The sounds of The Wolves of Willoughby Chase

First the photo of the "Briskett" wig I promised in last week's blog.

Geoff Dallimore as Mrs Briskett and Joe Morbey as Kate (photo Kate Eke)

For this week's blog I spoke to Stuart McCubbin who is doing the sound for the production. He said that The Wolves of Willoughby Chase is not a musical but "a play with music and singing". The rights to perform the play included a CD of  recorded music and scores for some of the songs. Stuart recorded himself playing the songs on his guitar. No score was included for old folk songs like "Black is the colour of my true love's hair" so he found performances on YouTube and worked out how to play them.

Many of the sound effects are produced by the actors on stage including the classic coconut shells for horses' hooves. Most impressive is the use of cabasas to make train sounds, although Stuart does augment it with recorded sound especially when the train has to screech loudly to a halt.

Stuart has used additional microphones for this production. There are two at the back of the stage which are mostly so that the cast can hear themselves when they are singing. There are also microphones around the auditorium to give a surround sound effect. Look out for those wolves coming up behind you!

Keeping track of all the sound effects and music cues needs some organisation. Stuart has a thick file with detailed notes of when he needs to play what sounds.

The Wolves of Willoughby Chase runs from 16th to 25th January including matinees on both Saturdays. 



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The Wolves of Willoughby Chase, by Joan Aiken, adapted by Russ Tunney Thursday 16th January - Saturday 25th January 2014

Auditions for Lady Windermere’s Fan by Oscar Wilde Sunday 26th January at 2.30pm or Tuesday 28th January 2014 at 7.30pm

Bold Girls by Rona Munro Monday 17th February – Saturday 22nd February 2014

Trainspotting by  Harry Gibson, adapted from the book by Irvine Welsh Monday 17th – Saturday 22nd March 2014

Details of all our productions and auditions can be found on our website.

The Wolves (and geese) of Willoughby Chase

The Wolves of Willoughby Chase is a story told by a group of children to each other. The set includes a range of toys mainly made by Kate, director Rik Ekes's wife. Normally when Rik is involved in a show his living room is full of bits of metal and wiring waiting to be made into special effects but this time it is full of fur, fluff and wool. Kate has mostly been busy making geese like the two beauties shown below.

In total she has made thirteen geese including some baby ones and yes she made the witch's broom too.

The production team also went on a buying spree to the Christmas Fair at Park United Reformed Church where we hold rehearsals when the theatre is full. They were on the search for pre-loved toys for the set. For a few pounds they managed to get all they needed including this one who definitely looks like she needs a new home.               

I was intrigued to hear about the 'brisket wig' although slightly disappointed to find out it refers to a character not a wig made out of beef. It is made with acrylic wool wrapped wet round a stick and then baked in the oven to make it curly. It was still being worked on but I hope next time I visit for an update I'll be able to get a photo.

The Wolves of Willoughby Chase runs from 16th to 25th January including matinees on both Saturdays. 


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. 

The Wolves of Willoughby Chase, by Joan Aiken, adapted by Russ Tunney Thursday 16th January - Saturday 25th January 2014

Bold Girls by Rona Munro Monday 17th February – Saturday 22nd February 2014

Details of all our productions and auditions can be found on our website.

After Magritte and The Bald Prima Donna

When I gatecrashed a rehearsal for the youth theatre's latest production the technical crew were busy trying to balance a bowl of fruit and a lamp shade suspended above the stage. Martin Noble had just finished setting up a pulley system so that the fruit bowl can be raised and lowered from backstage. I guess this is the sort of thing you find yourself doing when staging two absurdist plays.

The other surreal element to appear was an ironing board that needs reinforcing  as one of the actors has to lie on it while being massaged. Another character has to jump on it too, although there was some discussion as to whether this scene would pass the pre-production safety checks.

I also had a sneak preview of the costumes as John showed off the magnificent waders he wears in his role as Harris in After Magritte.

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. 

Progress Youth Theatre, An Absurdist Double Bill Monday 9th – Saturday 14th December 2013, 7.45pm, Progress Theatre

Jazz at Progress: Hugh Turner Quintet featuring Brandon Allen, Friday 20th December 2013, 7.30pm

The Wolves of Willoughby Chase, by Joan Aiken, adapted by Russ Tunney Thursday 16th January - Saturday 25th January 2014

Details of all our productions and auditions can be found on our website.

Progress Youth Theatre and Absurdist Blogging

Progress Youth Theatre are presenting a double bill of Absurdist drama from 9th to 14th December. The evening features After Magritte by Tom Stoppard and The Bald Prima Donna by Eugène Ionesco.

In homage to the Absurdist style I thought I would make this week's blog nothing to do with their production. To be honest I went along to the regular Monday evening youth theatre session assuming I would be able to catch a rehearsal when there wasn't, and always ready to inform you about different aspects of Progress Theatre, I decided to write about the session I watched instead.

The session was run by Ben Sandiford, Youth Theatre leader and professional actor and director. He started off with warm up and breathing exercises. He then talked about an exercise he was going to teach them. He warned them that it was very powerful and they should never do it more than once a day. It can release adrenalin and serotonin and may make you feel invincible.

They were intrigued and so was I. What they had to do was go through seven different arm positions and in each one clench their fists forty-nine times. A few phones came out to calculate that is 343 fist clenches. Ben warned them that by the end it would be very painful. Writing this down it sounds like some bizarre form of child torture but I assure you they were free to stop at any time (although none of them did). 

Checking  arms at the end of the fist clenching exercise

At the end they all seemed exhilarated and they then went on to do some powerful exercises where they had to form shapes with other people and think about what Ben called the 'physical centre'. Ben explained that this work is about building up the actor's awareness and control on stage and is a grounding for mask work that he will be doing later with group.

I was very impressed with the maturity and commitment of the group. 

In the next blog I will bring you an update on the Absurdist Double Bill - unless I decide to write about goldfish or fried eggs....

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. 

Jazz at Progress Theatre: Steve Waterman Quartet, Friday 22nd November 2013, 7.30pm

Progress Youth Theatre, An Absurdist Double Bill Monday 9th – Saturday 14th December 2013, 7.45pm, Progress Theatre

Jazz at Progress: Hugh Turner Quintet featuring Brandon Allen, Friday 20th December 2013, 7.30pm

The Wolves of Willoughby Chase, by Joan Aiken, adapted by Russ Tunney Thursday 16th January - Saturday 25th January 2014
 

Details of all our productions and auditions can be found on our website.

Moonlight an Magnolias and an extra production

The theatre was pretty quiet for the Sunday before the start of a run. Normally there would be a final dress rehearsal but the cast and crew of Moonlight and Magnolias have been given the day off. The only people there were stage manager Fiona McNeil and director Liz Carrol putting finishing touches to the set.

Liz assured me that cancelling the final dress rehearsal wasn't over confidence. The cast were definitely ready as they had a press night last Thursday that was at full performance standards. Her only concern had been if any of the technical team needed more time but they all said they were good to go so everyone was given the day off.

The did tell me some exciting news though, co-director Matt Stevens had a production of his own. His wife Nikki gave birth to their first child, Polly, on Friday at the Royal Berks. Matt had popped into the theatre briefly on Sunday but assured me he was on his way straight back to the hospital! He told me that Polly weighed 7lb 14oz and, of course, is lovely.

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.

Moonlight and Magnolias by Ron Hutchinson Monday 11th – Saturday 16th November 2013, Progress Theatre

Progress Youth Theatre, An Absurdist Double Bill Monday 9th – Saturday 14th December 2013, Progress Theatre

Details of all our productions and auditions can be found on our website.