Friday 13 August 2010

1 more sleep to go

I'm as excited as a child the night before Christmas. I am really

looking forward to my holiday, which starts on Saturday.

I'm off to Paignton with my daughter for the week. Lovely stay in a
caravan, with all that entails about exhausting days of trips to far
flung places, and with the contradiction of lazy days sat reading in the
caravan. Oh the joy. The sea air, Portsmouth may well be the country's
only Island city, but the air isn't really, what you would call
fragrant.

But most of all, the greatest part about going away, is the amount of
time I get to spend with my daughter. So good to be doing things with
her, and although its a holiday, there's still the enjoyment of the
mundane things like getting her to go to bed at a sensible time, making
sure she eats decent (fat chance) food.. etc etc. The stuff I don't get
much of a feel for with my normal visits. I'm sure it'll be nice for her
mum to have a bit of a break too, with her recently breaking her foot,
couldn't come at a better time.

The holiday also signals the gathering pace and wind towards the end of
the year. And all that brings. When we come back, it's only a week or so
before she returns to school, this time at senior school. My little girl
is really growing up. Too fast for me, not fast enough for her.

Nearly September when we return, well my Mum & Dad move into their new
house at the end of October, which in itself is also the month that we
go to see John Barrowman in concert. November into December brings the
completion of my flat, and me moving.

Somewhere in the midst of all of that, Helen and I will finish writing
our 4th play, and start getting together the number of people required
to put it on. January 2011 being when we start rehearsals in earnest.

I feel so much better having a road map to take me into the next year. I
like the idea of allowing things to just happen, but that's more to do
with laziness than a belief that I should go with the flow. Having a
plan, even if things don't turn out anything like it gives me a chance
to be excited about what the future brings rather than apathetic about
it.

With Helen round last night, working on the characters for the show, and
Liam coming round tonight, for a weepy movie, Friday now brings the
chance of a pub meal with the Beacon lot. Good way to build up to and
send off for holiday.

The show ? What's happened ? Where did that all come from ?

Well, Helen and I got talking last week on the phone, when she wasn't
able to make it up to mine as she wasn't feeling very well. We talked
for quite some time on the phone, and were both coming the conclusion
that we have been away long enough from the stress, hassle and chaos
that producing a stage show is to miss it. To miss the stage, miss the
audience reactions, miss the fun, chaos (and yes stress) of putting the
bloody thing on in the first place. To miss meeting all the great people
that life just throws your way when you're putting together these
things.

An idea was born, based on the premise of a Prince and the Pauper style
boss/serf swap. Set that in a modern environment (IE.. Call Centre) and
with the reality TV show elements included to add chaos and fun, and
BANG ! You've got yourself a show. Before we knew it we had the idea
fleshed out. Somehow this seemed more like an energised process,
compared to the work on 'Virtual Insanity', which was altogether far too
serious. We never know, there may come a time in the future when we do
make a play out of it, but it's just too much like hard work, or just
work to be spending so much of our free time on.

So much easier to create, write, direct and act in something that brings
a smile to your face. I'll attach some photos of the scribblings that
we've done to date, just to show the progress. So far, we are doing
well, and there's a fair amount of interest from people that have done
shows with M27 before. One lives in hope.

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