The School of Night Practising with Knives

"Don't bally about with those" was director Ben Sandiford's sensible advice when bringing out a batch of knives during a rehearsal of  The School of Night. The scene I was watching involved one of the characters being stabbed in the eye. This needs to look realistic enough to make the audience squirm while not posing any risk to the actor.

Ben demonstrates how to stab someone in the eye.

The play is written in the 1990s but set in 1592 in an Elizabethan England where everyone seems to be a spy and no-one is quite sure who is reporting what to the authorities - even husband and wife. It features some historical figures like Christopher Marlowe, Walter Ralegh and the Wallsinghams. The School of Night of the title was a real society of the time that indulged in dangerous discussions like atheism and removing the monarchy. The play has two good parts for women and has given Fidelity (below) her first part in a Progress production since joining the Youth Theatre last year.

"How sharp is this?"

 

The production is not being performed at Progress Theatre but at the Wycliffe Church at Cemetery Junction. This is an interesting opportunity to make use of a different space and potentially attract some new audience members but working at an outside venue brings it own challenges. Having to fit in with another organisation's time table is one of them and the technical rehearsal will have to be a week before the first performance - before director  and crew would ideally be ready.

 

As I left Ben's advice to his cast about to run a scene was "throw some spaghetti at the wall". I don't know what it means but reminded me it was time for tea.



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Auditions for Blithe Spirit by Noël Coward Thursday 14th March at 7.30 or Saturday 16th March 4pm, Progress Theatre
 

Progress Youth Theatre presents The School of Night by Peter Whelan. Monday 18^th and Tuesday 19^th March 2013 at 7:45pm, Wycliffe Baptist Church, 233 Kings Rd Reading RG1 4LS

Double Bill, The Long Road by Shelagh Stephenson and WASP by Steve Martin, Monday 18th to Saturday 23rd March 2013, 7.45 Progress Theatre

Little Shop of Horrors, music by Alan Menken, libretto by Howard Ashman,Thursday 18th to Saturday 27th April 2013, 7.45 Progress Theatre