A day at the Young Vic in London’s Waterloo interviewing young directors for the ITV Trainee Director Scheme. The National Theatre of Scotland, the Bolton Octagon and the New Vic will each host a director for a year, shadowing the artistic director, learning how a theatre organisation works and getting their hands dirty in the rehearsal room.
I trained on the scheme myself, spending two years at Birmingham Rep, very green, very shy and, I’m afraid, probably not much use to the Rep. It was a fantastic opportunity for me, though. I got to watch three accomplished directors in rehearsal; spent time in various departments; worked with the youth theatre; delivered educational workshops; set up a new writing development scheme for the region’s writers. I even got to direct some shows, including a studio production of The Turn of the Screw which I’ve remained proud of ever since.
I can remember my interview well, preparing for it the night before, then walking into the room to meet right directors whose work I knew and admired, The second interview was worse still, with 13 people around the table comprising the interview panel! This time round I felt the same nerves the night before, only this time it was for the 20-odd strangers I was about to meet. I must admit, I prefer being on the interviewer’s side of the table – nowhere near as terrifying.
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The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe will be our Christmas production.
C S Lewis’s readership were children for whom memories of the Second World War were still sharp. Many of them knew first hand what it was to be evacuated from the city to strangers in the countryside, and even by 1950, when the book was first published, rationing and national service continued to be facts of life. Images of the dictator caused it all continued to be potent in a country scarred by war.
The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe is the story of four children sent away from London because of the air raids. In their new home they discover a portal to another world, but Narnia is also ravaged by a great dictator. The four children must join the war against her and against eternal winter.
We’re designing our production at the moment, looking at photos of train stations populated by soldiers and evacuees; at maps of Europe with flight paths printed on them; at images of bombed-out Britain. We’re also being inspired by images and descriptions of The Lion King’s masks and costumes; and starting to think about music and choreography. We’re planning a spectacular event, but one which, like the novel, requires its young audience to bring their own imaginations in to play.
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A terrific evening at the first night of our Youth Theatre production The Garden. It’s a lavish musical about a secret garden with an interesting time-slip device and a group of ragged urchins begging for an education at its heart. Our education department has worked tirelessly for a year to make it happen, and the young cast of more than 20 actor-singers have pulled out all the stops to take on the difficult task of performing a demanding piece in our equally demanding auditorium.
It’s important to us that the young people we work with through Education and New Vic Borderlines get the opportunity to work not only in the safe and focused environment of our purpose-built studios but also in the more public arena that’s our main auditorium. It’s a difficult space even for professional actors, so I always feel proud of young performers who take on the challenge and succeed. This was no exception, and I’m certain the young people left after their final performance with a tremendous sense of achievement.
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We turned a saddle into a trapeze; red silks into a four poster bed; staged a fight that had the elegant impossibility of something out of Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon or The Matrix; explored how flying affects the voice; played with bouncing dialogue between flying performer and counterweighter. We scrutinised harnesses and bungees and carabiners and caving ladders; explored whether actors can light each other using video projectors and mirrors; and admired the enormous dedication of the aerialists we were working with. Clearly the actors who perform in The Wicked Lady are going to need exceptional stamina and commitment.
We answered out first question – will it work? The answer was an emphatic yes. Flying a performer in our in-the-round space animated every part of the auditorium, creating something dynamic and breathtaking – and so close to the audience!
And, with a performer on saddleback three metres above us, and a projected image of tree branches flicking across her body, it was clear that we’d be able to create those sequences of horseriding in a way that conveys the thrill and excitement the central character is seeking.
Now I have to pull together the right cast to achieve this impossible combination of abilities.
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When I asked Bryony Lavery to write us an adaptation of The Wicked Lady I knew there was a big problem I’d have to solve. It’s the story of a thrill seeker who takes to horseback and a life of crime: dressed as a highwayman, she terrorises travellers in her need to encounter ever greater dangers. Riding her horse full pelt through the countryside; staging daring hold ups on horseback; escaping, attacking fighting and falling in love – all on horseback. I knew I’d have to resolve how we staged these scenes.
Around the same time as I began to think of the text as a potential production for the New Vic I saw Upswing Aerial at the Decibel Festival in Birmingham. Their piece, Loved Up, was a taster of a work in progress: a dynamic piece of aerial dance. I’d seen aerialists working before, but always under full performance conditions, where the counterweighters and technology is hidden out of sight in the wings and the magic of the performer in space is what it’s about. I knew this couldn’t work for the New Vic – we’re in the round; there are no wings here. So what was exciting about seeing Upswing’s piece was it’s work-in-progress nature and the a studio it was performed in. No wings. So the counterweighters were in full view, and I was as excited by their relationship with the performers as I was by the performance itself.
I knew I’d found the solution to all those problem scenes. Aerial work be a great way to stage the physicality of horse riding. But watching it is exhilarating, and as a viewer you’re aware of the danger. Through it we could carry the theme of our central character’s desire to put herself in danger, seek thrills, excitement, and the sheer exhilaration of the journey she goes on.
I knew I’d need a session working in the New Vic’s auditorium, exploring what might work for us, and giving the rest of the team here a chance to see this unusual work in action. So tomorrow, Upswing’s Artistic Director Vicki Amedume will bring some of her team along to meet us and spend two days working in the New Vic’s auditorium.
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