News and Events
9 December 2009

Final Reminder - Naked Stage Act 2 Submissions Close 5 January, Casting Session 10 January

As WRiTEON and the newsletter editor take their Christmas breaks, this will be the last WRiTEON newsletter for 2009. Writers, you have until Tuesday, 5 January to submit your scripts for consideration for Naked Stage Act 2, which kicks off on Sunday, January 24 at 5 pm at the ADC Theatre's Larkum Studio. Click here for full submission details.

Actors and directors, please make sure you have marked your calendars for the Casting and Production Session on the afternoon of Sunday, 10 January (venue TBC).

To submit, sign up for the casting session, or if you have any questions, please write to Artistic Directors for Naked Stage Julia Bolden/Trish Rawson at julia@writeon.org.uk.

WRiTEON Script Reading and Feedback Group

The Script Reading/Feedback group met on 17 November with seven writers attending. They read three pieces, including two radio plays and a TV drama. As well as useful feedback, these also triggered discussions about TV and Radio Drama and Comedy generally, opinions on material seen or heard by members, and tips on submission criteria picked up from courses attended and from BBC Writers' Room.

The group is on-going and open to new writers at any time. Writers are welcome bring their work in progress for stage-by-stage feedback or to submit new work in all genres and media. Submission of work is not a requirement - writers are welcome to attend as often as they like before submitting. As the script deadline for WRiTEON's Naked Stage Act 2 is January 5th, the December meeting will be a good opportunity for anyone wanting to submit to that to try out their play in advance with a view to honing it ready for submission.

The next meeting will take place Tuesday 15th December at 7.15pm at:36a The Limes, Harston, Cambridge CB22 7QT

If you have questions or would like to join the group, please contact Julia Bolden at julia@writeon.org.uk

Writing Opportunities

Script Submissions Needed For Watermill New Writing Festival
Deadline: 1 January 2010
   
The Watermill Theatre, Newbury has supported new talent in theatre for many years, with new writing on tour, in the main house and in the studio space whenever possible. Now playwrights of all backgrounds are invited to submit a new full length play for The Watermill, celebrating the diversity of the English language and the visual and emotional dynamics of live theatre. Each play should be a complete evening's entertainment and employ a maximum of 6 actors (which need not limit the number of characters within the story).

Each play will be read by one of a team of professional practitioners who will write a short critique for the writer.

Three plays will be chosen and the writers will have the opportunity of working for a day with a professional director and actors to present their play at a staged rehearsed reading at The Watermill in front of a public and invited audience, on March 29/30/31st 2010, at 7.30pm.

As this initiative is not funded, a submission fee of £20.00 will be required for each script to cover costs. Fairness dictates one script only per writer.

Your script may be emailed in PDF format to Ade Morris at Outreach@watermill.org.uk, or a hard copy sent to: Raising Voices, Watermill Theatre, Bagnor, Nr Newbury, Berkshire, RG20 8AE

Applications Open for Oxford Samuel Beckett Theatre Trust Award 2011
Closes: Friday 12 February 2010
 
The Award is for a company or individual to create a site-responsive, non-traditional show to take place in one of the five host boroughs for the Olympic and Paralympic Games. The show, part of the BARBICANBITE season, will be presented in the CREATE Festival in East London in July 2011.
 
Proposals must inspired by and take place in a non-theatre space, particularly areas that would be commonly found in any urban conurbation: a town square, a shopping centre, a busy street, an office, a house, an industrial site, a waterway, a library etc. Artists from all disciplines are encouraged to apply, and bold and innovative projects will be favoured. We’re open to ideas for both free or ticketed performances. We welcome ideas that range from a limited run (not less than ten performances) to a durational piece that lasts the whole month. Productions must be fully accessible.
 
For more details and application form visit www.osbttrust.com or contact Romilly Walton Masters: info@osbttrust.com
 
Funded by The Oxford Samuel Beckett Theatre Trust and co-produced by barbicanbite11, London and CREATE

Spilt Milk Theatre Accepting Submissions
Deadline:14 December 2009

Spilt Milk Theatre, London, are requesting submissions for pieces of new writing. Our last show dedicated to new writing received 5 Star reviews and then toured various venues in and around London.

The chosen pieces will be performed in a major London venue. National press and industry contacts will be invited. We are looking for 3 scripts in total. We are currently working with the writers of our last show on larger projects.

The  pieces should be:

Please send all submissions to: submissions@spiltmilktheatre.com

There is the possibility of payment further into production.

Writer Wanted (Short Play), 360 Theatre
Deadline: 11 December 2009

An exciting new theatre company are now looking to receive short scripts for production in early 2010.

360 will be looking to put on three performances in 60 minutes and are therefore looking for short plays with a running time no longer than 20 minutes.

This is the perfect opportunity for new writers to see their work performed in London by professional actors under professional direction.

There is no restriction on content but the scripts must fulfil the following criteria:

Please ensure that you put a cover page on the script with full contact details.

360 Theatre are looking for NEW writing and therefore will not be producing adapted versions of previously performed work.

Send scripts to: 360scripts@googlemail.com

Urgent: New Writing/Play Required - Barefaced Theatre Company
Closes: Friday 11 December 2009
   
Barefaced Theatre Company is currently seeking pieces of new writing for their upcoming season.

Criteria:

If you have submitted for us before, then please feel free to do so again as we are planning a whole new season.

Please include a brief summary of your play in your covering email.

Please also specify the genre and cast breakdown in the Subject Heading of your email, e.g  DRAMA 2M and 2F or COMEDY 5M.

Please send submissions to: barefacedtheatrecompany@googlemail.com.

Our website is currently under construction at the moment, so apologies if you cannot find further information about us.

Call For Scripts for 24:7 Festival 2010
Deadline: 14 January 2010
    
Although it's cold today, flash forward to next summer! Your show may be one of those participating in 24:7 Season Seven...
 
It must be original, unpublished and no longer than 60 minutes. We seek to present premières, so your script must not have been performed in a mainstream context, in any medium. If it has had a rehearsed reading or ‘test’ performances, that may be OK. If you have questions about a specific submission, it would be best to email us before submitting.

We can confirm that the reading fee has been maintained at £30 per script submitted.

Full details are available on the website www.247theatrefestival.co.uk along with our new online submissions procedure.
  
PlayFest 2010 - Call for Scripts
Deadline: 05 January 2010
 
Glasgay!’s newest endeavour, PlayFest will be premiering in 2010. Based around the argument of Nature vs. Nurture with regard to the emergence of Homosexuality, Glasgay! is exploring this iconic theme head-on in conjunction with local biomedical specialists during PlayFest 2010. They are looking to professionally develop up to 6 new scripts for production as part of Glasgay! 2010.
 
Selected writers will be guided by the Playwrights’ Studio, Scotland and each writer will be twinned with local scientists to support the scientific content of the play. Each selected script will be rehearsed and developed with professional actors in June of 2010, with a view to selecting between 3 and 6 texts for full production as part of the Glasgay! festival in the Autumn.
 
At this stage, the writer does not need to have a full script.
 
The submission process is either:

 To submit a full script, with accompanying synopsis outlining its connection to the theme, Nature vs. Nurture, as well as a CV detailing previous experience
 OR
 To submit a full page on the chosen idea, outlining its connection to the theme, Nurture vs. Nature, and a sample of the potential text, as well as a CV detailing previous experience. If you choose not to submit a full script at this stage, you may submit a previously written play, as an example of your work.
 
Deadline for submissions is January 5th 2010. Any submissions received after this time cannot be accepted. Your script will be considered by a selection panel and you will be notified of the result of your application by January 15th 2010. For further details and submissions please contact Roxanne Claxton, Glasgay! Projects Development Officer at projects@glasgay.com.

Acting Opportunities

Actor/workshop leader, Root and Branch Theatre Company
Closes: Monday 4 January 2010
Paid  - £40 a day + travel, performance and rehearsal
   
Theatre group touring schools seeks actor/workshop leader for its new tour: Dragon Tails or Tales of Dragons and Woodland Wyrms. Tour includes dates in Sussex, Kent and Tibilisi, Georgia and runs from January - July 2010.

Rehearsals start week beginning 14.01.10 with the first performance 3rd February

This play is based on the Dragon folklore of Sussex. The story takes place in the setting of a trial of mankind versus the Fiery Dragon. It is for children age 7-11.

There are performances and workshops in schools and at The Clair Hall Arts Centre, Haywards Heath and a tour to Georgia including the Folk Arts Festival Tibilisi.

The project is a partner in The Weald Forest Ridge partnership Scheme funded by Heritage Lottery.

It is a research based folk arts project with interdisciplinary theatre work: mummers plays, physical theatre, comedy, circus, storytelling, folk song, street theatre and animal guising/full body mask.

The ethos of the company is pagan, folkloric of evolving tradition and heritage of the land, countryside, regional and environment.

Highly desirable are candidates with common ideology and spiritual thinking as we believe this adds to the artistic value of the work.

We are a small growing company and work can be based in rural districts so vehicle owners would be highly desirable.

Applications to Alison Williams-Bailey: alison@rootandbranchtheatre.co.uk

Actors Wanted for Festival of Staged Readings
Closes: Tuesday 15 December 2009
Paid: Fee of £120 for two full rehearsal days and an evening performance.

StoneCrabs Theatre is looking for actors for Changing Direction, A Staged Readings Festival.  The readings will be performed at the Albany Studio Theatre in Deptford over three evenings (20th, 21st and 22nd January). The Festival is part of StoneCrabs Young Directors Theatre Training Programme.

Time Commitment: Two full days of rehearsal in the week beginning 18th January and one performance evening on January 20th 2010. Audition Dates: 17-18th December, 2009.

The reading in question is Auto-Da-Fe by Tennessee Williams.

Eloi is a religious fanatic who lives with his equally devout mother, Mme Duvenet, in New Orleans. He is prone to ranting about decadence and "filth" in the neighbourhood however Mme Duvenet suspects that his recent outbursts are a little different. She gently probes, and Eloi reveals that a sexually explicit photograph has come into his possession. Mme Duvenet fears for the family's reputation and demands the photo be burnt. Eloi cannot do this and instead commits an Auto- Da-Fe (Act of Faith) which results in an unspeakable tragedy.

Casting:

MME Duvenet: Woman. 60-70. Plump and frail looking. Actor must have an excellent Southern US accent and be physically agile.

Eloi: Man. Mid-Late 30’s. Slim build. Explosive personality.  Actor must have an excellent Southern US accent.

Both characters are religious fundamentalists and their speech has something of the quality of poetic or religious incantation. Hence voice training and/or a strong singing voice is desired, but not essential.

To apply please email Joshua Azouz: joshazouz@aol.com with your current CV and photo as well as your mobile number and your availability for auditions and rehearsals.

Any queries please contact Joshua Azouz on 0781 467 8631.

4x Black Actors Wanted, Etienese Productions
Closes: Thursday 31 December 2009
Unpaid (Expenses Paid)

4x Black Actors wanted for one day performance of a new play.

Character Breakdown:

Merle - Female- must do very good West Indian Accent, playing age 25-40

Donna - Female - British born- playing age 25-40

Winston - Male - must do very good West Indian accent, playing age 25-40

Devon - Male- British born - playing age 25-40

4 weeks rehearsal - small fee for performance

Contact: Judd Batchelor etiproductions@live.co.uk

Theatre Actor Wanted, FallOut Theatre @ The White Bear
Auditions: Weekend 12th/13th December, and week beginning 14th December, venue TBC.
Unpaid (Expenses Paid) Full time

Now casting for production of Mummies and Daddies by Torben Betts at The White Bear Theatre, Kennington. Rehearsals start 3rd January 2010, Run: 26 January 2010 until 13 February 2010.

This is the first production in a season of work at The White Bear directed by David Brown, its new Associate Director.

David was A.D. on two of the most well received shows put up at the venue last year: Madness in Valencia, which topped Time Out's Critic's Choice list with a wonderful 4 star review and is transferring to Trafalgar Studios on the West End in February 2010; and The Misanthrope, which also got an excellent 4 star review in Time Out and again topped the Critic's Choice list (David played Alceste in this production as well as working as the A.D). Both shows were produced by Black and White Rainbow and directed by Simon Evans. Now, supported by Simon and B&WR, David and his company FallOut Theatre are planning three shows at the White Bear in the first half of 2010.

Torben Betts is one of the UK's most exciting modern playwrights and has "a profound and highly original theatrical voice" (Telegraph). Mummies and Daddies offers a shatteringly brutal (and yet hilarious) insight into the soullessness of consumerism as a marketing man and friends gather to celebrate the final summer of the twentieth century.

Please send applications to audition to david.brown.201@googlemail.com with a CV, headshot and short covering letter . Please try to send your application before midday Friday 11th December.

N.B. FallOut Theatre is a very young company and at this point cannot offer payment. We are currently fundraising for the production and hope to be able to at least cover actors' travel expenses.

Wysing Arts Seeking Performers

On 16 January 2010 Wysing Arts Centre will officially launch the centre’s year of The Improbable with a solo exhibition by London based artist Mark Aerial Waller.

Mark is a film-maker, sculptor, installation artist and occasional writer and editor. He has an encyclopaedic knowledge of cinema and brings cinematic references into the gallery through his immersive installations, screenings, events and elaborate films; in which scripted action has been improvised by the cast in fantastical settings, such as a foam cave or a half completed housing development in Dakar. Science fiction meets Greek mythology in some of the most compelling - and improbable - artworks imaginable.

Mark creates his work through collaboration and needs you to help him create his new commission for Wysing, entitled The Cassiopeia Plan. For the work - a film shot on location at Wysing - Mark would like 10 people (adults) to participate in scripted scenarios around Wysing’s site. The film will draw from GK Chesterton’s book The Man who was Thursday and forms the final work in a series of three filmic installations that will be shown in Wysing’s gallery from January 16 onwards.

So, if you are looking for something unusual to do in the New Year, would like to be in an artwork that will be later shown in galleries around the world, and of course have the opportunity to actively contribute to the development of an artwork with the artist, then this is your chance. (Please note that this is an unpaid opportunity.)

The dates you will need to be able to commit to are all, or some, of the following:

4 January from 12pm - Initial meeting, allocation of characters and scheduling of action.

5, 6 January all day - Filming.

7 January - Optional day.

To register your interest please contact Lotte Juul Petersen on 01954 718881 or email: lotte.juul.petersen@wysingartscentre.org

Actors/Performers, Hackney Empire
Unpaid (Expenses Paid)
   
We are looking for vintage performing artists to collaborate on Big Scenes, a devised live installation by photographer Marco Sanges and director Alberto Bona, scheduled at the Hackney Empire on Thursday the 11th of February 2010. This surrealistic performance is meant to be transformed into a full scale production for 2011, therefore this is a chance not to be missed!

We need the most diverse talent from professional and non-professional actors, dancers, models. A casting will be held at the Hackney Empire between the 4th and 6th of January. We will consider applications from any background and professional experience. Because the theme of the show is 1930s vintage, we will not consider applicants with contemporary look/skills (i.e.: visible tattoos, piercing, break-dancers). The project is funded with the support of the Arts Council, therefore we can only offer expenses to successful applicants.

Please send a headshot and resume to Marco Sanges: casting.sanges@mail.com

Workshops

Scriptwriting Evening Class
Commencing weekly from Monday 11th January 2010, 7.30pm-9.30pm
Newmarket College, Exning Road, Newmarket

A ten week course on storytelling, character, dialogue and much more, taught by local scriptwriter Laura Cox-Watson (credits include EastEnders, Casualty and Radio 4).

Only £10 a week!

For further information contact Laura on laura1978watson@mac.com or 07974409228

Real-Writing Advanced Playwriting Course with Jemma Kennedy
19 January - 23 March 2010
Tuesdays 10 AM - 1 PM
Venue: Swiss Cottage Community Centre, London
Price: £310

Places are now available for Jemma Kennedy's weekly advanced playwriting workshop starting on January 19th. Suitable for writers with some experience of playwriting or previous study.

These ten weekly three-hour workshops offer practical guidance along with structured group feedback on works in progress to help you hone and refine your writing skills. Visit http://real-writing.co.uk for more details. Or write to: info@real-writing.co.uk

Comedy Workshops with Chris Head
 
Comedy writer and performer Chris Head, who also runs occasional workshops for WRiTEON, has a number of upcoming courses in London in Standup, sketch comedy and animation, starting this January/February. See www.chris-head.com for full details.

Community Events

Paul Richards' Christmas Double Bill

Popular WRiTEON writer Paul Richards presents his annual Christmas show at CB2 Cafe, Norfolk Street.

GOLDILOCKS AND THE BEANSTALK
Written by Paul Richards, directed by Pam Jenner
Starring: Kevin Wright, David Geasor, Juliette Burton, Heather Yeadon and Paul Richards

A 25-minute alternative pantomime. After selling the family’s only asset, Tomkins-the-cow, for the measly sum of 5 magic beans, baby bear Jack suddenly finds a huge beanstalk growing in his parents’ back garden. Should he climb it? Probably not, considering at the top there’s a psycho-giant called Derek waiting for him. The chances are he will though, especially if he knows his latest love interest, chav-burglar Goldilocks is up there...contains swearing and bad innuendo.

Followed by a short interval which will then be followed by...

A FAIRYTALE OF BAR HILL
Written by Paul Richards, directed by the cast
Starring: Colin Woodham, Vaughan Allanson, Heather Yeadon and Kevin Wright
An hour-ish long festive comedy. Likeable loser Alex has lost everything; his girlfriend, his job, his treasured cat, Felix. Even his best friend, Buddy, is having a rough time of it, having been visited by the ghosts of Christmas past, and Santa Claus - well, he just doesn’t want to know anymore. Worst of all, the council have made him live in a horrid Cambridgeshire suburb known as Bar Hill. His sorrowful world is set to take a turn for the better, however, when the love of his life, the lovely, lovely Laura returns from her fling in Denmark, and straight into his arms. Surely now, after all these years, Alex is going to have a very merry Christmas? If only things were that simple...contains swearing and fabulous live music.

Performances:

THURSDAY 17TH DECEMBER @ CB2 RESTAURANT, CAMBRIDGE: 8pm (show finishes 10pm, including 15 minute interval)

SATURDAY 19TH DECEMBER @ CB2 RESTAURANT, CAMBRIDGE: 8pm (show finishes 10pm, including 15 minute interval)

SUNDAY 20TH DECEMBER @ CB2 RESTAURANT, CAMBRIDGE: 8pm (show finishes 10pm, including 15 minute interval)

All tickets £6, very limited availability! Please email Paul: theboyrichards@gmail.com to reserve.

The Man Behind Evolution - a play by Rani Drew

A new play by Rani Drew about the human side of scientist Charles Darwin is to be performed in Cambridge.  The play is centred on the crisis that confronts Darwin after the death of his favourite daughter Annie. As his wife and friends rally round Darwin to comfort him, the devastation he feels causes him to ask many questions about science and religion. The play reveals something of the man behind the great scientist whose insights into life on Earth have been celebrated in this anniversary year of the publication of The Origin of Species by Natural Selection. 

The Man Behind Evolution will be played at the Judith E. Wilson Drama Studio, English Faculty, 9 West Road, Cambridge, on December 10th, 11th & 12th at 7.30 p.m. Admission is free but donations towards costs will be welcome. Enquiries & reservations: 01223-368231.
     
A Warning to the Curious: Two Ghost Stories by M R James
14 - 19th December, 8pm

Following the critically acclaimed A Pleasing Terror and the prize winning Oh, Whistle... , local performer R M Lloyd Parry invites WRiTEON members to the final instalment of his MR James trilogy. The performance includes Lost Hearts, one of the first stories James wrote, which presents us with one of his most memorable villains, the predatory scholar Mr Abney. It is paired here with one the author’s most poignant and personal works: A Warning to the Curious, in which a young archaeologist is haunted and hunted by the guardian of an ancient treasure. The English seaside has never looked so menacing. For more info see: www.nunkie.co.uk.

Venue: Corpus Playroom, St Edward’s Passage, Cambridge
Tickets £9 / £8 from Scudamore’s on 01223 359750