your director…this won’t be the case once we get to Sunday the4^th…again there’s a little bit of time and effort involved but acouple of hours over the next week or so could make all the difference…alsoensure you know what the important words are in each sentence so yourintonation is clear…

3. Try and problem solve for yourself – whether that be prop or costumerelated or getting to places or prioritizing or whatever…if you try and can’tsolve it we are more than happy to help but effort on your part is alwaysappreciated

4. Sell tickets for the shows…we can only afford to go to the Phoenix everyyear if we sell tickets…if everyone in the show sold 5 tickets each we wouldsell out…simple as that…see if you can reach that target…

The result of following those four pointsis simple, a brilliant performance and a lovely time devoid of unnecessarystress…so really it should be a no brainer…look forward to seeing the results!

2011-11-20T12:03:00.001Z

Mel - who now is present at three sessions a week has blogged for us...

Well this week has been nothing less than hectic, but still as brilliant as ever!
Everyone has definately stepped up this week!
Orange now have the play staged, all their lines sorted, their costume sorted - but most importantly, they have their teddies sorted! You can tell they're all just going to be adorable!
Black also have taken on board each comment, each week. Every single person has improved and are off script, with the exception of some slip ups that will come with confidence and time, but never the less are nothing to worry about. Characters have started to blossom which means the performance is now flowing more smoothly (and that's without music). Even though Gold have yet to have a full cast, there is tremendous effort been made to catch up and improve their characters even further - the commitment that is now being shown is such a fab thing to have at this stage in the rehearsal process and I cannot wait to perform and see everyone else too

Beneath the Surface

2011-11-14T14:13:00.001Z

I’ve been all demanding and challenging in the latter part of this week – to be fair Gold and Black were the ones that really took the brunt of it…but this blog is to say I’m not sorry. Although I still think you’re all lovely and I know that your commitment is second to none… there seemed to be a certain amount of coasting going on…a kind of innate belief that just by turning up when you were meant to and learning your lines your productions would all sort of slot into place. You’d stopped being thinking actors…you’d stopped really stretching yourself, you’d stopped having vision, not all of you and not entirely but enough of you and to a big enough degree that it was time to draw your attention to it…so I did.
I get such a kick out of watching the light bulbs go on in actors heads when they realise that the tougher you make it on yourself the better acting is…not tougher in a oh-no-I’m-so-bad-angsty-what-am-I-going-to-do sort of a way but in a, “How do I make this better interpretation of the text? Why does a character say and act in the way they do?” sort of a way. More importantly there’s a magic for a director when you get a sense that in that moment, in that rehearsal the actor has a clear sense of why they should refuse to settle for a surface performance where every line is played but with no thought about how these lines connect up and in turn how they connect to the character, the relationships and the world of the play. When they know there is something better, something cohesive, something truer to aim for. My nagging and challenging made that happen on Thursday and Saturday.
So team…come on…rise to the challenge…you have less than four weeks to the Christmas performances, less than a week till the Connections auditions…as they say in The West Wing in times when the pressure is on and demands are being made…BRING IT YEW TREE!!! …well obvs they don’t put in the Yew Tree bit but only because they don’t know you…

2011-11-14T14:12:00.001Z

Second guest blog is a brilliant debut from Ellen and Marianne from Orange Company

Orange Company 13th November 2011

In Orange we are all very excited about the Christmas production, as we know that most of the other Yew Tree companies are. We will be performing, "The Night Before Christmas," and the best bit is that we get to bring our teddies and wear pajamas for the performance which will be really fun. Everyone has been given either one two or three lines so everyone has an almost equal part to say.

The first thing we did this week was play funky seaweed because the week before it was a member's birthday. However they didn’t have the chance to play it because we ran out of time. From our experience we found out that the game is a very hazardous game! We found this out when two people got injured in the space of one minute. It was an unlucky game and guess who got hurt... our unlucky birthday member, Ellen MacCourt. But fortunately they both survived and soon recovered. This meant that they were only minor injuries and they were soon playing again.

After that we rehearsed the play twice and did a very good job of it. We also made some minor changes to it. We have now almost finished it and we just need now to rehearse it. We both really enjoy Orange Company. We enjoy it so much that we both joined another company called Sapphire.

Thank you for reading and p.s to all people who are planning on coming, don’t plan anything for the performance day.

By Ellen MacCourt and Marianne Milnes.

2011-11-14T14:04:00.001Z

First guest blog is from Alice - with what is possibly the promptest delivered blog ever

I love rehearsals. Hah. Good strong point to make in a blog. But it is what my blog is going to be about because on Thursday at Black company it felt like we were all suddenly ‘singing from the same hymn sheet' as my mum would say ... something changed (and yesssss obvs part of it was our ‘get yo backsides in gear black company’ speech
But people seemed to be listening more to direction and each other; on stage in character and off stage creating shared histories. Tiny elements of the play started to click into place...and my complacency definitely disappeared.
It reminded me of the effort required, the energy, the commitment, the time, the thought...all the things I should just put into place ALL the time. Actors who had those things in place made me jealous but inspired...this is all a bit dramatic but that’s because I was having all these thoughts under the looming shadow of the connections auditions next week and the ever looming shadow of auditioning for drama school. It was just one of those rehearsals that reminded me I need to be the best I can be. So, yeah cheers.

We've only just begun...

2011-11-07T15:13:00.002Z

Beginnings are brilliant, they’re excitingand feel adventurous…they are packed full of possibilities and the feeling thatit’s all to play for…this is my way of saying how giddy I am about connections2012…having spent the weekend at the National Theatre with Danny…talking to theplaywright of “Journey to X” Nancy Harris…who’s more than a little smart…I havecome back with a head full of ideas and a heart full of optimism…I literallycan’t wait…We’ve had so many interesting conversations about performance andrealising a text and the demands on the actor to do this honestly andtruthfully…I want it cast and I want to be starting rehearsals now, this minute…

So yes to all those of you auditioning inLESS THAN 2 WEEKS, make sure you give your audition prep the time and thoughtit needs. This play is a goodplay, this opportunity a good opportunity…don’t take it for granted…I only wantdedicated people involved and the amount of preparation you undertake for theaudition is a good indication of this…I’m hoping to give you all a part butnothing is set in stone…in short I want you to be as excited about it as I am…

For those who can’t audition for whateverreason I am looking forward to unveiling the results of our hard work in 4months time, I’m sure you’re going to be impressed.

2011-11-07T15:09:00.002Z

How brilliant that when the Youth Theatre has been a little quiet and therefore there isn't much in the way of guest bloggers that Mel's Dad steps up to the challenge...

Hey Yew Tree! GreatHalloween Treat you put on at Nostell last week. I went expecting to be startled andscared. It wasn’t startling… just reallycreepy. And I’m guessing that isn’t easyto act out . So well done! Amazing talent as ever!

The problem I have is that when I watch these performancesit always starts me thinking…very dangerous I know!!! And this time it got me thinking about ourmotivation for doing “stuff”, how we can keep interested in doing “stuff” for,and how we deal with “stuff” when we can’t do it any longer.

I could go on for hours about this, but you want me to keepthis blog interesting right?? So here’sjust a few lines about four stages you might want to think about when you needto make decisions about “stuff” to do with your life.

1) ATTRACTION – you see something advertised, oryou are made aware of something you fancy and might like to get involvedin. What is it that helps you to think:“Hey! I think I’ll give that a go.”? Itmight be a job advert, or further education, someone you like, or hey! Yew Tree Youth Theatre sounds good! At this point you’re inquisitive and if thefeelings are strong enough you decide to give it a go.

2) ATTACHMENT – this stage is so, soimportant. It’s the short space of timeafter you decided to embark on the journey, and for the first couple of monthsor so after you’ve joined. As FrankieCocozza would sing: “Should I stay or should I go now?” It’s the time when youmake a decision about whether what you saw when you first saw the advert iswhat this thing is like in reality. Maybe what happens in those first few weeks is even better than youthought it would be like. Or on theother hand…alas, not as good as you would hope. And sometimes you have to be strong enough to say…hey! this isn’t forme.

3) ENGAGEMENT – next phase. So you decide you really like what you seeand can make a go of this. It’s buildingyour own confidence and your self-esteem. You show passion, enthusiasm, are inspired and motivated to carry onwith this thing. That’s just great! I see this all the time at Yew Treeperformances. And as time goes on youbuild up skills and capabilities, and you just want to keep going and going andgoing! The problem is that this phasecan go on for a long, long time. We allhave to work hard to keep engaged, keep interested. When you start work that experience mighthave to last the best part of 5 decades….a long, long time. Will you stay motivated all that time? Will boredom set in? Will you become disinterested? Find ways to get inspired and stay there….

4) TRANSITION – is this the end? The exit door. Well it doesn’t have to be. If things happen and the interest goes, thenyou have to decide whether to call it quits at some stage. You might have to weight up whether you finishthis stuff now, or maybe later (now is not a great time to give up a job, youmight not find another quickly). Thereare also situations in which you have to leave. Perhaps the organisation you are in only lets you stay until a certainage. So you have to exit then – butthink about what you can continue with to carry on the good work and continueto be inspired. I’ll finish on a real positive. Opportunities are out there for you. Transition from one job is not always about leaving, it can also meanyou get promoted to higher ranks. Brilliant! And I guess closer tohome for some of you - If at some point you are no longer a youth and can’t bea Yew Tree student any more, remember you can always keep an association withthe group, help, nurture and mentor other students. And always remember what you have learnedover your years at Yew Tree, how your confidence has grown, and what afantastic foundation your experiences have given you to be able to move onwardsand upwards.

Good luck…you’re on the rightroad to success J

PhilParramore

The Only Thing to Fear is Fear Itself...

2011-10-30T16:14:00.001Z

With the Halloween atNostell performance being a major feature of the last 7 days, this week hasbeen dominated by fear and all things fear related…and as it turns out fear isa much more complicated issue than I first thought…Who would have thought, for example,in a group of actors volunteering to take part in a Halloween performance I’dhave so many that are genuinely scared of the dark and all the imaginary thingsthat might lurk in it…

In a production likethis you find yourself applying a psychological view point as much as acreative one as a lot of your time is spent trying to predict how audienceswill react to what you present them with…the answer to this, is of course, younever can tell…it’s dependant on so many things…so all you can do is make theperformance you believe is the right one, the one that upholds your artisticvalues and suits the identity of the venue and the company…in this case a jobwell done I feel…

It’s hard to do a showwhere you aren’t guaranteed anything…where there is nothing certain and wherethese uncertainties include the temperature, the light, the weather, the audiencenumbers, the slippiness of the ground, the timings of different element…but allof those variables are nothing compared to the reaction of the audience…andjust to make that challenge one step harder some of the cast have to beridiculously up close to the audience…So on the down side I had actors proddedand intimidated and a few audience members who were badly behaved when theyshould have known better. There’sa danger that you start to blame the performance or performers for those reactionswhen actually on this occasion it’s so much more to do with the spirit in whichthe audience receive the performances. How willing they are to engage in what’s going on, a factor that is inturn affected by a myriad of other factors…you see where I’m going with this…it’senough to entirely mess with your head. How nice that as I was reflecting on all of this that Mr Thomas McNultyshared a link to an article in the Guardian which said exactly that…There isalso a danger that you focus on the minority of audience that didn’t engage inthe way you hoped they would in rehearsals…because as is often the case thepositivity in response this week has far outweighed any inappropriate reaction…

One of the things thatis brilliant in anything like this is watching people rise to the occasionmaking huge steps forward in their development as performers and indeed aspeople. Whether it’s forming effectivepartnerships with people they have never worked with before or overcomingpersonal fears and phobias, or finding creative ways to solve problems orcontinually adding to the performance to make it better and better, any sort ofdevelopment of this nature is a joy to behold. I have observed so much in the way of individuals beingprepared to get past their fears and uncertainties this week and in so doingthey have created a unique performance event…so well done everyone that’s had ahand in it…you’re not bad as casts go…

2011-10-30T16:13:00.000Z

And Tom Mc the 5th...

Halloween this year so far has been “bloody” brilliant! Aha simply because I have had the pleasure of performing, not only at Nostell Priory again with Yew Tree, but performing as apart of a Ghost Walk, something I have always wanted to do!!…And the opening night on the Saturday evening was both very exciting and spooky, all at the same time…

The performances were split into two different but equally important types…First there’s the Outside Tour, which is all about following Amelia’s footsteps through the woods, and being told of her life’s story and tragic demise by tour guides and story tellers…And second are the House Tours which consist of groups of people being lead around the basements and attic of Nostell Priory, and again, told of chilling stories and past encounters with spirits the staff have had...

I am part of the House cast with James, Charlotte, Beth and Ashleigh and we all perform short monologues and characters either based on truth or fictionally created with the intention of scaring you…I play a real life character called Thomas Gargrave, who was a really bad person in life, and I perform my monologue in the basements, which is a pretty scary place in itself, with its dark stone rooms and cold atmosphere, but I don’t mind it, I’m not personally scared of stuff like that, it more often then not, stirs my curiosity in all things spooky…But other then that, my monologue went down a real treat, which I’m very happy about simply because when I just appear out of nowhere, people got scared and were really surprised, and it gave me a surge of energy and sensation of making an impact on the audience…Plus playing an evil character is something I love doing also

The Saturday night performances were all performed so well and very bravely too…The rest of the house actors where just on the ball with their performances I heard…And the Outside tours of Amelia’s Story deserve a really big round of applause *claps hands* just for being out in the cold dark woods for at least 2 hours and not freezing to death aha…for being brave to perform in the dark, to which most others wouldn’t do, and for also performing something completely new and original, and giving audiences an experience to remember for Halloween

And just as a little add on…There’s one more evening of performances…On Halloween night actually, so if your not busy tomorrow evening, then get in contact with Nostell and come down for a few scares…

2011-10-30T16:09:00.002Z

Lucy T. wrote the 4th

Hi guys, I’m thinking I should probs write a blog this week since I was supposed to last week after doing work experience with Yew Tree... I did write one last week, it just never made it as far as reaching Sarah due to a bottle of Tru Blood spilling on and then breaking my phone, and the Hilton charging horrendous prices for wi-fi. So yeah, I’m writing a blog.

Right, a fair few Yew Tree-ers have spent their week at Nostell rehearsing for all sorts of Halloweeny performances and it’s been really really nice we have an absolutely terrifying tour of the basement and attics of Nostell going on (not kidding, it’s actually terrifying, I nearly cried/suffered from a heart attack), aaaand we have an equally as creepy outside tour of the grounds, a ghost walk. And it’s the ghost walk that I’ve been (and still am, still got another couple of performances to do, so get yourselves there on Monday) part of.

I’m one of the storytellers you get to meet on your way round Nostell, and as the name suggests, we tell the story... I don’t really know what to say now, as I don’t want to talk about the story because then it might give some things away and I wouldn’t want to ruin it for the people coming to see it... hmmm, yeah it’s been really good...

It’s been nice, and quite interesting actually, we’ve never done anything like this before so it’s been like a whole new experience. Not always a good experience mind you- I’m not a fan of the dark, so walking around Nostell Priory when it’s pitch black isn’t doing me any good ha. Nahhh , it’s all good though.

Yep... there’s a reason I never write blogs and this is it ha I’m not the best at it... at least I’m not resorting to ending everything in ‘and stuff’ or ‘and things like that’, which is what happened when my teacher rang me to see how work experience was going. Oh god, it was awful.... words just wouldn’t form in my mouth ha
I should probably stop now.

COME SEE US AT NOSTELL TOMORROW THOUGH GUYS!
Cheers...
LT x

2011-10-30T16:07:00.002Z

The third one comes from Dee

So this week at Nostell we’ve been rehearsing Amelias footsteps.. the tale of a 16 year old girl who falls in love with a ghost, Francis.. leading to her suicide. Its something completely different to anything at all I’ve done with Yew Tree before...
I mean:

1) We're in the woods of nostell priory just jay ceeing with woodland creatures and that …
2) We're playing dead people running about all ghosty
and
3) ITS PITCH BLACK AND ALL WE HAVE IS A LANTERN (and a torch like, but still..)

so yeah.. s’different to the stage and warmth that were used to.. and y’know daylight..

Without sounding a cheeseball though I’m pretty proud of myself for conquering my fear ha I mean on the first rehearsal that we had we did a run of the tour in the semi dark.. it was 6pm (nowhere near as dark as the performance times at 7pm and 8pm we did last night) and yep I bawled my eyes out in the woods on Mikey and probably caused circulation issues in his arm thinking yettis and allsorts were gonna grab me..( I have seen too many horror films recently).. so I guess after a chat with my dad which he offered to come in the woods with me ha (I declined obvs...) and with lots of support from the team making me realise it’s a national park.. there’s no yettis here.. and stories about unicorns from jack of course, I manned up, and the dark seems to not be bothering me much anymore too.. I even went to bed last night for the first time in 19 years without checking my wardrobe to see if a gargoyle was chilling in there... that’s progress... but yeah its been such a good experience and opportunity.. I actually scare people and I kinda realised I'm probably the scariest thing in the wood so if a werewolf appears I've decided to just glare at it and then maybe it'll get the message... maybe? Shut up Dee ha. But yeah seriously it's been so good.. so glad I have a companion though unlike Ash’s character whos on his bill.. I would have not manned up! But yeah now when I come out to do my monologue all ‘the ring-esquely’ I get a bit of a thrill seeing people cower into each other...(or y’know play cow noises from there phone.. not so much)

but yeah.. s’been fun.. looking forward to mondayyy! And I look forward to doing the stage version

2011-10-30T16:02:00.001Z

Mel's is the next...

So this week for us older ones of Yew Tree has been pretty loud, emotional, grumpy and whatever else anyone is when they're just flat out tired.

Amelias Footsteps and the Spooky House Tour have been such good performances to be a part of! Everyone has got soo into it and even made themselves scared. Its such a different experience for us as a youth theatre, its teaching us to learn new skills, interact with people in ways we never would and for some of us, face our fears head on and still produce such a brilliant piece of theatre.

Each day we have seen little parts of it all come together and flow even better but its down to us as performers to push it more and more each time to produce a more entertaining piece of quality theatre for the audience.
All week we've rehearsed and felt more comfortable in what we were doing - until - it became dark. As soon as there is no natural light left the parklands are nothing less than pitch black and its like creating the piece all over again, making yourself comfortable within a group, in pairs or just completely on your own. You have to memorise the exact steps you take in order to keep safe, its all tricky, but then, whatever is good can never be easy...

2011-10-30T16:00:00.000Z

First Halloween blog is by James B

Ahhhh, Halloween at Nostell. Where do I even start? It’s been brilliant, just five days of yew tree. Its not been normal yew tree though, which has been weird. Me being used to Saturday mornings and all that, anyway, I’ll get on with the blog now…
So of all the ideas floating about, Sarah wrote us a ghost story about a girl who gets practically possessed by ghost called Francis (that’s me). This is what we had at 1pm on Monday afternoon. The challenge for us was to move the story onto the grounds of Nostell priory and I think we did it pretty well personally, that’s sounds really cocky but oh well.

I think it was possibly the most fun I have ever had planning a performance, I mean, the first run through consisted of running round Nostell priory finding places to get seen. After that it was a matter of doing it again and again until we knew the route. Everybody had their own set of challenges to overcome aswell, which made it even more interesting, for example with the people on the house tour, which is brilliant by the way, had to keep focused for a period of around two hours, which is mad. Whereas, the storytellers had to balance the spookiness with the need to get the story across to the audience, but yeah, complicated times. I think everybody has found their own way to overcome the problems, which has been nice to see. For me the challenge didn’t come till last night, the dark just changes everything, it’s like a completely different place. For example there is a part in which we have to run the back way before the audience has travelled the straight route and when it consists of slippy steps and choices of which way to go... Let’s just say I let Mel go first.

There is a lot more to say but I fear I will ruin it for anyone coming to see it, see you on Monday team

NODA weekend...

2011-10-23T18:30:00.002+01:00

I have to admit on Friday night I was alittle concerned, it had been a long day at the end of a long week at the endof a long half term and the Saturday ahead of me promised to be quite thechallenge.

What was the challenge? A Sleeping Beauty rehearsal where Ineeded to get to the end of the script with a half term level of absence and athree hour physical theatre workshop which at the start was also going toinclude a significant amount of younger actors from West Yorkshire TheatreDance…all under the observant eye of people who had travelled up to 350 milesto watch them. So no pressure then...

The concern had turned into resigned trepidationby Saturday morning however predictably there was, in the end, no need foreither as the day turned out to be a rather joyful thing indeed…to itemise allthe good things that happened would mean writing a book rather than a blog soinstead I shall feature a number of highlights…

Highlight number 1: Seeing the NODAdirectors again…so impressed that they made it, travelled so far, made so mucheffort…such a generous thing to do with their time…and what’s more I so enjoyedtheir company once they were here…the only downside is that there wasn’t moretime.

Highlight number 2: The amount of YTYTmembers who attended the extra workshop and not only attended but dedicated inmany cases 6 hours of their energy, creativity and stamina…coupled with thisthe inclusivity shown in the way people worked together regardless of whetherthey normally attend the same groups…outstanding really

Highlight number 3: Being able to have a session thatwasn’t about realising script as in the run up to the Christmas Shows thats prettymuch our main concern…the joy of working with a blank slate with no ultimategoal in sight was a pleasure

Highlight number 4: The atmosphere of the bonus workshop,such warmth, such lack of ego, such ensembleness…and then topped off by thefinal discussions when I couldn’t help but feel more than proud of the sensitive,eloquent people I get to spend so much of my time with…

So thank you all that came from near andfar, another lovely Yew Tree day, week, half term…and as I sign off on that Isign into Halloween at Nostell…5 characters to create…not a bad creativechallenge for a Sunday…

2011-10-23T18:29:00.002+01:00

Danny Southern Ladies and Gentlemen...

So… haven’t done one of these in a while. Gonna get back into the blog saddle and ride this bad-boy… Here goes…

BONUS WORKSHOP. WHAT. A. LAUGH. Honestly one of the best things I’ve EVER done. Literally. I really didn’t know what to expect tbh ‘cos I’ve only ever been to one other workshop and that was Shakespeare, so I was kinda throwing myself in at the deep end when I heard the words: “Physical Theatre”.

Now, I dunno if I’ve made this clear enough in the past at Yew Tree, but me and ‘physical’ ended in PE in Year 10 when I was picked last for dodgeball… after the blind kid. Physical exertion is just something I’ve never really been any good at, so when Sarah mentioned “Physical Theatre”, I was like… oh.

I can honestly say that my expectations were obliterated immediately. First of all, these epic peeps from West Yorkshire Theatre Dance Company… OMG what legends. Not one of them was daunted a bit by all these strange looking people (especially Laura ‘Staggsinator’ ‘Staggsy’ Staggs, complete with new braces) and even conquered Yew Tree at Ninja Warrior!! Also, People to People was absolutely hilarious with everyone vying to be partners with one of the new awesome people

Unfortunately, our new mates couldn’t stay for the whole workshop, so the veterans of Yew Tree continued onto the ‘Physical Theatre Master Class’. So, the warm-up had finished and I was now worrying about all the strenuous tasks Sarah might be setting us: two mile run, pulling a lorry by the teeth, wrestling a bear… well yeah, I know that these seem bizarre, but c’mon this is MY mind – y’know the warped inner-thoughts of a madman?? Well anywho, I thought, okay yeah, bring it on (whilst inside I was papping myself).

It was one of the defining moments of my Yew Tree life. No joke. I loved it. I’d never heard of Virtual Playground or Pebbles on the Beach, but as soon as we began devising and creating shapes, it was just amazing seeing all these magnificent shapes forming. I kinda took a backseat approach to this without really realising as I was just awed at how a simple device could create something so elegant at times, and at others dark and mysterious. I think it just relies on the context of what you want to create. This was an idea that I took and put into action along with Ashleigh Waters in Stage 3 of continuous images.

Epic. That is all I have to say. We really immersed ourselves into a scenario of lust and betrayal – even though we hadn’t even spoken about it to each other!! I felt psychic and, with my new powers, sensed Ashleigh was too. Every move that we made had an impact on the others feelings, body language and rhythm. I can’t really describe how I felt but: inspired. I wanted to take some of these techniques and skills I had learnt today and put them into my A2 work (which is kinda shocking at the minute if you ask me). I learnt from this workshop that body expression can be just as (or even more) powerful than dialogue. Okay, yeah sometimes it hurts – during an immense fighting scene with the Sapphire leg Holly, I ran towards Jack and ended up falling… on my face…

Plus, the fantastic people from NODA were, well, fantastic!! They were sooo nice and just seemed to enjoy being there. I hope that they took the same experiences back with them that I have taken. But most of all from the session, I know that it doesn’t matter what age or company you’re in, Yew Tree is a family… A weird, sorta strange, (sometimes borderline freaky) family.

Oh yeah and I didn’t die from physicalnessness. Bonus.

2011-10-23T11:15:00.002+01:00

Amy Walton blogged about Saturday

So here it is my blog, I thought I would do one due to the fact it has been ages since I last did one!
Firstly we started this Saturday at gold by playing a few games and then going on to Briar Rose where we got to the end of the play! It felt really good to know that we had run it through once all the way through.

Then this afternoon I attended the bonus workshop that was run where people from NODA came and watched us do a workshop. We started of by playing games with the younger members of yew tree youth theatre and then went on to do physical theatre. My favourite bit was blind leading and leaving, where you get lead round by someone, because you give someone else the responsibility of looking after you for a short time.

So a lovely afternoon and day all round!

2011-10-16T21:26:00.004+01:00

A blog from our work experience victim for this week Emma...

I spent this week's work experience with yew tree and it has been totally fab, getting to see how much work everyone puts in for yew tree to be as amazing as it is, i have actualy really enjoyed my time being in the office and helping out with computer work and getting to look through the scrapbooks and start to help with making new pages:) and also helping out at the sessions has been great to see how other sessions are and what they get up too, and getting to watch them rehearse peices has been amazing, and to top it all off i got to help out back stage at peter pan, that was simply brillinant to see how it all goes down backstage, im just so happy i got to have this experience at yew tree, so yeah many thanks to Sarah, OZ, Danny, Gemma and also Alice x

So proud...

2011-10-16T17:00:00.003+01:00

I’m having one of those days today…a proper come down day…the type that only comes when you’ve put your heart and soul into something and it comes to a wonderful end…and then it is gone…

All last week my life was all about the production of Peter Pan I wrote in January and have been directing since February…months of hard work, problem solving and dedication from a whole team of professionals and a whole cast of brilliant children. The production was a credit to everyone involved especially those that stepped out of their comfort zones…the professionals involved worked in a different way to what they usually would as essentially we were inventing a new type of performance… students who had done very little acting of any major kind grew into challenging roles producing performances to be proud of…some of which brought a tear to my eye due to the impact they had on their audience and the distance I knew they had travelled to get to that moment…people who had never worked back stage took on a supportive role with as much desire to get it right as I have seen them bring to any acting role. It was a privilege to be part of such a team.

I was aware during the process of how much responsibility people were happy to undertake in order to make the show happen…it was only due to this generosity that what we made was possible. It required bravery, dedication and a willingness to overcome challenges and the reward was wonderful to behold, a production to be proud of, a group of people more experienced and knowledgeable than before the project started and an audience who simply loved it…when I went outside at the end of the last night I was overwhelmed by the comments of the parents of the performers…such a pleasure to have played a part in something that resulted in such happiness…made me feel like the luckiest person…so this is my thank you…to everyone involved, fellow teachers, cast, crew and all their families and friends that supported either in a practical way by helping with props, costumes, chaperoning etc or simply by coming and watching the talented performers who told the story of Peter Pan at Wakefield Theatre Royal this weekend with talent, courage and passion…hope you’ve had a day of feeling equally as proud as I am…

2011-10-16T17:00:00.001+01:00

Tom's blog about being one of the crew at Peter PanOver the last few days myself along with several other Yew Tree members put aside some of our time this weekend to help out as stage hands and crew for the Wakefield Theatre Royal production of Peter Pan, which was adapted and directed by our very own Sarah Osborne…And it was a very enjoyable and lovely experience to have been a part of…The cast of young actors and dancers all performed so very well, and where all professional indeed…Most of the time, it is usually me that is on stage acting along with fellow Yew Tree’ers, but being backstage shed some important light on how much work goes into staging such a production like Peter Pan…I’ve only done some small backstage work from time to time now and again, but not on such a scale as a professional theatre like that…All of the Theatre Royal crew worked very hard to make the production the best it could have been…And one person who worked just as hard as everyone else was Alice, acting as Stage Manager to the whole production, and she did her job extremely well…As did everyone else that helped out over the last few days…Well done everyone, good job

2011-10-16T16:58:00.001+01:00

Rhiann has blogged about being part of the MIners serviceLast Sunday, I took part in The Miners performance at Pontefract Cathedral and it was the first time I’d performed in the service after I was given the opportunity by Gemma. After weeks of rehearsals and line learning, we were finally ready and excited to show our piece which was all about the miners who worked and had pride in their work but also made the area what it is as well as the history behind it. Our script showed the families of the miners as well as, like the little sisters and the wives which made the piece show the fact that mining was about family.When we all got to Pontefract Cathedral on the day, I’d never been more scared, looking round, we noticed how many seats would be filled and the families and miners who would be there. After our quick rehearsal, we all prepared for our performance. But before our performance, there were readings from the NUM which were very touching as they said about how people risked their lives. Then our piece started, and we were all nervous as we said our lines and worked our way through the scenes. And I can honestly say, I have never felt more proud of being part of a project but also, how amazing the cast were and sensible about the subject. As we finished, I had to say my speech, and I was so frightened as I stood there but once I’d finished, I was so happy that I’d took part The rest of the service brought tears as people laid flowers for loved ones and friends, I think it was so moving and heart breaking.The most rewarding part after the whole service was having people come up to us and say how much the enjoyed our performance and thought we did well to make the piece but honestly, we couldn’t of done it without our director, Gemma, and the help of Danny and Sarah! I can’t wait to take part next year!Another performance well done Yew Tree!

Sorrow and Pride

2011-10-09T18:39:00.002+01:00

I’ve just got back from St Giles Church where eleven Yew Tree Youth Theatre members performed a piece of devised theatre, written and directed by Gemma, at the Miners Memorial service. They were the youngest and smallest cast to do this in the three years we’ve had the privilege to be part of it, but this didn’t stop them being an absolute credit to themselves and the youth theatre.

The remembrance of miners is of even greater significance this year as the industry has suffered 5 fatalities in this country in the last month…one of them in Yorkshire. As a consequence the bright and vivid colliery banners that are a familiar feature of the service were adorned in black in remembrance.Each year I am humbled by the fact that the material we create a play out of is a way of life for the people who attend the ceremony to pay their respect to loved ones they have lost. The sorrow and pride, often in equal amounts, is tangible in the atmosphere in the building and on the faces of all of those that gather together to remember, to find solace, to celebrate and to mourn.

Having Yew Tree as part of the service is a brilliant thing in a number of ways but one of the most important ones for me is that it ensures that there are young people engaged with the remembrance of miners and the mining community. In the creation of the piece and the attendance of the service youth theatre members are reminded of and learn about this vital aspect of their heritage and how key it is to the foundations of the community they live in now. Aside from Yew Tree there were only two other non-adults in attendance. I have a hope that in someway we are ensuring that the importance of this history is given a voice in the future and that those involved in the mining community see that the next generation genuinely care…

As the service ended and people made their way home we were asked if we would be happy to perform again next year (testament to the courage, talent and sensitivity of the cast, writer and director) and our answer was immediate and definitive as for as long as we are welcome we will readily be there…

2011-10-09T18:38:00.002+01:00

Tasha has written a blog on her returnI am a Yew Tree newbie.Despite joining at the age of 12 many moons ago, I left the group in 2007 to embark on a foray into university life. I return now merely weeks away from my 22nd birthday and, inevitably, a decade shared with Yew Tree in its various shapes and sizes.Coming back has been a fairly painless process, aside from playing the ninja game; who knew a simple concept could confuse an adult so much? Other than some of the faces and the size of the company, it all seems as familiar as when I was a regular. Speaking as an official Black Company member, what a lovely, talented and downright hilarious bunch you / we are.The full Robin Hood script exists now, we all have it and, if Thursday night is anything to go by, it will be a lot of fun to pull off. Casting is complete, costume has been discussed and venues have been determined. The read-through ran smoothly and allowed us to get to grips with the performance style, as well as the relationships within the play. We simply cannot wait for rehearsals to get underway, particularly those involved in sword and staff fights I am sure! With a bit of focus over the coming weeks, success will naturally be the next step.

2011-10-03T15:52:00.003+01:00

An overview of the week from MelWell, this week for black company has been a triumphant one you could say, with the Ossett, Walton and Jubilee festivals all happening. All of which we've had brilliant feedback (even though for certain people it was a little harder, having to learn lines and new movements just a mere 5 minutes before the performance was supposed to start). However, Thursday night was such a treat trying to help devise scenes for Robin Hood, we just couldn't help ourselves but be a little self indulged.For gold we've got further in our rehearsals for sleeping beauty with people already off script and raring to go. I'm sure that as soon as we have a full cast we'll fly through the script and be able to focus more as a group. Xx

In search of Peter Pan...

2011-10-03T14:22:00.002+01:00

My blog this week is not strictly about a Yew Tree thing as this week I want to write about Peter Pan, a production I’m directing for the West Yorkshire Theatre Dance School.Now I’m saying it’s not strictly a Yew Tree thing but I wrote and am directing it and Danny and Mikey are in it, as are a host of the Orange and Sapphire Company and Alice is stage managing it and Oz is sorting out all things technical so in fact there’s a whole lot of Yew Tree about it…so enough of the justifying, time to make my point.The production is to be performed on the 14th and 15th of October and it’s on a grand, grand scale…there are more than 50 performers in it, there is a whole heap of set and costumes to source/make/gather and for a lot of the actors i.e. the ones that don’t come to Yew Tree this is the most acting they’ve ever had to do…add to that trying to make a cohesive show out of more than 20 dance number that need to be integrated into the play bit of it and essentially what you get is the fact that we’ve all taken on something much bigger than we realised we were taking on at the start of the process. The result has been lots and lots of hours of sometimes seemingly futile rehearsals going over and over the same things with an awareness that other bits are getting sorely neglected as you do this.However the thing that I wanted to tell you about and the reason I’m including it in this blog is because on Saturday afternoon the fruits of the hard work really started to show themselves. We ran the first act and all sorts of brilliant things started to happen. Characters started to emerge much more strongly than before, faces started to light up and look entirely engaged, transitions became smoother, the narrative started to emerge in a stronger defined way…it was a delight to behold…now it’s not there yet…there is still a long way to go but we have a fortnight to do it in…but on Saturday I got that tingly feeling directors get when they can see the performance it has the potential to become and I wanted to share it with someone so I chose you…P.S. If you’re at a lose end in the middle of October come…Danny and Mikey’s performances are worth the ticket price alone…

2011-10-02T13:34:00.001+01:00

Sapphire this week being represented by Holly and LauraSo on Monday, we did a nice bit of Jack and the Beanstalk devising, which is going brilliaaant And to make it even better, we had Sarah and Danny for half the session and Gemma for the next half - best of both worlds innit ninja warrior is my new fave game, cowboys and indians is still my favefave though, and it was a treat for me to do Gemma's job for a bit and run ninja warrior. Right, I was well nervous at the start but when I settled into it - loved it also, I'm loving my part in Jack and the Beanstalk, I get to be bossy, which is what I do best tehe, sorry this is really disjointed, and short, and late... I'm sure Laura's bit will be MUCH better so read that bit before this, and if you've read this, I promise my next one will be better,ily yew tree.Freeman xxThis week we had the pleasure of seeing Gemma for half the session and letting her see how far we have got with Jack and the Beanstalk which is really great as we got her input on it all on how to improve or tweak anything slightly, it was really nice to have Gemma and we got to play her version of Ninja Warrior and then Holly took over to teach Gemma how to play our version which was really funny as Holly takes charge really well especially over Daly it was a shame that we didn’t get Danny and Sarah all lesson as they were dearly missed but it was great having Gemma and for half an hour having one of our old members Jake which was a really nice surprise for us all Staggs xx

Rising above...

2011-09-25T15:12:00.004+01:00

On Friday night after our performance in Ossett I was approached by a number of the audience who wanted to tell me how professional the black company are (they said other nice things too but they all commented on our professional approach …this happens whenever they perform and my response is always to say,” Well yes…” as what surprises them is simply what I expect…the conversation is always a little awkward as I do understated low key pride to their genuine surprise… In some ways I felt a little guilty on Friday as while others were complimenting my lovely actors I was remembering that about an hour ago I had been stood outside the hall reprimanding them for whispering…and whispering very quietly at that…I really am a perfectionist and for that I’m sorry…well a bit sorry…to be honest not that sorry… because it’s this strive for perfection that means our youth theatre’s reputation gets stronger with everything we do which means we get to challenge ourselves further and further…Our name has come to represent an organisation whose values are admired as much as our art…and that makes me very proud…So for all of those people who were there on Friday and who witnessed the opposite to professional behaviour by an arts practitioners (I’m not including details on here as it won’t help anything – however I imagine at some point it’ll get round to you all) that’s why after a momentary glint of rage I didn’t follow it up, didn’t challenge the disparaging comments and inappropriate behaviour…there’s no need to argue with someone who sadly has lost all grasp on what’s important in making performance with young people…I can just smile at them, confident in my young people and the work and community we’ve created and after that anything else is simply pettiness… There, rant done…thank you Black Company for being brilliant and good luck in the next two performances as we continue to build our reputation…and just as a whimsical aside Black Company I am ridiculously excited for the session on Thursday where we get to play with no performance deadline to hit!!! We shall have much fun devising all things Robin Hood…

2011-09-25T15:12:00.001+01:00

Rachel's outgoing blog...the last of the leavers this year...I don't usually volunteer to write blogs with great haste because I wouldn't say I'm the wittiest, most creative writer blog-wise... but this one has to be done because lets face it, I have a lot I want to say. If anything, this is the hardest one to write because I really don't know how I possibly put in to words just how ridiculouslyyyy much I am going to miss Yew Tree. Yew Tree has, without a shadow of a doubt, the best, most talented and wonderful family of people I have met and will ever meet. I have never known a place that offers young people so much experience and opportunities and I feel really proud and priviledged that I've had the chance to be involved in all of that and that's all thanks to Sarah, Gemma, Danny and Oz, so thank you for all that you do. I called Yew Tree a family because there really isn't a more perfect word to describe it. To be part of something where everyone is so supportive and caring of one another is very hard to come across, but it clear that we have definitely managed it! I never imagined when I joined three years ago that I would meet so many brilliant people and make such amazingly close friends who I am going to miss like crazy (and I mean that!!) and I now know that these are friends for life. Yew Tree is really the only thing that makes me sad about leaving for Uni now and the only thing that makes me wish I wasn't quite so far away! But it's so lovely knowing that I will always have a place to come back to. You can bet that every Saturday morning and Thursday evening, whatever I may be doing (probably failing at trying to wash my own clothes or cook a decent tea!) I'll definitely be thinking of you all and wishing that I was with you! I am being extremely stubborn and not saying goodbye, because the minute I can come visit, I will, so as for any goodbye's, it's not going to happen! I have loved every second with Yew Tree and some of the best and most hilarious times I've had have been with you all! My only regret in joining is that I didn't do it earlier. Thank you and I am going to miss you more than I can explain. Lots of love, Rachel xxx

2011-09-25T15:08:00.003+01:00

Jess Moore blogged about Open Mic Night 7...This week it was Open Mic Night 7, one of my favourite Yew Tree events. It’s really nice to see people’s other talents that they might not have chance to share normally. And each year more people decide to perform and it’s brilliant! I promised myself I wouldn’t be a shambles this year, but if anything I was worse ha! For some reason singing in front of Yew Tree is harder than singing for anyone else ha, however I will be semi organised for the next one… I promise ha! It was such a nice night though and rather emotional when it came to speeches and ditties that were related to leaving us. It’s always sad when people leave but the thing is they never really fully leave as they come back for certain sessions and Nostell and Open Mic Night’s etc… I suppose it makes you appreciate people more when they aren’t there all the time! So many people came to support Yew tree this year and it made a brilliant atmosphere! I’m hoping I shall still be making an appearance when its Open Mic Night 97 I really was impressed with just how talented everyone is though, and since hearing Gemma sing her song (which I had never heard) I have listened to it approximately 75 times ha! Bit gutted I didn’t win the raffle though. Harry did though! Oh wait…

Rising to the challenge...

2011-09-18T14:31:00.000+01:00

So in Black Company we are trying to pull off 3 pieces of Children’s theatre in a very short time to perform in three different venues at three different events…it seemed like such a good idea when I said we would and in a way it still is as the pieces are delightful and we’ll really be able to showcase the youth theatre’s talents…however it’s a much more demanding process than I envisioned. It is, however, at times like this you notice how brilliant people are. As we were trying to piece together Lost Happy Endings together again with a number of new cast members and a number of gaps the outgoing cast started this brilliant thing…it started with things grinding to a halt and having to call on their expertise, as the process went on they started not to need to be asked but instead were automatically demonstrating, guiding and problem solving and then they anticipated where there would be problems and were ready to fix them in advance.It was the nicest thing to witness, whenever I go on about company…that’s what I’m talking about…that attitude where the work and the creativity and the unified endeavour is the most important thing…and the result was in 3 hours we achieved so much…we still have quite the challenge ahead but with a company like ours I have no doubt we’ll achieve it…On a related note we have lost and are about to lose some people who have carved themselves exceptionally important places in Yew Tree…this final sentence is to say to them, be happy and successful and please come back when you can…we’ll always be here for you…

2011-09-18T14:28:00.002+01:00

The wonderful Hannah Speke not saying farewell...Well I kinda feel like I should’ve dramatically titled this ‘the farewell blog’ or something. But it’s not really, I might be going to university but you won’t get rid of me that easily  But I’ve been at Yew Tree since I was about 9, which means I’ve been here for 9 years, which is half my life. Scary. So I’m a bit sadder about leaving Yew Tree than I was about leaving college.I remember joining Gemma’s session when it was at Drury Lane Library absolutely ages ago, and my first ever performance at Yew Tree of The Tempest in Thornes Park. And then Helen joined, because I’d told her Yew Tree was brilliant and we had lots of fun. And then it moved to the church where we had to set up the chairs for mass at the end of each session, ha. Eventually we had to move up to Gold, mainly because we were about a foot taller than everyone else in Gemma’s group… I’ve done loads at Gold and Black: trips to Kendal, Connections, the Shakespeare festival, Miners, Podcasts, Nostell week, Hepworth launching…it’s a long list. But my favourite thing, without a doubt, was Karamazoo. It doesn’t need explaining, it was just fantastic fun, so thanks for that Sarah, I loved it.I realise this is sounding a little bit like my memoirs or something, but stuff keeps popping into my head so I just type it. One of the best things about Yew Tree is the way they just accept new people and help each other. Because I’m not in the Christmas shows this year, I’ve been a spectator instead, which is really weird. But it’s brilliant to see people who’ve only been at Yew Tree for a few weeks just taking everything in their stride confidently. And I am really excited about seeing the Christmas show, but I reeeeally want to be in Sleeping Beauty, and I love Natalie’s character soo much.And the performances they’re working on at Black company are brilliant. Giraffes Can’t Dance. It is THE happiest entrance ever. If you’re not feeling too good, just go and watch them all dance on and you’ll just feel happy. Mine and Ellie’s award for the consistently funny entrance went to Jack Watts, we just laughed every time he came on.This is getting to essay length now, so I just want to say. I am so glad I joined Yew Tree and I’ve enjoyed every minute of my 9 years  See you at Christmas. I love Yew Tree. Hannah Speke signing off. x

Back to Yew Tree

2011-09-11T14:38:00.002+01:00

First of all I wanted to say how lovely it is to be back…and with record attendance in the first week…it was so good to see everyone and welcome new members. There is so much to do this term, the autumn term at Yew Tree is always the most hectic but also one of the most enjoyable…(to be fair though I love each one equally…just depends which one I’m in the middle of…)I’m so aware that at the start of each session I’m bombarding you with so many announcements but then I suppose the positive side of that is that this profusion of information is a direct reflection of the huge amount of things Yew Tree are doing…before the end of October Yew Tree will have performed 6 times with 4 different performances…in addition to the usual sessions within which 4 companies are in the early stages of their Christmas productions (and will be joined by Black after their festival performances) we are either in rehearsal or development for 2 extra projects – the Miners Memorial Service Performance and Halloween at Nostell. As if that wasn’t enough on Sunday we will host our SEVENTH Open Mic Night…and we’re already starting thinking about Connections 2012…it really is immense…but despite all of that there is something much more significant about Yew Tree being back up to full power and it is this…that there is a place for you as youth theatre members to be the best you can be as an artist and as a person, away from the constraints and pettiness of the outside world…I hope you make the most of it…and have a wonderful term…

2011-09-11T14:36:00.002+01:00

Ash wrote a blog...yipeeeeToday was the first day back after the summer holidays, and with it marked the first rehearsal of Briar Rose, the first session for a few newcomers, and one of the final sessions for some of the Yew Tree veterans. This was set to be my penultimate appearance at Gold, but i have been fortunate enough to be able to stay and do all things yew tree for another year.The session this week was very relaxed, consisting of a few games, a creative task, a read through of the script and finished off with an always pleasant game of the laughing game. It was very enjoyable to hear the script out loud and to find so much of what was devised in there too, although suprisingly none of what mine and Jonny's group devised for the dream sequence was in there, I really thought we were on to a winner...Joking aside it was very nice to be back, infact more than nice it was great, and after having such a large role last year im looking forward to seeing what the younger cast members have to bring to the table. There were already talks of costumes and props, so we really have hit the ground running. With that said and speaking from experience i would advise those with a lot of lines to start learning them as soon as possible. I thought I had alot last year and struggled a little, but looking at the Briar Rose script some people have a huge amount of lines to learn, so dont sleep on it.

The joy of inspiration...

2011-09-03T17:49:00.002+01:00

By rights I should be writing this blog about Tuesday’s play in day because it’s the most exciting youth theatre thing that I was part of this week and because it was a brilliant day but James has done this admirably in his blog leaving me free to pursue a more tangential theme…

On Friday night I had the pleasure and privilege of watching an outstanding piece of theatre…it was thoroughly entertaining in the best sense of the word…the cast and company had taken the play (Shakespeare’s Much Ado About Nothing) and used the full extent of their creative talents (which were many) and produced something utterly delightful…I left the theatre uplifted and inspired so I thought I might share some of the ways in which it’s going to influence this term at Yew Tree…

Firstly it was an affirmation that culture and company is everything in theatre, something I’m certain you’ll have heard me going on about. The cast worked as a true ensemble with an ease and smoothness that was unbroken throughout…the generosity with which they committed themselves to their joint endeavour was tangible…this wasn’t a place for ego or affectation and there was no room for uncertainty...this was a place where everyone worked together to produce brilliance and the aim was to do this as consistently as was humanly possible. What’s more it was backed up with direction that was both intelligent and aware…the directorial decisions enhanced every bit of the performances and gave the piece an infrastructure that made brilliant theatre possible. Equally the design did what good design should do and ensured that every aspect of the play had the appropriate setting and sense of place…it was simply ingenious and as such entirely in keeping with the rest of the elements making up the production.

Secondly each person played to their strengths and was placed to make the most of these…however, and this is important, they also had an absolute sense of the boundaries within which their performance was framed…the result was a sort of safe anarchy, a knowing provocation…it was magic to watch and the atmosphere in the theatre was charged with the power of it…as a director it made me consider the brilliant individuals I have in my company and how I can encourage them to explore the boundaries of their potential further…so my next ambition is to find a new balance between freedom and discipline that can really push the possibilities of the company…

And thirdly, and this is where anyone watching would have learnt something vital about theatre, every single performer was giving absolutely every bit of their energy, talent, intelligence, heart, soul and anything else they could get their hands on to ensure they gave the play to the audience in the best form it could be…it was a joy to behold that much investment being offered in such abandonment…leaving the audience feeling exhilarated and privileged to have seen something unforgettable…

So yeah…that was my Friday night, an evening that made me anticipate the start of the new term at YTYT with even more joy and excitement…so see you all this week where I can start to put all of this inspiration into practice…

2011-09-03T17:45:00.001+01:00

James B blogged about our brilliant Play In A Day...

Right, so play in a day. Loved it. To put it shortly. Not sure that will do for a blog though. So here it goes.

We started with the basic idea of street café and then sought to develop into a piece. Starting with street café we investigated the different characters you might get coming along this street. The first time it was as outrageous and hilarious as it normally is but. But the second time we sought to focus on the less attention grabbing, but equally as important characters. That was really interesting as it gave a completely different street café to what we normally produce. From there it was about choosing a character and delving deeper into his/her back story, their reasons for being on that street at the particular time. From then on I could see background of the piece we were to produce.

Then it gets even more complicated, from all these new people in the room, that suddenly exist, it was time to suss out who you know, who you don’t. Who you like, who you dislike. Etc. That took a good amount of concentration but by the end everybody seemed to have a few street friends. With it being a one day thing though the characters didn’t have a chance to fully develop, I say that with caution as a lot of the characters were pretty deep by 4pm. But from my perspective they seemed to grow with every run. So this is about 12.30. And we’ve got no piece whatsoever. Now we chose the content of the street. A common event that brought all the characters on the street, after a good 10 minutes of heated debating the decision was made to a lost child, called Edward, in case anyone wanted to know. Don’t know who named him. Think we should have voted on that too.
Lunch was nice, just thought I’d put that out there. Nice little chats with the Yew Tree lot.

But after my BLT and chips, which I didn’t finish in time to my upmost embarrassment, we went on to do a bit of creative writing. We were writing the script really, but we didn’t know it at the time. Got some really good monologues after an hour or so though. Then we sorted them into a well thought out order and boom, bit of added movement and side dialogue and we were there. After a few runs and some minor changes I think what we had was pretty good. Well I was impressed with it, you can judge it yourself though if you fancy it, get yourself on YouTube. Then we went home. On the bus. In the rain. But that didn’t really matter, but the piñata did get wet. Anyway. Too many words. see you all soon

Commitment acknowledged...

2011-08-27T19:00:00.001+01:00

Friday the 26th of August and it’s raining…not only is it raining but the sky looks pretty set to carry on doing so for the rest of the day…we’d arranged to have a picnic to celebrate the drawing to a close of the Summer holidays and the success of our Nostell Performance “Duel.” Last year’s version had been a lovely event, glorious sunshine, a long relaxing afternoon and many a game of that’s out…This time however we are not so lucky and it had been touch and go throughout the morning as to whether I cancelled it. There are 20 or so YTYT members expected and I start to wonder if many of them will show as a result of the horrid weather however as is usually the case I needn’t have worried…

By 1.30 despite the rain 20 youth theatre members had duly assembled and although admittedly there were varying degrees of enthusiasm emanating from the individuals present they had all been committed enough to turn up. Not only did they turn up but after we’d had a look around the house most of them went on a mile and a half walk to start sussing out the lay of the land for our Halloween event…even more impressive when you factor in that about half of them won’t be able to be in the final performance.

Once I started considering this element of youth theatre I realized I’d seen so many examples of commitment just in the one week. From the people who’d done 11 hour days on Thursday to those unable to take part in performances but offering to help with the creative process…from my Sapphire Company who as soon as they were asked made sure everyone knew that the term was starting early to the people who’ve come to so many of the Summer days to learn as much as they can through the holiday.

Commitment is one of the vital things that fuels the youth theatre and I’m so appreciative of the generosity with which so many people give it…I like to think you’re rewarded for your loyalty and the time that you so readily give to Yew Tree we certainly strive to ensure that’s the case…so as the new term begins and a whole new set of challenges and demands await you this is a reassurance that your commitment whenever you give it is always wholly appreciated…

2011-08-27T18:38:00.002+01:00

Our second guest blogger this week is Jack Iredale...

So, we had a directing workshop on Thursday. It was enjoyable, but I came away with one major thought, that I’m probably going to wait a bit before I try it out. Granted, I was a bit better at it than I thought, which may have been because I was directing people I knew, I imagine if it were a new company, I would find it much harder, at least at my current level.
Then again, that was covered but what we thought about in the beginning, what a director is and what they shouldn’t be, which essentially boils down to keep in control, have a good relationship with your company and know what you want to do, whether that’s everything in a piece, or just one simple idea, if you know what you want to do with it.
This came in handy when we had to direct each other. The first round of directors had it the hardest, as they had to direct Pinter, not the easiest to do in a 20-30 minute time limit, but I think this worked as an effective ice breaker. I found it easier to take direction than act, but again, that’s just my view. I know some people were really looking forward to the directing, and others were a bit unsure, but everyone did really well, especially the Pinter’s. The rest of us had DNA, which had its own difficulties, such as lines overlapping, that you had to study the script to understand, again, something a director should do.
I found that my directing style amounted to try a load of different emotions and see which works. When we reached that, see the extremes and bring it back from near the top. It’s nice to find out your own style, rather than trying to copy someone else’s, makes the directing feel more natural, and it helps the people your directing.
It has been one of my favourite Summer at Yew Tree course, though it was quite different to the others, focusing a lot more on the theory. This wasn’t a bad thing, as without the theory, I know I wouldn’t have been able to do any of the directing exercises. I found it helped a lot, and expanded my ideas of directing.

2011-08-27T16:41:00.001+01:00

Tom Osborne blogs about his experience of the Summer at Yew Tree

Well then my second blog and its all about the great time I’ve had at Yew Tree this summer. It started with a brilliant play in a day for youth theatre members aged 11 to 14 with Gemma. The play was King Arthur which is right up my street as I love swords and battles. To my delight I even got to have a fight with real swords against Chris.( I’m still not sure why they trusted me) You can see the photos of this day on the ytyt facebook page.
However I’m lucky enough to have done a second play in a day again with Gemma this time doing, “Where the Wild Things Are,” with 7 – 11 year olds. Again I really enjoyed it because it’s nice to not always do long more complicated plays and do something a bit less tricky. I loved listening to the wonders of seven year old’s imagination.
Another thing I noticed is how different people from Yew Tree look from less experienced actors. People like Chris Marsay already knew exactly where to go or what to do before Gemma had even opened her mouth. Whereas people with little or no experience have to be guided a bit more, yet It was nice to see some brand new faces that I hope join Yew Tree
I’ve always loved play in a days and these two certainly didn’t let me down

2011-08-22T18:07:00.001+01:00

Jonathan Hopwood with his blog about the Physical Theatre day...

It’s like maths.
Physical Theatre is something that you can relax into, have both an internal journey and an external journey with and will, more often than not, come across interesting if not entertaining to an audience. There is always something very cathartic about physical theatre, it acts as some form of release and I think this is due to expressing what’s happening in your head physically and then having the opportunity to speak about it afterwards.
The second part of the equation is Yew Tree. Yew Tree provides such an open, easy environment to create and experiment with physical theatre. Physical theatre is often quite challenging as it requires a lot of trust and contact and awareness; it sometimes needs people to come out of their comfort zones to meet the requirements of a task or exercise. However, at no point with Yew Tree, does anyone feel awkward or out of place. Everyone is so accepting and conscious of other people’s feelings. Sarah always opens it up to the group to what they want and then she lets the group then lead the direction of the final product, which allows for a safe, enjoyable journey.
And it was lovely this time, as usually physical theatre with Yew Tree consists of the Columbian Hypnosis and Slippery child which we all love. However, with a conscious decision to avoid that this time, we experimented with some new activities which has founded some new devices that can be used in future performances and, as for the final product, we created something which was so fun to perform, that it would be impossible to not enjoy whilst watching as it just showcases a group of young actors having fun. It is a lovely thing to watch.
So, this is why it is maths because – physical theatre + yew tree = brilliant times.

Days of Summer...

2011-08-21T21:35:00.001+01:00

Some weeks it’s really obvious to me what I want the blog to be about and some weeks I have to just start writing and see what emerges…this is one of the second sort of weeks…

I think the lack of a clear subject this week is because there have been too many nice things to choose from…the Pinter Workshop on Monday was an intellectual delight…11 actors trying to get their heads round the ambiguity of his scripts looking at what’s inferred, at communicating the subtext and at the challenge of portraying characters when so little is known about them from the text alone…

Then I had the privilege of calling in for the last 90 minutes of the Play in a Day…12 youth theatre members aged 11- 14 years had spent the day exploring the legends of King Arthur and had in doing so created an utterly engaging piece of theatre. Under the famed creative eye of our one and only Gemma Whelan they had produced something with integrity and humour that was a joy to watch…

Finally for the Summer Days this week 10 youth theatre members took residence in Black Cloud at the Hepworth Gallery for the day. The result? A glorious day of playing with shapes and movement and expression and freedom which in turn resulted in a unique piece of physical theatre…if you haven’t already, check out the video of it on youtube…the link is on our facebook page…

So an overarching point to justify bragging about my brilliant week…ermmmm… well here’s one…I have long been an advocator that the process of creativity is equally as important as the product and these days are hard evidence of this. You only need to listen to the reflection at the end of each workshop and read the facebook comments and blogs to get a picture of the level of enjoyment that is had…and at the same time the product of the days is equally undeniable…not just in the practical work undertaken realised but also in the development of understanding, confidence and knowledge. Sometimes the product is as simple (but none the less crucial) as individuals stepping out of their comfort zone for a while…but all this is achieved whilst having a thoroughly nice time…a far cry from the philosophy of too many practitioners…

So I hope you participate and enjoy the remaining 4 summer days and while you are let us know what you think about them and other days you’d like us to programme in the future as we’re already planning next summer. So if there’s a creative process you’d like to enjoy you just have to mention it to us…

2011-08-21T21:33:00.001+01:00

Charlotte blogged about the Pinter day...

I chose to do the Pinter workshop because the way his work is regarded really intrigued me.

Beforehand, the research gave me certain preconceptions which people had such as pauses and ambiguity.

In fact, it's the ambiguity, yet specifics of stage direction that does it for me. The way nothing can be taken for granted.

It has to have been the most inspiring workshop/session yet since as soon as I got home, I was reading reviews and information on Moonlight and other such works.

Job well done !

2011-08-14T17:27:00.000+01:00

A blog from Mel about the Shakespeare day...

Doing the shakepeare day at clarke hall was a unique suprise and changed the day around to what we originally expected.
we started off the day with a introduction, best and worst and a game of ninja warrior. we then got split into groups and were given the prologue to Henry the Fith to create an idea and compose an "epic" scene, then we got into new groups and moved on to Hamlet, for this we had to incorporate and focus on the tragedy within the scene. Last of all we got paired of and worked on a dualogue from Measure for Measure. We watched everyones performances and then all got together to end the day with what we had learned and the part we most enjoyed. i loved learning about new plays that i knew nothing about and working in different groups to normal
GERTRUUDEEEEEEEEEE

Revelling in Shakespeare...

2011-08-14T10:31:00.001+01:00

It’s just after 2pm on a Wednesday afternoon and 18 youth theatre members are assembled at the gorgeous Clarke Hall, Wakefield exploring the plays of Shakespeare…we’ve already explored the epic nature of the language in the prologue of Henry the 5th – “Oh for a muse of fire…” etc, we’ve already had a go at creating action in the final scene of Hamlet, “The rest is silence…” and now we’re looking at character in Measure for Measure…”O! It is excellent to have a giant's strength, but it is tyrannous to use it like a giant.” so we have 9 Angelos and 9 Isabellas and they’re all in different rooms in the house, battling it out to decide the fate of Claudio…they explore the text for about an hour – there’s pretty much a whole scene to do and so there’s a lot of words, character, intention, context and understanding to handle, so I’m giving them as much time as possible. At the end of about an hour we see each pair and almost immediately it hits me that the learning to be done in this observation is impressive.

One scene performed 9 times by talented, bright, committed young actors…I’m learning something about the text, the story and the characters in each realisation of the scene…the complexity of the characters comes through as each performance captures something but not all of the character…we’re able to have discussions about intensity, intention, truth, consequences, pace, energy, passion…it’s a magical thing but I get the impressions that the participants have only part of an idea about how valuable the work they are doing is and certainly how valuable the opportunity to observe is…I would guarantee that anyone watching those scenes, no matter how experienced, informed or “expert” would have got something from the observation…it’s inspired a whole cascade of thoughts for me…thoughts that will, as is always the case, become embedded into my practice…

I only hope that the participants will be as open to and inspired by the learning they were privileged to on what was a brilliant day, not education provided by me but by their peers…it’s the most powerful education I know of…

2011-08-14T10:30:00.000+01:00

A blog on our improvisation day...

Hi everyone it's Aaron, been a while since i've written one of these but such an occasion had arisen this week that i couldn't possibly keep quiet about. The Improvisation day, otherwise known as 'last Tuesday', was possibly one of the most entertaining, fun and insightful ways to spend my time. I am a huge fan of improvisation, i love taking part, i love watching it but the best part of it all for me is taking a bold move with a line or a joke that you've made in your head that second and then hearing the response from those around you. Be it a laugh or a gasp.

The best part of the day itself was seeing people taking those risks. Especially during the game worlds worst. A game that requires a person to think of the worlds worst thing to say or do in the given scenario. i loved watching people taking chances and being rewarded with the responses they deserved. it just goes to show that improvisation really isn't as scary as people often think.

Cheers team...

2011-08-07T18:01:00.001+01:00

I have just got back from a brilliant week at Warwick University spent in the company of 11 excellent people. My task over the week was to teach them as much as I could about directing youth theatre and in doing my very best to achieve this I learnt so much myself…

The learning came from a number of different strands of the course I was teaching…partly it was through reflecting on my own practice - by talking about what I do it allowed me to think about the things I take for granted…concerns about making sure that youth theatre is about balance, about journeys, about dialogue, about individuals and most importantly about a culture that has the creative and emotional wellbeing of all at it’s centre…making all that is implicit to Yew Tree explicit I was made aware of what my priorities as a Youth Theatre director are and need to be…

Another source of learning came from watching the group over the week as they became a company through the games and techniques and reflection that we take for granted at Yew Tree. It was almost magical watching 11 disparate people of different ages, experience and backgrounds become a united entity that supported and encouraged each other and within which there were achievements, connections and friendships that will far outlast this week…

Still more learning came to me from the people on the course, all of whom were generous with their views and opinion and willingness to engage fully with the course…together we made discoveries and debated issues and together we put the concerns of our actors as paramount and strove to find ways to develop and support them…

How does this concern you, the members of Yew Tree? Because without you I wouldn’t have been able to teach the course in the first place…without you I wouldn’t have had the journey I have had and wouldn’t know what I know…so hurray for you…and much as I loved last week I’m so glad to be back and can’t wait to get back to directing you so if I don’t see you this week at the Impro day or the Shakespeare day or at Black or writers…I’ll see you very soon…keep safe til then…

2011-08-07T16:40:00.001+01:00

I asked for a blog this week that perhaps took a wider perspective as there hasn't been much activity and Ashleigh has written something very lovely in answer to that request...

Hi team, this blog isn’t about a certain session I have attended recently but about my Yew Tree experience so far, maybe a little self indulgent but anyway…

I have been a member of Yew Tree for over 3 years now, and I cannot put in to words how amazing it is. The people and experiences I’ve had have shaped me as a person and inspired me to act. All my life I have been picking up a hobby and dropping it within a year, acting has always been something I’ve enjoyed but without Yew Tree I know academic drama would have beaten my love for it out of me.

My first Connections was what really improved my confidence, ‘The Heights’ was a fantastic opportunity for me and getting to perform at the West Yorkshire Playhouse was just wow! I learned so much in the rehearsal process and my love for acting grew.

The most scared I have ever been before performing has to have been when I was Eleanor in ‘Beauty and the Beast’. I’m still shocked I remembered all those lines and so grateful I was given the opportunity to play a character as demanding as she was. It was a challenge that really pushed me but it has inspired me take on larger roles; now I know I can learn and remember the lines. I had always felt welcome but that is when I knew I belonged at Yew Tree, when Sarah calls us actors that’s what we are and that’s what we constantly prove to her we can be.

The commissioned pieces I have been a part of for the Miner’s memorial service and the Hepworth opening, give us a chance to do something with Yew Tree outside of the youth theatre. They teach us more about what is or has been going on around us. We are educated through our art which is something so many teachers and companies strive to achieve. I feel Yew Tree does this effortlessly because we all care enough to volunteer if we have time or spend that half an hour you would have spent watching TV to go and research what we have been asked to be a part of. The things a teacher would have to tell you to do, we do without being told.

Work Experience with Yew Tree really made me appreciate what goes on behind the scenes of performances and the company itself. I also got to see the work Yew Tree Art Ltd does. The amount of work Yew Tree has to do alongside the million youth theatre productions is immense. This all made me appreciate Yew Tree even more.

Recently I have had some time off due to the most awful college in the history of time, but I’m back and I plan to make the most of the time I have left with Yew Tree. I’ve been a part of Gold and Sapphire companies, and joined Black not long ago. I appreciate Yew Tree and the work it does so much and am honoured to feel a part of such a (insert word that mean better than amazing) company. Thank you everyone who I have ever had the pleasure to work with especially Sarah and Danny, you’re all fantastic!

2011-08-07T16:11:00.002+01:00

Mel blogged on her week at Nostell...and this is what she had to say...

Well... Nostell has been the best week i've had in a long time! The weather was absolutely gorgeous and the Script "Duel" was a masterpiece, what better recipe could you ask for to create a brilliant show for over the 100 people that came to watch?
All week had been a challenge, with the 10am starts, followed by the warm ups, games, best and worsts and getting on with rehearsals and then finishing at 4pm all week and somewhere in there having breaks filled with chat, poetry writing, sun bathing and the obvious THAT'S OUT!
Learning lines and direction was difficult at times but everyone pulled through for the final performance, which we had amazing feedback for
Nostell has been such a "feel-good" week for me, with me breaking my biggest boundaries with confidence and projection - go onnn me ( not to brag or anything)
Soo proud of everyone though, it's been fab, going to miss all of you who are going off to Uni and those that are going back again.
Don't be strangers - until next year...

2011-08-01T16:39:00.001+01:00

Lucy's Nostell Blog

I am currently sat in the car en route to Bristol, listening to the Wicked soundtrack, and now writing a blog. It's quite sunny too which is nice. And I've just purchased one of THE most sensational drinks ever- a caramel Costa Lite. (Only 80 calories in that little cup of sunshine- fabulous)
So, last week was Nostell week. Strictly speaking I shouldn't have been there, what with me only being 15... but I was and it was brilliant. What a way to kick off the summer holidays.
On Monday, 'Duel' was just a script we'd been given not long before the start of the week. By Friday evening, despite having to move location a mere 6 hours before performance, it was a full play waiting to be performed to a surprisingly massive audience.
What with it being my first Nostell I had no idea what to expect. I knew it would be hard work, but I didn't expect to feel as exhausted as I did every night ha. But despite the tiredness we pulled through everyday with 27 smiling actors (some of us even had enough energy to stay behind til 6:30 for an extra long game of That's Out on Thursday. ZEEZEEZEE.)
Barry Trants is piping about it atm... he said he liked how intimate it all felt and liked the fact that even when certain characters weren't the main focus they were still enjoyable to watch, like Dee's dance and the phone crew searching around and stuff. He said he felt almost privileged to see those bits because not all the audience will have done. There you go, bit of feedback from the audience for you.'
Nostell is indeed an experience, and a thoroughly enjoyable one at that. Best week I've had in a long while. To be honest, I wish every week was filled with what this week has been full of- play performing, That's Out, salmon-ing, pockets full of sunshine, and a pretty back-drop to top it off.
I've also gotten a lot closer to a few people from it all, to the point where I so wish I was a permanent member of Black Company. (Don't worry Sarah, I'm not hinting ha)
But yeah, thanks for letting me be a part of it. I've absolutely loved it.
Bring on summer Yew Tree days and bring on Sleeping Beauty.
LT

Duel...

2011-07-31T23:49:00.001+01:00

Last night saw the rollercoaster ride that was Nostell 2k11 draw to a close…it was magnificent…a word I rarely use…a record 27 actors took part and proved again that Black Company and it’s associates are something very special indeed…my evidence for using a word as overblown and excessive as magnificent are as follows…

Two months ago the Duel was simply an idea in my head, one month ago it was still just that plus a list of characters and a cast list…in the space of just 4 weeks it was transformed from that abstract set of things into a joyful theatrical event where an audience of 100 supporters of Yew Tree were treated to an evening of Youth Theatre at it’s best…

The ingredients for making it such a brilliant event are complex and not easily summed up however I shall attempt to…firstly it’s about getting together a group of people who are committed to a common goal and prepared to put aside their own needs, as far as they possibly can, to strive towards those that are shared…secondly it’s about trust, trust in themselves and in each other and in the director and equally in the script…without that magnificent things just don’t happen…thirdly it’s about responsiveness to the direction you’re given, to the other actors and to any external factors…like for example having to change the venue of the performance 6 hours before the audience arrive…and it’s also a lot about investment, of time, of self and of energy. Finally when all those foundations are in place it’s about seizing the moment…and that’s exactly what the cast of “Duel” did. Last nights performance was a festival of everyone putting in maximum effort to make the performance the best thing it could be…each actor challenged themselves to overcome their personal barriers and achieve their next area of development as a performer and as a result “Dual,” was a delight for me as the writer and director to watch. I was so proud of you and impressed by you…every last one of you…so Black Company…make sure you take a moment to enjoy the fruits of your labour and all those who came to support them thank you for your commitment and effort…it was lovely to share “Duel” with all of you…

2011-07-31T23:48:00.001+01:00

Ellie is the next...

This week has been as good as it was always going to be.
Yew tree for a whole week.. I mean come on what's better? By the time it came to Friday I was absolutely shattered but so worth it. The juggling game was my absolute favorite, the concentration and the atmosphere from the whole was an eye opener, by the end of the week it felt like I shouldn't be going home because my family was there at nostell priory. it's coming to the time where I am flying off to university and after 11 years of yew tree the thought of it breaks my heart. (another blog will be written about that section of my life with yew tree anyway) one of my favorite moments was when we did a warm up with our eyes closed and when I opened my eyes there in front of me was the beautiful nostell priory what's better to open your eyes to?! My other fav moment was the belief of a couple sat on the bench next to our rehearsal space and the moment she said to her husband "oh it's a play!" ha - absolutely lovely.
Yes I wrote a poem and when I'm at home I will type it up but a much better version, ours was terrible not going to lie.
Thank you Sarah for a much loved week.
I'm going to miss you all so much.
Absolute heartbreaker.
X

2011-07-31T23:44:00.001+01:00

First guest blog is from Mr Danny Southern...

“You’ve got THE best week for work experience”.

That seemed to follow me everywhere on Monday. Being an ex-Sapphire-ite, being on Nostell Week was gonna be my first step towards being in Black Company. Surprisingly (well to me anyway) I knew quite a few people like Callum, Danny, Jack and Ashleigh (who somehow managed to get renamed Bianca cos I got bored of her name beginning with A).

- Inside note, yes Ashleigh, I will do a rhyming bit later on…..

So anyway, there I was, feeling kinda vulnerable, not knowing what to expect, thinking if Sarah was one of those people-eating-fire-breathing-work-experience-bosses that’re really well… annoying. But no. I proper enjoyed it. I mean yeah, I enjoy Yew Tree (digging a hole here)… what I mean is it was really different to see a whole play develop from start to finish in a week; and what’s more, seeing it from an outside view.

Not having read the script beforehand, I had no idea whatsoever what was gonna happen in the play… OMG I nearly weed. First of all, I have to say that the new addition to ‘The Bean Game’ (‘The Nostell Bean’) is just, well immense. Just two words “Shut-up Jono”. Well, yeah I know but it counts as two and a half words really.

Back on track (again), to the script. Sarah, you’ve really done well this time. Only at Yew Tree could marriages break up, pregnancies come out of the blue and friendships deteriorate all whilst two guys are gonna have a sword-fight over a girl. That’s just normal procedure yeah? And to say the guys only got the script not long before Nostell Week, I have to say that I’m proper impressed with how everyone has been dedicated to their roles.

It was weird seeing characters develop overnight and take on new personalities, new feelings and just becoming an even greater joy to watch. Mental. Even the news of having to pack up and shift round the back AT THE LAST MOMENT didn’t even knock these guys. Just pros, I guess.

It was a proper mint time. I’ve made loads of new mates in Black (was gonna put Black mates, but didn’t know if it bordered on the racist line) and I know that some of you are off to Uni in September and that this was your last performance.

Just wanna say good luck to the people that I might not see again and just forewarning the others… you have no idea what I’m like when I’m actually running at 100%... it’s almost as crazy as shouting AVADA KEDAVRA at a duck. Seriously.

And now… the dread poem. Yaaaay… Hope you can sense my utmost enthusiasm there…

Nostell Week at Yew Tree,
Where a Duel was to appear,
The Company of Black preparing
To perform amongst their peers,
A marriage break-up, a friendship shattered,
Lives contorted in the fray,
Not meaning to hurt those closest,
That are standing in the way
Between right and wrong,
To make the best decision
Like not killing someone
And ending up in prison,
A ‘noble’ man, a push-over,
A hippie and the press,
Losing phones and violent boys
Who seem that they know best,
The moral of the story,
Of the Duel that happened here,
Is to be honest and stand up for yourself
And don’t be pressured by fear.

Well. There you go. An extra long blog for an extra special week.

Best. Week. Ever.

End of term

2011-07-24T09:41:00.001+01:00

Yesterday saw the last sessions of regular youth theatre before we broke for the holiday…at one point this would have meant that I wouldn’t see the majority of you for six weeks and this was seen as the appropriate routine…but now all this has changed…not only have we got Nostell with a record 27 people participating and of course Danny Southern on work experience but we also have 9 day courses and Black and Ivory won’t be stopping at all through the holidays…
I like the fact that the Youth Theatre is more continual now and that with your enthusiasm and our vision we have more and more opportunities to try different things…think about the new things we’ve done just this term…I moves, Young Theatre Makers, Crimsons major performance at Cathedral and that’s in addition to making some of the more regular aspects of our work like the Classics festival and Connections at Kendal bigger and better...
What I particularly enjoyed about yesterday’s session at Gold was the evidence that some of the younger members of the company are really starting to show just how very talented they are…some of the devised scenes yesterday were beautifully crafted, they were genuinely scenes of excellent quality and this makes me so very optimistic that, as I prepare to say goodbye to some people who are intrinsic to the fabric of Yew Tree, the next generation are more than ready to step up to fill the gaps they leave in their own unique way…
So I’m going to do Nostell and enjoy every minute of it…then I’m going to go and teach at Warwick University for a week and then when I come back I can launch the next set of projects that are coming up on the horizon…I can assure you that the next term of YTYT is going to be just as creative, vibrant and hectic as the last…
If you’re taking the 6 weeks off enjoy your time away and we’ll see you in September…if you’re spending any time with us over the holidays look forward to working with you and if you haven’t decided yet remember you can book whenever you like up until the event you want to take part in is full or has happened…hope to see you soon…

2011-07-24T09:09:00.000+01:00

Guess who?

Blogbloggg:) x
IYA :) Sooo I havnt wrote a blog for tiiime so thought I'd pipe up :)
Buzzing for Nostell so much I've even got so into it that last time I was in topshop I saw a beaut of an outfit and was like I have to have that for my character!...
Bought it dint I. Tehe
Sgonna be a taste sensation of a week! Probs without the taste.. Coulda just said sensation.. Haa shutup dee
But yeah all the characters are brilliant and I am Lovinggg life for catching some rays, picniccing and having a cheeky game of that's out.. Oh and obvs rehearsing with my favourite homosapians. Haa homosapians.. Funny word.. You can tell I'm writing this at the crack of dawn on my way to whitby can't you ha .. Helll
Anyhoooo non black company members get yourself involved and down to Nostell Priory at 7pm on friday you beauts!
Lalalala :)
Sgonna be a joyous occassion of 2k11 init? brap. Haaa stunner!
Lotsa loveeee ha
Seeeyaaa ♥ (in a nice voice:))xxx

ps. Were doing Sleeping beauty in gold company for christmas, deffo in my top 10 films/stories whatevs (although our versions going more dark and twisty times) my life. Is. Complete. Teehee

Some thoughts in Identity...

2011-07-17T19:37:00.002+01:00

Sorry the blog is so late…I haven’t really stopped writing all day apart from a brief trip to Leeds to see my brilliant son, Tom, dance at the Royal Academy of Dance Northern Boys Only event…the result is now there is a Nostell script with a start a middle and an end, 27 characters and 14139 words…some of which are good…and now I just need to fine tune it with the help of my brilliant cast…which is all good as in less than a fortnight it will all be over…rehearsed and performed and done…terrifying…so yeah…that’s my excuse for late blogness…

I’ve been trying to decide what to pick out of this week…and what I have isn’t fully formed but I’m going to run it past you anyway…I’ve been thinking about identity a lot…how we choose to identify ourselves and others…how that in turn makes us behave and how it can work for us or against us…I think it’s been in my mind partly because I have so many characters in my head and partly because I watch so many people defining themselves in terms that either do them an injustice or create expectations they can’t meet…One of the strengths of Yew Tree I think is that it gives people a possibility to drop some of the masks they feel they have to wear in other aspects of their life…and through drama a chance to try on others to see how they feel and fit…when you have this opportunity my hope is that it alerts you to the fact that you have a choice…you have autonomy in terms of the way you are defined and hopefully some perspective to see how you can use this to your advantage…so here is my hope…that Yew Tree can help people not to be victim to the judgmental definitions placed on them by themselves and others and instead can carve out a more positive place in the world…

This afternoon I saw a contemporary choreographer and dancer, tell 40 boys to, “Stand up tall and be someone,” if these boys are anything like Tom then they have to put up with a fair amount of flack for being male and a dancer and for being different…this afternoon this choreographer showed them though his respect and belief in them that dance made them strong and that being different was a positive thing…it was inspirational…and definitely worth thinking about…I have that respect and belief in you…so don’t get dragged down by the negatives…be thoughtful, be respectful and don’t be afraid of your potential to be brilliant…

2011-07-17T19:34:00.000+01:00

Hannah is our guest blogger today...

Hellooooo. Since finishing my A levels I don’t really do anything with my life, cos I don’t have a job etc… sooo I’ve got a lot of free time, which was fun for a while but is now really boring. So I thought I’d man up and do a blog cos that’s more productive than re-reading Harry Potter for the millionth time.
Anyway… despite the lovely sunshiney weather we’re having at the moment (haha) Gold company are busily devising for the Christmas show. This year it’s Sleeping Beauty, so after a large proportion of Best and Worst being devoted to Harry Potter and couple of games, in which Henry the Tortoise made another appearance at a teddy bears picnic, it was straight to work.
The first round of performances were all hilarious and ridiculous and brilliant and very Harry Pottery, and everyone was in fits of giggles. Problem was, we’re trying to make Sleeping Beauty dark and sinister. After a chat, we set to work on another set of scenes, and they were so different to the ones we’d shown previously. We’d gone all serious, and dark, and there were some really good ideas for how the castle falls asleep, and in what order, and how and why the 13th fairy is soo evil. I’m really looking forward to seeing it at Christmas, cos it’s going to be brilliant, even though I only get to be a spectator this time… I think I have problems sticking to the point, I haven’t written much about the actual session, I just write what comes into my head…
Riiight I’ll wrap it up now. It’s been a lovely session, and I am annoyed that I won’t be there next week, but traditionally I always miss the last summer session. I want to say bye Cassidy, have fun, but I’m sure we’ll see you again at some point. Oh and, I won Mafia last week and I’m very happy about that because it’s my favourite game. Shutting up now x

2011-07-10T22:47:00.001+01:00

James blogged about Young Theatre Makers...

I actually went thinking it was just a yew tree thing. Cheeky little trip on the 110 down to the playhouse was never going to do any harm. If you missed it, you lost out. I hadn’t heard much about it really, till yesterday, where on looking at the pictures I was clueless on how they could possibly fit together. In fact the general idea was that each of the cast had written a letter to their 40 year old selves. I have to say though; the way they transferred the idea of the letter into a performance using a large cast amazed me. But then again that’s black company for you.
Anyway, from zombie apocalypses and Las Vegas, to keeping in touch with old friends. The recurring theme seemed to be either not changing from who you are, or not becoming fat and lazy. Also, who knew Danny was number one in the world for angry birds, jealous much.
But having said all that, I’ve sat here for about half an hour trying to pick my favourite, but I honestly can’t. There were obviously highlights in it, but there are too many to mention in a blog. As you can see, I’m not very good at describing why I like things, so sorry about that and even though I wasn’t in it, it still made me smile when a woman walking past us commented “they were all good, but I especially liked the first one.” That just sums it up really. Well done black company. That was definitely worth the watch.
James.

This week at Yew Tree has been quite the week...

2011-07-10T10:31:00.000+01:00

It occurs to me that as Yew Tree Youth Theatre gathers momentum and increases in its excellent reputation, one of the knock on effects is that my job gets more and more complicated. I won’t lie the last few days have been ridiculous…rewarding, absorbing, creative yes…but ridiculous…From 6pm Thursday it’s been all about the Youth Theatre…and the thing is most my life is a lot about the youth theatre, but we definitely reached a new saturation point this week…
Thursday saw us finally knock our Young Theatre Makers piece into shape with the artistic direction of Richard from Invisible Flock…which was good timing as the next day we were scheduled to tech it at the West Yorkshire Playhouse. Now we have quite the reputation there for being professional and all round brilliant youth theatreness after our performance of The Heights so I wanted to make sure we upheld that. I needn’t have worried…despite the relative technical complexity of the show and the finite nature of the time we had to get it done it was relatively painless. Much credit has to be given to you as actors for that…all weekend from so many different people I have been told how professional you are and how talented and how brilliant…and how yadada yadada…it’s true though you are…
But Young Theatre Makers wasn’t the only accomplishment we had to achieve this weekend …I was also engineering another performance too for St George’s Community Centre…Oh my word…for something that should have been ssoooooo simple it turned out to be quite the challenge…when I came up with the idea in answer to their request I imagined a simple transference of some of the portable scenes form the Classics festival…I hadn’t imagined quite so many performers having to tell me they were unable to make it with quite such short notice…despite all of this we managed to pull something lovely together and be assured that this performance was as important as what was perceived as the main event at the playhouse…we performed in our own community to an audience who don’t have access to theatre…introducing them to culture in the real sense and the actors did it with talent and commitment…I was more than proud of the cast…many of whom had stepped in roles at the last minute…
Once this performance was done we hotfooted it to gold, with the help of some brilliant parents to whom I’m indebted, to begin work on the Christmas show…I realised after this workshop that Sleeping Beauty is one of my favourite fairy tales and I am very excited about it. The devising we did certainly got the process off to a good start with a mixture of dark twistiness and ridiculousness (I doubt anyone there will be able to forget Dillon’s performance for a while.)
Then it was Playhouse time once more…the dress which I had sadly missed as I was at another rehearsal was said to have gone well – the curtain call was choreographed and we were ready for the performance. In actuality one of the best things about the YTM project was seeing the other companies work. It was all innovative, honest and brave…and it was all of a high standard…even when creative decisions had been made in a different way to that you might have chosen you could see that the intention was to make an sincere and effective piece of theatre. The evening was a triumph of Youth Theatre…of the highest standard…the audience laughed and cried, empathised and contemplated…it was theatre at it’s best…
And in amongst that I directed a group of young people for First Floor in Leeds and wrote a couple of scenes of the Nostell Play…I think I might have even talked to my family a couple of times…craziness…so today I’m going to clean the house and then go with my family that I have hardly seen the last few days to a picnic…what a happy prospect…and then this evening, I reckon despite my best intentions to have a non Yew Tree Youth Theatre day, I’ll be found writing scene 5 of “Duel” lucky for me that all things Youth Theatre make me the happiest person…

2011-07-10T10:12:00.001+01:00

Next is Phil's blog (Mel's Dad)who not only helped us out by taking photographs of the Tech of Young Theatre Makers but also was kind enough to write a blog too...

On Friday I diverted from being the pure interested parent and was able to go behind the scenes and obtain some real insight, albeit for just a brief couple hours, into how a theatre production is put together. And it was a real eye opener for me, just showing what an incredible amount of effort is required from all those involved.
The Young Theatre Makers performance at the West Yorkshire Playhouse, by Black Company, was something different for Yew Tree members, with the creation being directed from outside of the group – I guess a real challenge in itself and one where our young people had to adapt to a different directing style.
I understand that Black Company had been working tirelessly over the last few weeks on the scripts, and the challenge for Friday was to make it through each part of the performance and make sure that lighting, visuals and sound were all programmed to work together and with the performances.
Maybe it was just me not being used to this level of insight, but it seemed like the lighting and sound crew were really having problems early on, and that the 90 minute session would pass far too quickly, with not a chance of getting through all the performance. It is to the great credit of Black Company that they were able to continue, and in places improvise, perhaps without some of the visuals, lighting and music that would materialise for the full performance on Saturday night.
But as the rehearsal progressed, it seemed to get smoother and pick up pace. There was just some kind of feeling that music was starting to get programmed well, and to synchronise well with the actors and actresses voices. And where there were problems with props, these were discussed, and before the end of the night, solutions were found. I left the building feeling that real progress had been made and that things were far enough forward that, with several hours of rehearsals to come on Saturday afternoon, it would make for a great show in the evening.
Black Company – take great pride in what you achieve – I saw nothing but enthusiasm, determination, great patience when things were not quite right but out of your control, and a great willingness to help each other through exemplary teamwork, with your peers and with your leaders. But also feel privileged that you had the opportunity to work with talented people at the West Yorkshire Playhouse, one of Yorkshire’s landmarks and a symbol of professionalism. There is no harm in aspiring to be amongst them one day…
I have observed several Yew Tree events. I have always been impressed by the content and variety of individual and team performances. Fortunately I had the privilege to work with a group of professional actors a couple of years ago, and know that if you wish to succeed in the performing arts, there is no alternative to sheer hard work. But this insider view of how young people can work together to succeed using performance arts was really great to see. Keep up the good work….your families and friends have a lot to be proud of!

2011-07-10T10:09:00.001+01:00

First guest blog is by Holly inspred by her works experience blog...

So, my Yew Tree work experience was this week and it was suchhhhhh a lovely week.
On Monday I went back to Sapphire in my blacks, which was weird ha, but lovely :) We did a bit’a Jack and the Beanstalk devising which is always a pleasure. Playing a dumb fairy’s an easy thing for me to do which is worrying maybe, but it’s not an issue. On Tuesday I watched the More Like Me performance, which was brilliant, enjoyed that lots :) Theeen I went to a primary school and watched the performance of Alice in Wonderland unfold..aand spent my night at Ruby :) Enjoyed playing squeeze way too much ha. AND I WON funky seaweed. First time ever. YES. Thursday was another primary school morning which was beaut. Games games games… Year 6’s were still better at the bean game than me ha :/ Anywayy, another primary school in the afternoon and orange company later, Micky mouse was locked in a cupboard and impersonated by someone else, who was then involved in a fight scene.. Disneyland’s not all perfect y’know.. :/ Finally as an end to a belting week, tonight I’m off to watch the tech for YTM :)
All in all, it’s been the best week, I’ve developed a love for Arctic Monkeys, cheers Danny, and belted out some Adele, cheers Gemma (and cheers for the sweets, they were nom) , and just wanna do a little heartfelt thanks for all the lifts around and for a brilliant time! :)

Freeman
x

2011-07-03T21:23:00.001+01:00

James with a loverly blog...

The day gold company took over gold company
I know blogs are normally done in chronological order and this will keep to the same format, but first a special mention must be given to the new word which has swept the session “ama-jim-away” possibly the funniest thing I have seen at yew since joining last August. Also. Happy birthday Sarah. Thank you for the haribo.
So first were the games. Most memorable of which is of course king of the jungle, completely re-made by Ash and Dee to the point of Sarah leaving the room at new creations such as “I have no nose.” And “Unicorns, I love them,” I think it possibly took longer to invent the jungle of Thrones Park than to play out the game. Captain Beaky was a delight as always, but I still wonder if at some point during that game. We will actually find hissing Sid.
Also, I was gutted no-body ran foot stomp or ninja warrior. But I am a massive fan of king of the jungle so it was compensated.
Moving on. The creative task. We got a woman on a chair. A girl sleeping on a sofa. Considering our group were all male. This made the use of it as a stimulus rather difficult. So a conclusion was drawn that inspiration must be taken from the painting itself. Suddenly Tom decides he wants to be an art thief. Hence why the piece ended up being about an art thief. I also would like to say how I enjoyed using a photo stimulus as it gave a different angle to draw inspiration from than words which are my normal comfort zone.
Everybody else’s. They were all so good as always. Dillon sung, again. Harry was a fairy godfather crimelordy type thing and you just couldn’t take him seriously so. Go on time travelling Lucinda and Jackson.. Also the moment Akbal returns with a table and puts it on Danni, was just unimaginably uncomfortable but still hilarious. So yeah, that’s also a highlight.
All in all big thanks to Alice for running the morning.
Laughing game was as to be expected. I think we saw a few dinosaurs and a cat. Not looking at ash till round three did work but on the pronunciation of ama-jim-away, I cracked. Unfortunately.
Big love to yew tree, enjoy your week
James, gold

Too Fast

2011-07-03T17:58:00.001+01:00

I’ve just got back from a Young Theatre Makers rehearsal and I’m suffering from a sense of time moving too quickly…the performance is in less than a week, which means that the performance at St George’s is less than a week away and it means that the play I’ve directed for the West Yorkshire Playhouse is just around the corner and Nostell is just around the corner after that and…and…and…arghhhhhhhh!!!!

Maybe I’m just bitter as it seemed like my lovely birthday was over far too quickly…or maybe it’s that the accomplishments of a productive rehearsal are immediately overshadowed by the reality of all the other things I need to do as soon as I step into the house/office but whatever is the catalyst things seem to be racing away from me and although I know that really they’re mostly under control its easy to feel like I’m being assaulted by the velocity of time speeding past me…

Because of all of that this week’s youth theatre sessions have been a delight because they’ve been predominantly all about play…in Sapphire we’re playing with the story of Jack in the Beanstalk and surprisingly their Christmas show script will be done by the end of this week go onnnn Sapphire…in Orange we just played…no creative task just a ridiculous amount of games as a reward for being brilliant in Oliver and at Gold the level of play was enhanced to borderline anarchy…still it felt like a balance was being restored from the demanding performance constraints we’d been under…

No rest for Black though…lines to learn…props to gather…schedules to meet…YTM and then Nostell…such entirely different projects…still the opportunities for development and fulfilment within them are worth it I reckon…

2011-07-03T17:45:00.002+01:00

A vist from Danni inspired her to write this blog...

Right this is my first ever blog guys so bare with me :)

I haven't really been part of Yew Tree for a few month due to work... :( but finally after so long I got to be involved with probably one of the best sessions I have ever been in! It was sensational tbh :)

All week I was getting excited as I texted Miss Moore telling her I could finally be there. Waiting from Monday just seemed so long. Then sat morning arrived and I was up and ready waiting my half 8.

When I arrived at the session it felt like I had never been away, everyone is so lovely! So we started with best and worst, mine were about the old car show and a lovely old fashioned car I wanted, my worst was my boyfriend having to go up to Edinburgh for the weekend! Half way through I was interupted and had to leave as Jessica Moore needs socks so luckily I had a spare pair in my car so I went to fetch the so missed half of everybody elses.

The first game was mafia and I got to run the game as it was a take over session. So funny... I love to see games from a different angle, this was so good to run! When you know who mafia is and you have to be so careful your facial expressions don't reveal who it is when people are voting!
Next game was the bean game run by Rob which lasted about a minute as everyone almost was out without 30 secs of starting it!!
If anyone was either not a fan of King of the Jungle or bored of that game the needed to look no further as Dee and Ash turned the game completely on it's head... We had sharks, Dobby from Harry Potter, pokemon, unicorns and many more crazy creature and best fom that game ME And JESS moore WON!! Woop woop :)

Finally our group devising piece. How do I put into words...Well Alice had brought in a book of hers which was full of wonderful picture and we had to pick a number and see which page we got for our picture! 312 was the group number and the picture was a lady laid under a table and a man walking away.

We had a laugh thinking about what we could do our performance about, a crime scene was the first idea but then we went for a hot summers day and base the picture that the lady was under the table for shade. We decided to go outside to practice to get the sun effect. Our ideas were coming and we went with Ash being the dad to me, Jess, Dee, Charlotte and Rachel! Rob was bar guy in the hotel resort or as Jess would say a towel boy lol. The final piece was hilarious if I do say, we had Akbahl if that's how you spell Robs character. He didn't get anything right. Whilst sunbathing we asked for many things the 1st cold drink we got empty coconuts, 2nd we said we were hot so needed a drink I got a hot cup of tea.... Chilled drinks we said we wanted and he brought us ice cubes for the hot drinks...sooo funny finally we asked for a umberella for the sun and he placed a table over my head like the lady in the picture.

Last game before I left was the laughing game which was amazingly hard, by the last few rounds I could no longer look at Ash and Danny untherwise I was gone. By the last round I felt physically sick because I was holding my laugh in and concentrating so hard. Me, Ash, Alice, Inci and Charlotte were left standing. Just to let you all know when I left the room I was actually sick haha I have said loads now your probably getting bored so I'm going to leave it there and say Yew Tree are the moat incredible team if people I have ever met! Bye x

2011-06-29T08:57:00.000+01:00

Cassidy with a work experience blog...

The past seven days have been phenomenal, I have enjoyed work experience so ridiculously much and it has inspired me and I now know what I want to do when I am older, running a mini youth theatre. The Normanton transition day was wonderful, and taught me I CAN play the bean game, resulting in me leading it later in the week, I also helped 'whoosh' Snow White' and the children were adorable. I also thought green company's performance of Children’s Excursion was brilliant, they did so well! And then having Friday off was lovely, a bit of a relax and preparing for classics. Classics was such a fantastic way to end a week and one of the best weekends I have had in a while, the atmosphere created by the theatre, people and weather was magical and I would do it all over again, Mili Fretwell as the doormouse was the sweetest thing and it was obvious every single person put their heart and soul into what they were doing!! It makes me so very sad knowing that I will not be here next term (I have tried so hard to be able to come every week) but you won’t be getting rid of me that easily I’ve already planned to come up for both open mic night and the Christmas shows.. I've only been at yew tree since September 2009 but I feel it has helped me personally express myself and just be who I am as well as influencing my decisions for later in life, it has had such an impact on me and all of my friends can see how much I love and respect spending my Saturday’s with such amazing people.
Yew Tree is FANSATIONAL (Danny Bell has rubbed off on me) love it loads, Cassidy xx

2011-06-26T23:10:00.000+01:00

Mel stepped up with a Classics blog...

Well, Classics at Clarke Hall... absolutely sensational is the only way to put it!!! Saturday started it all off and the weather wasn't brilliant but nobody complained and everybody still got out there and performed. Sunday, however was a different story, the weather was absolutely glorious and everyone was loving performing and watching everyone else perform, it's always nice to see the support that Yew Tree have to all the many companies, old and young.
The audience seemed to be never ending and some performances had to be shown up to 3 times because of sheer popularity and such little space. Everyone seemed to enjoy themselves with picnics, deck chairs, and their families all close by, in such beautiful surroundings and in the midst of Yew Tree. What more can you ask for?
I have absolutely LOVED the whole weekend and everyone should be soo proud of themselves, i thank you for this, it won't be forgotten in a hurry, the cuteness of Peter Rabbit, Oliver, Alice in Wonderland, The Owl and the Pussycat and Narnia, the comedy of Rude Mechanicles, the pure classics - Mid Summer Nights Dream, Little Women, Romeo and Juliet, the storytellers of Little Red Cap and Hansel and Grettel, the intensity of Sherlock Holmes and Jeckyll and Hyde, the monologues and the originality of the writers group... Yew Tree is just brilliant

Classics at Clarke Hall

2011-06-26T19:05:00.001+01:00

To be honest I’m a little overwhelmed by this weekend to be philosophical so I’m going to just pour out some immediate thoughts and then hopefully come up with something a little more thought through next week. Gold and Black company, you make me the happiest person as there is no end to your commitment, loyalty and dedication. As a result the work you create is of a standard that both delights and impresses your audience and inspires the next generation of Yew Treers…

Everywhere I turned this weekend I was impressed by something…whether it be Jack’s performance of a lifetime as Frankenstein…the charm of The Lion, The Witch and The Wardrobe…the bravery of the solo performance the constantly developing Shakespeare work and the delight in pieces like Pride and Prejudice and Little Women. I loved the influence that our work in physical theatre had on the Grimm fairy tales and the atmosphere created in Sherlock Holmes and Jekyll and Hyde was utterly effective and fitting…they were all of them, every one of them just brilliant…

But a word about the little ones…they are perhaps in some ways the success of the festival…and you, after obviously recognising the brilliant work of Gemma, can take a little credit for that, as where else would young actors see such inspirational performances from those just ahead of them…showing them that they can be just as good as they dream of being…

I heard you complimented many, many, many times over the weekend and I’m still left thinking in a way…they weren’t enough as you were all simply magnificent…

2011-06-26T19:02:00.001+01:00

Danny S blogs about...

Monday 20th June 2011

Right. Well, I’m back guys (both in person and in my epic blogs :D).. After quite some time off, I’ve managed to gather my thoughts together and have created a peaceful and perfect balance of serenity and solitude. Well, in my head at least. It’s hard trying to make words make sense with cousins bawling, parents throwing cutlery out of the window and ‘Judas’ blasting out of the speakers at like a million decibels. But I’ll try.

My name is Danny. And this is my blog.

Already sounds like a winning tagline, huh? Anywho, I should probably write something about Sapphire Company. Would make more sense I guess…

So, this Monday, we were given the task of showing Jack sneaking into the giant’s castle. Simple, eh? Except the fact we can’t really have a giant onstage. That would just be plain silly. Like a sausage. Mmmmm… Sausages…

Anyway, back on track, in the group that I worked with, we thought that we would all make the giant’s voice (the classic “Fe Fi Fo Fum” speech. Aaah, never gets old) while Jack was ushered into an oven.. Kinda reminded me of Hansel and Gretel that, except the house wasn’t made of edible bricks… So, after a quick game of ‘knock-a-door-run’ and “that blarr-sted wind” playing tricks on the giant’s wife, she welcomed Jack into her humble abode. She just casually told him that her husband ate people, but being a modern man, Jack just accepted that the giant had an aboriginal taste in gourmet delicacies.

It’s got to be said that Michael and Kim’s portrayals of the golden-egg-laying hen were fantastic. Kim’s comic timing and ‘lullaby clucks’ were genius. Made me actually lol. Michael took the persona of a hen that was hard-done-by and needed the home comforts of radio dramas to ease his ongoing stress. Must have been hard for a male chicken to lay an egg anyway… geez his insides must be hurting…

There were some excellent versions of Jack and every single one of them made my breathing hard from all the laughing. Holly’s giant was also another highlight of the night (he’s not so bad after all, but sometimes you just have to keep an image up).

Well, I hope those words made some sort of sense. As for me, I’m going to run through the kitchen, dodging flying knives matrix-style, bash two heads together and turn that absolute blumming awful noise off. That is all.

Peace y’all…

2011-06-26T19:00:00.000+01:00

Ashleigh's work experience blog

When we go to a Yew Tree Youth Theatre session we are welcomed in to a safe and friendly community. We are given fantastic direction from our youth theatre leaders, however, when you have been there for a long time you can momentarily forget how amazingly lucky we are to have these people teaching us. My work experience has made sure this will never happen to me again.

The biggest thing Yew Tree has done for me is build confidence and this week I have seen the confidence in others built within workshops and sessions. The day of workshops with Aim Higher at the University of York showed this so much. The purpose of the day was to make the students taking part aware of what they need to achieve, and how university would benefit them. Sarah, Danny, and Gemma lead parts of the workshop. The game we did not only made the students feel more comfortable, they built their confidence within themselves and their choices to go to university or not, and how they can achieve their goals.

The stamina needed is immense; we did three 1 hour 20 minute workshops back to back. They all followed the same structure but because it was a different group of people each time everyone had different opinions and goals.

My time on work experience has made it very clear to me how Yew Tree has not only benefited me, but how it has benefited so many people even outside the youth theatre.

How it all began...

2011-06-19T16:18:00.000+01:00

I had no idea what to write about this week and so I asked for suggestions…the one that came from Emma regarding why I decided to pursue drama and why I founded the youth theatre surprised me as I assumed people either knew or didn’t care, but apparently this isn’t the case so I shall try and answer both questions as succinctly as possible…

The first one about why drama is the trickiest…My earliest memories include performing so I reckon I was doing it pretty much from the outset…first of all it was mainly singing, then dancing and finally drama – mainly because this was the hardest to find opportunities in. By age 10 I was pretty much combining the three as often as I could…it was a natural thing…I dreamt of a career in it but wasn’t convinced I’d make it as I lacked confidence in lots of areas in my life and by this point I was being pretty badly bullied.

However when I got to High School the bullying stopped and the opportunities to perform increased – I pretty much lived in the music department…my career plan was to be an optician – it was a safe job, something that would allow me to earn a decent living… and then all of a sudden at about 15 I found the courage to tell my parents (who don’t have a performing bone in their body) I was going to be an actor. My Dad was a hero, quelling my Mum’s anxieties and telling me I should do what I wanted to do. I was an average dancer by this point – a pretty serious road traffic accident hadn’t helped, a much better singer but acting was the place I was happiest…a rocky academic journey led me eventually to Bretton Hall, training full time to be an actor and in the most wonderful place to do it…so much of what I hope I give you was given to me by Bretton.

The youth theatre bit of the story comes 3 years later when myself and two brilliant people I trained with decided to set up Yew Tree after graduating – we were all performing as a professional theatre company then and touring both plays and workshops. Bretton Hall got in touch with us and asked us to run a class for young people on a Saturday morning and we jumped at the chance…that was the start of what we now have…

After about 18 months Bretton pulled the funding and I decided to keep it going independently…by this point the other 2 founder members had gone their separate ways and I had realized that the performing aspect of my job held no interest for me – it was applying drama to inspire others that made me happiest…luckily I managed to meet up and hold onto others who stepped up to bring their unique brilliance to the mix in the form of Gemma, Danny and of course Oz…and of course there were and still are 100’s of young people who continue to inspire me on a daily basis…

So there you go…obviously it was a bit more complicated than that, the full story would take a lot longer than 600 words but essentially that’s how all of this came to be as far as my bit of the story goes…

2011-06-19T16:14:00.001+01:00

Lucy T blogs about Imoves

Right, I've only just woken up, so I'm sat here with a coffee and my laptop trying to figure out the age old dilemma... how to start a blog.
... and apparently, that's how.

Saturday saw Yew Tree embark on a horrendously quick walk into town. And I must say I'm glad I was part of it, because if I'd have been on the otehr side, walking towards such a huge group of young people dressed completely in black I'd have run a mile. Why were we walking (tooooo quickly) into town? Because we were only part of the IMoves Festival.
I think it's safe to say we didn't have a lot of rehearsal time, (I'm pretty sure Cassidy worked it out as being no more than 2 hours...) but some how we managed to pull it off. I should probably say what we managed to pull off, I'm aware I'm being pretty vague about everything... Just a bit of physical theatre in the centre of Wakefield.
It was daunting, being in the middle of town, performing to people who hadn't come to watch us out of choice, it being purely by chance that they were walking through and happened to stay and watch us. But saying that I think the majority of the audience enjoyed it. And according to Danny we even brought more audience in, which is nice.

Physical theatre is rapidly becoming my favourite thing, so it makes me very very happy that we seem to be doing more and more of it.

Classics is next week, should be good. So if you don't have a ticket booked, get one...it's only £5 for the whole festival. Especially if you go to Yew Tree, I mean it's free then, what reason could you have not to?

So yeah, IMoves was fun.
Classics will be fun.
And everything else Yew Tree related that's coming up will be equally as fun.
Yaaaaaay.

Taking a moment...

2011-06-12T14:42:00.001+01:00

It’s been a ridiculously busy week this week…in addition to the usual sessions Black Company visited the playhouse and in return were visited by Rich from Invisible Flock, we’ve cast the Nostell play, we’re in final rehearsals for Imoves and the Classics festival and there were birthday celebrations thrown in there too. It’s difficult at times to take a breath and look at the things you’re getting out of all this activity when you’re being bombarded by so many diverse experiences but it’s so very important that every now and again you do…

Over the last 3 or 4 days I’ve suddenly looked at a number of the youth theatre and had to catch my breath…from people I’ve known for years to those just starting their journey with us in relative terms, to those that have moved on (but thankfully still maintain a connection)…the sheer scale of their development of growth both as performers and as people is the most inspiring thing…and then I get that wonderful feeling that Yew Tree had a little bit to do with that and it’s simply brilliant…So yeah…nothing terribly informative in this blog just a request that occasionally you take a look at the people you’re working with and notice their greatness…not in a facebook “You’re so awesome guys I love you all,” kind of a way but in a genuine recognition of the people that they are becoming…the people that they are…the richness of the company that you are part of…that’s a nice thing to do I reckon…so you know…enjoy it…

PS There’s always room for more greatness of course, so if you haven’t already please will you read last weeks blog about preparing for Classics and follow it’s advice…ooh and learn your lines too…cheers team…

2011-06-12T14:41:00.000+01:00

Mikey's blog for the week...

This is my very first yew tree blog and I get to tell you about our day at the West Yorkshire Playhouse as we participate in the Young Theatre Makers project.

We started the day by warming up with all the other groups in the QUARRY THEATRE. I’ve performed in the courtyard theatre but it just doesn’t come compare to the Quarry, just standing there and looking up at all the seats around you, it just gives me a rush.

Later in the day we got to meet the practitioner we will be working with and he has some amazing ideas about what we’re going to do. He also taught us the best version of rock paper scissors ever!! I think we amazed him with some of our Yew Tree games too and I know he amazed him with our ability to act like salmons.

The entire day was great apart from the fact that it cost £3 for a sandwich. That people, is daylight robbery.

Thoughts for classic actors...

2011-06-05T15:13:00.000+01:00

So much about performance is about having a sense of time and place…it’s one of the things I find fascinating about theatre. As a director I demand of my actors that they know where their character is stood physically, historically, geographically and emotionally throughout the play…that’s one of the most important things that I am trying to develop through a rehearsal process…the thing is that, that one demand is ridiculously complex and incredibly difficult to achieve…however the closer you get to it the better your portrayal of that character will be and the richer the performance in general.

It occurred to me on Thursday that in your classics performances this necessity of time and place is even more important to consider. Even if you are just performing a small extract from a work you need to have made conscious decisions about the world that character inhabits…have an awareness of the constraints and realities of life in that time as well as having constructed an individual narrative for that character. It makes a difference to everything…physicality, voice, intention, interaction…everything.

Each moment of any work of literature, regardless of genre, has been carefully selected and created by a writer who then edited and reedited…stood up for what they believed in, fought for what they thought was important, fended of criticism and suggestions from those that thought they knew better and listened and responded to those who actually did until the work that you have used to inspire your performances emerged and what’s more showed the resilient to still speak to others 100’s of years later. There’s a temptation to think that because your extract is small it doesn’t require much thought…simply not true…any moment of theatre whatever length needs a significant amount of thought to do justice to the vision of the writer…

All this amounts ultimately as a request to you from your director…if all that I have said is true (and it is) then the least you can do whilst learning your lines for next Saturday (see what I did there) is spare a thought to time and place…and once you’ve spared a thought…act on that thought…imagine the richness of the classics performances if every performer has done this…it would be unforgettable…

2011-06-05T15:11:00.001+01:00

Bobbie has sent in a fab blog that will catch you up on all things green company...

Oh the joy of a full day rehearsal!

With having only three weeks until we performed 'Children's extrusion, platform no .5' Danny decided that we should do a full day rehearsal, in the holidays. And that we did. We started with the normal, Yew-Tree things, best and worst and then a few games to get us to concentrate and then went straight into the Drama!

There was a few scene's that, try as we might, we could never get to how we would like, so Sarah came to help us out, and within an hour and a half, we had gotten two scenes to, as near to perfection as we possibly could, the picnic scene and the train scene, with the amazing Amy, there, reading in the lines of those who couldn't make it there.

After that, we went through the rest of the play, making sure that it was as good as they could be too. Poor Amy, having to read 2 characters in most scenes, running from one side of the room to the other, trying to be everywhere she was needed.

We did as best we could, and worked out witch scenes that needed to be concentrated on now, to get them up to the standard of the rest of the play.

With two weeks left now, and then a quick rehearsal left on the actual day (22nd of June if you are wondering) we are really starting to knuckle down and making everything the best we could possibly do.

We would love it if anyone could come a support us,
Bobbie-Leigh, From Green xx

2011-05-29T17:33:00.000+01:00

Rhiann and her take on Crimson's performance...

Whatever whatever happened to Grace Connor… forever a mystery, isn’t it?

Well not to Crimson Company after we performed our version of Sarah Osborne’s script about a girl who says enough is enough and leaves home without saying a word. I played Maggie McKenzie (of the Longwood Gazette).

She’s a fresh new journalist who doesn’t really understand the story of Grace Connor but slowly get’s wrapped in Grace’s world by meeting her family who’s struggling to stay together, becoming acquaintances with the school children who voice opinions about Grace which make it clear of their relationship, meets close loyal friends who give more insights into Grace’s life, and teachers who only see the perfect student.

On Tuesday, we performed our one night only show of ‘Whatever Happened to Grace Connor’ (after our dress rehearsal to Sapphire on Monday night) and let’s just say, it was more than amazing. It felt like after months of hard work, we’d finally got our goal of making this play outstanding. I think everyone should just be so proud of themselves because it was so beautiful, it’s unreal.

Well done Crimson, you were amazing!