Acting in “Constellations” (our upcoming show, written by Nick Payne) is not easy. In fact, playing Roland is one of the hardest things I’ve ever done. This is because Roland’s character is not consistent – his character doesn’t go on an emotional journey, he doesn’t develop as the play continues. “Constellations” is set across multiple parallel worlds. That basically means that throughout the play we see the same scenes featuring Roland and Marianne played out in very differ

‘One Man, Two Guvnors’ is a notoriously difficult play to put on, especially for an am-dram group. Based on the Commedia dell’arte classic ‘The Servant of Two Masters’, the play jumps from scene to scene at break-neck speed, the stereotypical characters get into all sorts of scrapes and even the audience become embroiled in the mayhem. It’s an incredibly funny play – but only if the play is done right. For this reason, it was with some trepidation that I attended Lovelace The

“Hedda Gabler” by Henrik Ibsen is one of my favourite plays, so when I found out that the Lowry were revamping the play as “Hedda Tesman”, adapted by Cordelia Lynn, I knew I had to go and watch it (and Paula booked us tickets on the front row!). The story was very different to Ibsen’s original tale, but remained true to the text, with certain sections being lifted straight from the original script. The play starred Haydn Gwynne in the title role, and what a joy it was to watc

Many new actors and graduates of drama degree’s will have inevitably scoured the web for acting jobs.

Sometimes, things can just become a bit too much. For everyone. You don’t have to be a world-famous actor, a star, or even somebody a tiny bit famous to think that the world is becoming too heavy to handle. An ‘average’ person that you have passed on the street this morning, while taking the kids to school, or whilst doing your daily food shop, is likely to have things going on in their head that makes them feel like the whole world is on their shoulders. According to Mind UK

“Ghosts” is a very subdued play that does not call for a lot of lighting changes or music cues. Mostly, the play involves characters having conversations (or arguments) rather than using fancy drama techniques to convey the story. This is to be expected of Ibsen – he was one of the first playwrights to adopt a “naturalistic” style. No longer did characters speak in verse and heightened language – instead, they spoke in natural rhythms, the way we speak every day. The play is

It’s now been a year since myself, Tom and Ezra performed “Teechers”. It doesn’t feel like a year ago. In many ways, it feels a lot longer than that. When we began rehearsing Teechers, ETC was a brand new concept, and none of us had ever done anything like this before. Sure, we’d all acted before and been part of other drama groups. But this was the first time we’d done something on our own. Putting on a production is not just a case of picking a script, learning the lines an

With our first performance done and dusted, there’s just one night of Ghosts left, which means one more chance to experience Elemental Theatre’s shocking night of drama. Our first night was a roaring success - our slow-burning first act sets the scene of the uppity but relatable Alving family, which reaches screamingly high tension in the second and third acts. Scandal is at the heart of Henrik Ibsen’s Ghosts. Like the more famous Hedda Gabler and A Doll’s House, this is a pl

This cult classic, from the 70’s, is still standing strong after 40 years on the stage.

Learning lines can often be the bane of every budding thespian's life when it comes to putting on a show.

How does a well groomed man in his mid 20’s convincingly step on stage as a haggard old alcoholic on the 15th of September?

Like most solutions, the answer lay in trial and error. It’s no secret that none of our cast were able to immediately jump right into role.

Ibsen’s “Ghosts” was written in the 1880s, where it initially drew lots of criticism for the way it deals with various taboo subjects. The story is set in a Norwegian manor, and begins with the maid, Regine, dusting the room and arranging flowers in a vase. Elemental Theatre’s “Ghosts” begins in a very different way, set in a modern English country house, with the lodger, Rachel, vacuuming whilst bopping along to some pop song that is being played by an Alexa. When we initial

Theatre can be such a powerful way to get children to engage more with a story they have been working on.

Fur characters and no knickers! Avenue Q is a hilarious award winning musical set in the back streets of America.

“Measure for Measure”, the last of the RSC’s 2019 summer season, begins with a chandelier, classical music and dancing. The play transports us immediately to 1900s Vienna, the setting chosen by director Gregory Doran for this Shakespeare classic. And yet, this romantic scene is all of a sudden interrupted by Anthony Byrne’s powerful Duke, and the truly dark and disturbing tone of this play set in, as he puts his nephew Angelo (Sandy Grierson, in a very different role from his

This rib ticklingly hilarious romp took us back to the electric 80's. set in the hotel of ‘Club Tropicana’, where drinks are free.

If you search hard enough, in the back streets of every small town or village across the UK, you will find an amateur dramatic group. A collection of like-minded people who spend their spare time learning lines, painting scenery, making costumes, and having fun. At the end of it all, they put on a performance to their returning audiences, the majority of which tend to be friends and family. But why? They’re not people who like showing off (well, maybe a little). But mostly, l

As a huge fan of Shakespeare and the RSC’s productions, it was with some excitement that I went to see their latest production of “The Taming of the Shrew”, a comedy that revolves around the sharp-tongued Katherine who is “tamed” by her new husband Petruchio. This being the RSC however, there is always a twist in the tale, and the twist here was that the entire production was gender-flipped. All male characters played by females and vice-versa. This is an excellent idea on pa

The story follows the life of Charlie Price (Joel Harper-Jackson) as he takes over the family’s failing shoe business, after the saddening d