A Special Night

The next main production at Progress Theatre is Mine by Polly Teale starting on the 11th June. Director Chris Moran has given herself the additional challenges of training to run in the Race for Life on 20th June and helping to organise a one-off evening at the theatre on 25th May, both to raise money for Cancer Research UK.

The theatre evening on Friday is open to all and is by  donation (min £5) on the door. The evening is a tribute to two Progress Members, Val Patchett and Anne McCubbin who lost their lives to cancer. Both women were very creative and the evening will be a celebration of this.

Val was a founder member of the Progress writers group and would be very proud of the many successful plays and writers that have come out of the group over the years. Her one-act play Way Out was first performed at Progress in 1999 and went on to win three awards at the Kenton drama festival. It will be performed again on Friday as part of this special evening. As well as writing Val was always busy behind the scenes with marketing or stage management, she even appeared on-stage as the dormouse in her own adaptation of Alice in Wonderland.

The (incomplete) set for Friday's performance of 'Way Out'

Anne was also a writer and there will be readings of her short stories and poems during the evening as well as a sale of her beautiful hand-made jewellery. Anne was a very supportive member of the theatre and could often be found working in the box-office. Her two children, Alex and Laura came through the theatre's youth groups and are both still active members along with her husband Stuart.

If you need any more incentive to come along on Friday there will be a cake raffle! If you are able to bring a cake to contribute to the raffle prizes you will be even more welcome.... Doors open 7.15 for 7.45pm start.

All proceeds will be going to Cancer Research UK, via the Race for Life which Laura Mills, Abby Salter and Chris are running on 20th June. If you can't make the evening but would still like to donate please go to www.raceforlifesponsorme.org/progress-girls.

If you are interested in what goes on at Progress Theatre then sign up to this blog. Enter your email in the box under ‘about us’ and click on subscribe. New postings are made weekly so you won’t be swamped with emails.

Coming up -

Mine by Polly Teale 11th - 16th June 2012, Progress Theatre

Henry IV Part One by William Shakespeare, 12 Jul - 21 Jul 2012, Caversham Court Gardens

Mindgame running up against a brick wall

Instead of being shown on consecutive nights like other Progress productions, Mindgame is running Thursday - Saturday over two weekends with a break in between. Producer Steph Weller explained a bit about the thinking behind this change. Most productions at Progress run for either six or nine nights. The nine night runs are used for plays that are expected to be very popular and therefore justify the expense of paying the rights for the extra nights. The advantage of a nine night run is that people who come on the first weekend and enjoy it can tell other people, giving time for a buzz to build up about the production encouraging more people to come on the second weekend (weekends being the better selling performances). Six night runs normally start on a Monday, and if the earlier nights don't sell out there is less opportunity for word of mouth to build.
The other advantage of the split performance dates is that cast and crew get a longer break during the run, although the potential downside is that they could forget their lines or just lose a bit of the spark built up during the previous performances. Director Christopher Hoult has therefore decided to have an extra rehearsal for the actors without the lighting and sound on the Tuesday. He will though resist the temptation to make any mid-run changes to the performances!

When I met her on Sunday, Steph also made the slightly bizarre statement that she now detests brick walls. What she meant was she detests having to paint them. The brick wall seen through the window on the right of this photo has been painted in, and because of the window frame in front any deviation from a straight line would be obvious. It therefore had to be painted very carefully with the aid of a long piece of wood and a spirit level. 

Everything is ready for the opening night on Thursday apart from one last effect for which the production crew are awaiting materials. All Steph would say was thank goodness for the bank-holiday!

If you are interested in what goes on at Progress Theatre then sign up to this blog. Enter your email in the box under ‘about us’ and click on subscribe. New postings are made weekly so you won’t be swamped with emails.

Coming up -
Mindgame by Anthony Horowitz 10th-12th May and 17th-19th May 2012, Progress Theatre

Auditions for Calendar Girls, by Tim Firth, Sunday 13th (2:30pm) and Wednesday 16th May (7:30pm), Progress Theatre

Mine by Polly Teale 11th - 16th June 2012, Progress Theatre

Henry IV Part One by William Shakespeare, 12 Jul - 21 Jul 2012, Caversham Court Gardens

Getting in the Mind Set

I got a bit of a shock when I walked into the back door of the theatre and was confronted by a full size skeleton. Sigmund, as he has been named, appears on stage in Mindgame in the corner of the doctor's office. He came from a props company and the production team were saved the two hour round trip when the local artist using him was more than happy to drop him off.  He had been taken apart for transportation and it was lucky that when producer Steph Weller was putting him back together there was a doctor in the house. Dr. Alison Hill was in the theatre rehearsing for Mine: “Er Steph I think you’ve got those legs the wrong way round…”

The set building is progressing well and I was given a working tour but sworn to secrecy about the unexpected elements. Aidan, the designer, says "it's great to work on a set which is so disconcertingly realistic". As a regular Progress set designer, he enjoys the challenge of providing environments that he hopes will be seen as an extra character in the show. "The diversity of plays we do here allows for real creative freedom, as actors and production team. That's why we keep coming back for more!" I was most impressed by the way the space has been deepened by extending the set walls in to the off stage areas. This heightens the impression that characters leaving the stage are going into another part of the hospital.

The author of Mindgame, Anthony Horowitz, is perhaps best known as a children's writer, penning the Alex Rider series. However he also writes for adults, most recently Sherlock Holmes: House of Silk.  If you or the children in your family are fans then make your way to Waterstones in Reading, Broad St during May and show your Mindgame ticket to get 10% off any Horowitz book. This applies any time between 1st-31st May, so buy your ticket in advance to start saving now, otherwise don't forget to keep your ticket once you've seen the show!

Just for fun a video of Sigmund singing.

If you are interested in what goes on at Progress Theatre then sign up to this blog. Enter your email in the box under ‘about us’ and click on subscribe. New postings are made weekly so you won’t be swamped with emails.

Coming up -

Mindgame by Anthony Horowitz 10th-12th May and 17th-19th May 2012, Progress Theatre

Auditions for Calendar Girls, by Tim Firth, Sunday 13th (2:30pm) and Wednesday 16th May (7:30pm). There is also a pre-audition evening Thursday 3rd May 7.45pm, a chance to hear the directors vision and ask any questions you may have.

Mine by Polly Teale 11th - 16th June 2012, Progress Theatre

Henry IV Part One by William Shakespeare, 12 Jul - 21 Jul 2012, Caversham Court Gardens

Fun and Mindgames

Palmer Park church hall was full of Progress actors last Sunday. I rang the bell for the hall I was expecting Mindgame rehearsals to be in but was let in by someone rehearsing Henry IV who told me Mindgame was upstairs. I then found a room of people I recognised but quickly realised they were rehearsing Mine not Mindgame. It seemed a bit rude to walk out saying "sorry I didn't want to see you" so I stayed to watch a scene. It is early days and the actors were rehearsing the scene for the first time but even though they were reading from their scripts the scene was still full of emotional tension (I'm not just saying this because they bribed me with cake honest).

I finally made it to the Mindgame rehearsal and they were part way through a run of the first act. There was a lot going on, in the twenty minutes or so I watched I saw a fight, someone murdered and someone being put in a straitjacket and threatened with torture. I also found myself laughing in places and I did check with director Chris Hoult later if I was supposed to be laughing. He reassured me that there was some black comedy and it was ok to laugh.

I also asked Chris about the the fighting as it looked very realistic.He told me that they hired Stevie Peart a professional actor specialising in stage fighting to run a workshop with the cast. The video shows an extract from the workshop.The production team and actors had already worked out the basic choreography and Steve advised them on techniques to make it look more realistic like following through properly after a punch. He also gave them some tips on how to use breakaway bottles for a scene where someone is hit with a wine bottle. Breakaway bottles are made with resin and look like a real wine bottle but shatter easily when smashed over someones head. The production crew have just collected 18 of these bottles from Sheperton Studios where Breakaway Effects Limited is based. They drove very carefully on the way home and are hoping that the 18 will be enough for 6 performances and rehearsals. So far they haven't dared take them out of the box!

I really enjoyed the bit of Mindgame I saw but I wasn't allowed to stay and watch the second half in case I gave away any of the twists and turns. I'll just have to buy my ticket like everyone else!

If you are interested in what goes on at Progress Theatre then sign up to this blog. Enter your email in the box under ‘about us’ and click on subscribe. New postings are made weekly so you won’t be swamped with emails.

Coming up -

Mindgame by Anthony Horowitz 10th-12th May and 17th-19th May 2012, Progress Theatre

Auditions for Calendar Girls, by Tim Firth, Sunday 13th (2:30pm) and Wednesday 16th May (7:30pm). There is also a pre-audition evening Thursday 3rd May 7.45pm, a chance to hear the directors vision and ask any questions you may have.

Mine by Polly Teale 11th - 16th June 2012, Progress Theatre

Henry IV Part One by William Shakespeare, 12 Jul - 21 Jul 2012, Caversham Court Gardens

See Progress Theatre website for details of all our productions and auditions.

Double Bill, Upholstery and Making Beds

Handbagged by Moira Buffini is set in Buckingham Palace so some decent chairs were a must. Assistant director Shi managed to find an old matching pair in the Autistic charity shop on Whitley Street for £10.They needed a bit of work and Shi had to quickly teach herself upholstery skills. She found some red velvet in the one of the theatre fabric boxes and with the help of a staple gun and some nails she's done a pretty good job of creating chairs fit for a queen.

 

The other half of the double bill is Gaggle of Saints by Neil LaBute. This calls for a double bed that can represent both the characters bedroom and a hotel room. Ease of movement is more important than comfort and this one is on wheels and covered with two thin old mattresses. We don't want the actors falling asleep on stage.

If you are interested in what goes on at Progress Theatre then sign up to this blog. Enter your email in the box under ‘about us’ and click on subscribe. New postings are made weekly so you won’t be swamped with emails.

Coming up -

Classic Writing - Double Bill, Gaggle of Saints, by Neil LaBute and Handbagged, by Moira Buffini, 10 Apr - 14 Apr 2012, Progress Theatre

Mindgame by Anthony Horowitz 10th-12th May and 17th-19th May 2012, Progress Theatre

Auditions for Calendar Girls, by Tim Firth, Sunday 13th (2:30pm) and Wednesday 16th May (7:30pm). There is also a pre-audition evening Thursday 3rd May 7.45pm, a chance to hear the directors vision and ask any questions you may have.

Mine by Polly Teale 11th - 16th June 2012, Progress Theatre

See Progress Theatre website for details of all our productions and auditions.