Teachers and students returning to school this month are having to get to grips with a 'new normal' of bubbles, masks, and social distancing. The constraints caused by the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic make teaching any subject trickier – but perhaps none more so than drama. That's why director, writer and teacher Glyn Trefor-Jones has created … Continue reading ‘The training must go on!’ – Glyn Trefor-Jones on teaching drama socially distanced
Directing
Wrestling with Brecht: author David Zoob on why Brecht still matters
Why are Brecht's theories often so baffling? And are they any use to theatre makers today? David Zoob, author of the newly published Brecht: A Practical Handbook, explains how he was converted to Brecht, and why he still matters. Sometime in the late 80s, when I was in my mid-twenties, my theatre company was touring … Continue reading Wrestling with Brecht: author David Zoob on why Brecht still matters
‘Theatre in its purest form’: Cheryl Henson on the power of puppetry in an increasingly digital world
Puppetry is an artform with ancient roots, but contemporary applications - and the international success of shows like National Theatre hit War Horse proves that it has lost none of its magic. Here, Cheryl Henson, President of the Jim Henson Foundation, reflects on how that ‘magic’ happens, and pays tribute to director and puppeteer Mervyn … Continue reading ‘Theatre in its purest form’: Cheryl Henson on the power of puppetry in an increasingly digital world
‘Authenticity guaranteed’: Robin Belfield on why verbatim theatre is so important right now
Verbatim theatre, fashioned from the actual words spoken by real people, is the perfect antidote to our troubled times, argues Robin Belfield, whose new book Telling the Truth: How to Make Verbatim Theatre is an essential guide for theatre-makers, artists, students and teachers. If ever there was a time for verbatim theatre, it’s now. We … Continue reading ‘Authenticity guaranteed’: Robin Belfield on why verbatim theatre is so important right now
Staging our own Brainstorm: an intrepid English teacher on the rewards of devising a show with teenagers
When Steven Slaughter, an English teacher at Rosslyn Academy in Nairobi, Kenya, decided to stage a production of Brainstorm, the acclaimed play about the workings of the teenage brain, he was taking a big risk. The show is designed to be devised by a company of teenagers, putting their own lives and experiences centre-stage. But, … Continue reading Staging our own Brainstorm: an intrepid English teacher on the rewards of devising a show with teenagers
‘Theatre makes people more intelligent than they are individually’: celebrating Peter Hall
Sir Peter Hall, who has died at the age of 86, held a truly special place at the heart of our cultural landscape: among his many achievements were founding the Royal Shakespeare Company, serving as Director of the National Theatre, and directing the English-language premiere of Waiting for Godot. To celebrate his extraordinary life, here's … Continue reading ‘Theatre makes people more intelligent than they are individually’: celebrating Peter Hall
‘The mistake is to pretend you have all the answers’: Richard Eyre on what makes a good theatre director
What makes a good theatre director? How do you learn to be one? What do you do on the first day of rehearsals? Sir Richard Eyre reflects on the director's elusive craft in his foreword to a new book, Drama Games for Actors by Thomasina Unsworth... Most of us have an indecent curiosity about what … Continue reading ‘The mistake is to pretend you have all the answers’: Richard Eyre on what makes a good theatre director
Dymphna Callery: we need a more playful approach to staging plays
Dymphna Callery's Through the Body: A practical guide to physical theatre is beloved of a generation of drama students. But have we ghetto-ised 'physical theatre' in an unhelpful way? In her new book published today, The Active Text, she looks at how physical theatre techniques can be used to unlock scripted plays, and inject new … Continue reading Dymphna Callery: we need a more playful approach to staging plays
Michael Palin: Monty Python as it happened
The inspiring Monty Python at Work is Michael Palin's intimate, behind-the-scenes account of the conception and making of the legendary group's shows, films, books and albums, drawn from his published diaries. Here, the author explains what writer-performers can learn from the book - and read further for extracts from the beginning of the Python journey. … Continue reading Michael Palin: Monty Python as it happened
Sexting in Parliament: insights from the writer and director of Girls Like That
Back in January, members of West Yorkshire Playhouse's Youth Theatre travelled to Westminster to perform an extract from the play Girls Like That in Parliament as part of the launch of YoungMinds Vs, a new children's mental health campaign. An urgent and explosive play that explores the pressures on young people today in the wake of advancing … Continue reading Sexting in Parliament: insights from the writer and director of Girls Like That
The Prompt Book 