Home Coming

"Gosh! It was quite wonderful." * 

My first home show of Everyman this year was great fun - considering how serious the play is.  Normally I do comedy for home shows, or classic stories that hug people like a lovely warm blanket, so I was a little worried that a sombre play about death would jar.  Thankfully, it didn't.

"Amazing performance, although I knew it would be.  So thought provoking and moving.  At one point I thought I was going to cry!!"

I had also been warned that the cottage of my host was somewhat small, so there was a little bit of fear before hand that I wouldn't be able to make the show fit.  When I arrived this fear was dispelled, it was tight, but perfectly workable and my delightful host allowed me to move the furniture about and generally make a mess.

"A triumph! Thought provoking, light & dark, everything for a complete performance - superb!!"

The guests arrived in mixed batches of ones and twos and as they arrived I asked them to add their contribution to my list of Good and Bad deeds.  The Bad deeds were particularly good, but I won't publish them till after the next show, to preserve the anonymity of the confessional - for there were only seven guests in the audience and it is conceivable the dataset could be reverse engineered to reveal identity.  I say only seven guests (well, six plus host), but seven was ideal, and every one responded beautifully to the show. 'Confession' even put a comforting hand on my shoulder at one point, which was perfect.

"Fantastic performance, totally captivating from start to finish. Superb! Thank you Robert."

The only thing I forgot to do was remind people to switch off phones, though as it happened it was the house phone that went off.  And then went to answerphone.  The show survived.

"Fascinating and moving - thank you for an amazing performance.  Very thought provoking."

And after the performance, food!  By far my favourite part of doing home shows is afterwards - but I would say that, I've done my work and get to relax.  Then you get to discuss the play with convivial company before discussion diverts into more general areas and much fellowship is had.
I even got to take home some cheese.

*All quotes from audience members.

As you can see above, a home show can be great fun for everyone - and there's still time to book me so long as you're based in the UK - I usually work on a pass the hat round basis for home shows, but this varies depending on distance - just give me a buzz online or call the number below.

The Summoning of Everyman Tours March / April 2015
All shows will be Pay-What-You-Want and tickets can be reserved by phone or online.
Telephone: 07946 652 196
Email: contact@milkbottleproductions.co.uk
For emails or any phone messages please state your name, contact number, number of tickets and, most importantly, which date/venue you're booking for.
I'll be keeping this blog post updated and there's a page on the microsite and shortly on my website.
If your local venue is not represented it's not too late to be added to the tour.  I'll come to churches, village halls, small rooms or even your home for a private performance for friends and family - just contact me and we'll see what can be done.  Have toothbrush, will travel!

Offton & Willisham Village Hall                  -              Tuesday 24th March at 7.30pm

Chappel & Wakes Colne Village Hall         -              Wednesday 25th March at 7.30pm

Great Waldingfield Village Hall                   -              Thursday 26th March at 7.30pm

Boxford Village Hall                                   -              Tuesday 31st March at 7.30pm

Cavendish Memorial Hall                           -              Wednesday 1st April at 7.30pm

Hitcham Village Hall                                   -              Thursday 2nd April at 7.30pm

Maurice Rowson Hall, Gosfield                  -              Friday 3rd April at 7.30pm

Leavenheath Village Hall                            -              Sunday 5th April at 6pm

Hundon Village Hall                                   -              Monday 6th April at 7.30pm

Creeting St Mary Jubilee Hall                     -              Tuesday 7th April at 7.30pm

Assington Village Hall                                -              Thursday 9th April at 7.30pm

Brettenham Village Hall                             -              Tuesday 14th April at 7.30pm

Steeple Bumpstead Village Hall                 -              Wednesday 15th April at 7.30pm

St Mary’s Church, Chilton                         -              Sunday 19th April at 3pm

Boxted & Hartest Institute                         -              Monday 20th April at 7.30pm

Stisted Village Hall                                    -              Wednesday 22nd April at 7.30pm

All details correct at time of press – updates, corrections and directions to shows can be found online – or contact us direct.

Student Tryout

On Friday I did wend my merry way to the University of Essex to perform The Summoning of Everyman for some first years.  This is the second time I've done this and was a great way for me to tryout the show before the tour starts in earnest.  Here is a video of my time there...


"Really interesting and clever take on this play, that I first had hated!" *

[*All quotes are feedback from the students after the performances.]
I performed the show twice and generally talked about the play between times, so it was a full on few hours.  It was useful in two ways.
1. I remembered how to work the show, because it's all about contact with the audience and that's really hard to rehearse in advance.
2. I could test out some of my newer ideas about staging.  Some of which worked, some didn't.

"Intense and insightful, a true reckoning."

A student audience isn't the same as a regular audience - they are there to learn, as part of their course, as the play is one they are studying.  They are not necessarily there to enjoy themselves and therefore my job as performer is harder.  I had to draw them into the play - when the absurdity of what I am trying to do is at its most apparent.  Here we are, in a relatively clinical performance space, with few props / lighting or setting to create mood.  I then start pretending to be, not just one person, but many - using different voices and actions.  It is less about the suspension of disbelief, more the suspension of the absurd.

"Really creative production that makes difficult language incredibly accessible."

Sometimes the show worked well, the connection with some of the audience was clear and strong - sometimes I felt a fool, as others looked away, or were generally not connecting at all.  By the second performance I was tired and made a few simple mistakes that were not coverable.  You expect to go wrong occasionally, but it's easy enough to save.  But I moved someone into the wrong place and started talking to the wrong person.  It is not a mistake I will make again.  But that's why we do tryouts.

"I loved the audience participation!"

There is another dynamic in play - these are drama students, so unlike the regular audience they will all (by and large) want to perform more than watch.  It is usually the opposite for civilians.  So there isn't the same focus born of fear, there isn't the same anticipation and worry about what happens next.  Also, those who weren't chosen to be actively involved seemed less attentive - perhaps disappointed not to be one of those getting up and about.  Again, I suspect with a regular audience this is not the case.  This also changed the dynamic of the room - because inattention is contagious.

"I understand it better."

I was testing out a new lighting arrangement - which palpably didn't work in that space.  That's going to change between now and the tour.  I also had a brainwave at the beginning of the piece that I might put in.  What did work very well was the enforced silence for the audience before the show began.  As people entered they were asked not to speak and follow certain tasks.  It was commented that I was like a priest with his congregation - which is has positive and negative sides.
I didn't use any music to open the show - though I plan there to be something for when I start the show on tour.  The event lives and dies on the atmosphere and the commitment of the audience.  What I do with them and the text then becomes greater than the sum of their parts.

"Perhaps a little more physicality would make it more visual."

I'm caught in a double bind regarding physicality with this show.  If I do too much then I'm spinning on a sixpence, jumping from one attitude to another like a nervous tick.  I didn't get the balance right for these performances, and that's where I'm focusing work over the next few days.  Not bigger, but clearer.  And I need to clearly plot my eye contact, I got a bit lazy in some places.

All in all, it was a good first stab at the show - on Thursday I'm doing a home performance of the play - and I'm looking forward to seeing what new things happen then.  Full details will follow.  But for now - here are all the Good and Bad Deeds I collected on Friday from the students.  Mostly they are generic things - I didn't make it clear that I wanted something specific from their lives - but some are telling.

Bad Deeds:  A preponderance of lying and cheating, plus laziness and a clear confession to the consumption of illegal substances confirms these are students.

Hurting others / Hurting or hunting (not quite clear)
Adultery / Committing Adultery
Cheating x3
Lying x3
Murder / Killing
Rape
Sexism
Stealing x2 / Theft
Vandalism
Drinking in excess
Laughing at others / Making others feel bad
Quarreling without purpose
Ignorance to those around you
I have consumed illegal substances (a student? really?)
Lazyiness (sic)
Frord (sic - presumably Fraud.  Bless.)

Good Deeds:  Always less amusing and more worthy, by the nature of things.  A lot of focus is on outward demonstrations - caring for people, giving money, as well as support.  A few are more internal, largely about combating selfishness - which is reassuring when so much of our culture is about self.

Caring for - someone who is unwell / others
Being kind to others
Being polite
Helping X2
Love thy neighbour / loving the people around you
Charity / Sharing what you have / Helping others in need / Helping others / Helping someone out financially / To help those less fortunate than yourself
Give money to a homeless man / Helping the homeless / Giving money to the homeless
Being there for someone
Thy to help others and focus less on your "self needs" / I have put others before myself  / Selflessness
Being honest
Listening
Embracing a persons imperfections
Making someone / making other people / making people - smile : ) / Cheering up a friend
Helping a person with the stairs

Gazumped-ish...

Typical, you wait ages for one production of Everyman and two come along at once.  No sooner than I'm ready with my tour of Everyman than the National Theatre announce they're doing one - AT EXACTLY THE SAME TIME.  My immediate reaction was facepalm/whyme! - followed by a lot of swearing.  But then I had a cup of tea and calmed down, because really I'm rather pleased.
Firstly, it raises the profile of the play, or at least the title of the play, for early indications suggest this isn't a production of the play, it is an adaptation of the play, so we're not doing the same play at all.   It is notable that their play is simply called Everyman and not The Summoning of Everyman - and that the blurb suggests a more secular take on the narrative.  Death gets a lot of notice, God not one.  So, quite a different play, if the pre-publicity is to be believed.
Secondly, following on from the above, the National production will give the hashtag #everyman a bit more prominence and probably gain me more audience than it will lose me. It's not impossible that you've been dragged to this blog by said hashtag.  (If you have, earlier blog posts go into detail of my staging of the play and some of it might be quite interesting!)
Thirdly, if they bugger about with the text I can say my version has a certain authority.  Even though my production isn't exactly conventional, it does use most of the text and largely as the unknown author left it.
Of course if the National production is a huge popular success I could be screwed.  It coincides almost exactly with my tour, but we are reasonably far apart geographically.  Their production will be live streamed in July, which IS a sod, as that's when I'd be doing tryouts if I make enough money to go to Edinburgh for the Fringe.  And I don't see that a later tour in Autumn/Winter is as much of a goer now.  But we shall see.  I will weigh up my options as I go along.
So, I'm largely positive. Power to the moral interlude people, power to the morality tale!
For more information about my small tour - for small rooms and little theatres only - do have a look at this blog post.