Jim Bywater

Tomorrow I go back to the Arcola. I'm rehearsing Ibsen's GHOSTS, for the Actors Touring Company, directed by Bijam Sheibani - a nice bloke with a good way of working.
I'm playing ENGSTRAND, a carpenter. In case you don't know, GHOSTS is about this carpenter who has a stepdaughter who works for a woman whose deceased husband is the real father. There's money, sex and an STD involved. Doubtless, other members of the cast will have a different perspective. I think there's a couple of laughs as well - well, if I've got anything to do with it there will be. I'll let you know.
I'm looking forward to the Lachmajun from Mangal, over the road. £1 for lunch - NOT BAD, EH?

Continue reading "Here we go again." »

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The daughter's gig was great. Her stuff is edgy and difficult to play; it needs experienced musicians (and a bit of editing, it has to be said). She heard today that she got a 1st for her 'David Bowie' project, for which she was partnered by Liam, an excellent guitar musician from the antipodes.

Continue reading "There's more." »

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I have just done a photo session for the film called The Cap.

Final shot of storyteller, Roman, in the film The Cap by Matt Woolley.

A prisoner loses his hat. It is a capital offence. He takes the hat from another prisoner. The other prisoner is shot at morning parade - no questions, no ceremony. The short film deals with Roman's reasoning and lack of guilt for the action he took to save his own life.

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Off to Venice tomorrow. Looking forward to it. We are armed with three travel books, an email of recommended eateries and drinkeries from a Venetian, Enrico Fantasia, who lives in Dublin. The eldest, Hanna, is driving us to the airport. When we get back, Sasha will probably have been delivered of her daughter. And, all being well, my middle daughter, Zoe, won't have been delivered of her offspring (sex unknown). With any luck, the Steinberg MI4 System will have been delivered so that the youngest daughter, Beth, can write some hit tunes and buy me a motor bike. We live in hopes. See you later.

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Off to Venice for five days next week - me and the wife - looking at restaurant/food related activities and Italian Theatre Traditions. So, we won't be contactable unless you've got my mobile number.

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I've just heard that Olivia Twist might go out on the road again,with modifications. Excellent! Another chance to get it right. Might need some recasting; we'll see.

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Mark Wheeller, the writer of Missing Dan Nolan came to see the show today and was "unreservedly pleased" with how we had dealt with the show. He's mooted the idea that, in October, he might like to bring Dan's mother, Pauline, to see the show and, possibly his sister, Clare. Could be a bit nerve-wracking.
The show was performed in an aircraft hanger of a gym but the cast performed well and overcame the accoustic problems. Keep it up, gang!

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Dress rehearsal with audience at all boys school. The designer, Rodney Ford and the wardrobe dept - Aimee and Helen, came to see the show. Lovely ladies! Good first performance. Lines a little awry. Vicky suffered sexual harassment from testosterone loaded jerks but she soldiered on. We are complaining to the school. But this served to focus the cast on the material for the next show at an all girls school, which, we were told, had the 'difficult' pupils totally engaged and close to tears at the finish. Result! This did the cast no end of good. Rodney and the stage management department, Laura, Lisa and Charlotte, came to see the show. That's what I call support. Ellie, stage manager and sound operative is getting all 'creative' with her cues - oooh! There are now two days with no show so the cast are meeting on Wednesday afternoon to run the show again just to keep themselves 'on task' ready for the meeting with the writer on Thursday. I'll keep you posted.

Continue reading "27 Feb 2006" »

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We hit a 'significant moment' today; Cheryl said, "This is difficult." David said, "I think this is the hardest thing I've ever done." At the same time it is becoming clear to them what the script requires of the actor. Vicki is full of integrity and is a good physical actor - Theo is full of confidence and clarity of thought - Cheryl is 'in touch' - David cracks a problem then walks off straight through the audience. A mixed bag that are going to make it work.
The wardrobe department are up to their eyes in the Scottish play, etc., and they still went off, with no fuss and bother, and created four blazer badges replicating the actual badges from the actual school mentioned in the play - overnight.
The set is complete, some of it repainted at my whim and beyond my expectations.
We received the bed linen today, printed with family photographs from the original slide sequence. It looks really good and, I think, does a better job than slides would - but then, I would, wouldn't I?
The workshop is in rehearsal and, apparently, proving to be an enjoyable experience. Beth Flatley is organising it so I don't know a great deal about it.

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Cracked a 'problem' part of the play involving a difficult acting technique which includes acting, lecturing and storytelling, all in the one speech. My cast is young, as I said before and are making a very good job of it. Maintaining concentration is difficult but they are pulling themselves up by their bootstraps. BRAVO! As always, I'm getting excellent support from the technical staff - from the carpenter to the stage manager. Things are still looking good.

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One more week of rehearsals for Dan Nolan then I'm writing, for the forseeable future, the novel with my mate Jack. He's also writing a play for someone who must remain nameless, for the moment, so I shall be writing the book by myself - Oh the Power!!!!!

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We've been through the whole script, sorted out the basic entrances, exits, locations, moods and f/x cues. The actors have bonded, nearly know their lines and are starting to get a feel for the style of the show. The costumes are sorted and delivery dates are fixed for all missing elements.
I rehearse these TiE shows with the technical requirements as soon as possible. So we might have sound cues from day one and props as and when they are aquired - anything that can help the actors to feel the 'wholeness' of the show, not least because there is quite a lot of multi-role work, some at high speed and, about a third of the final week's rehearsals are taken up with preparing and rehearsing the workshop which accompanies the show. Still having a good time!

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We found a few hiccups (hiccoughs?) but frightened them off. We sorted the sound script - more than enough. We heard the tale of last night's blind date. We didn't start early and didn't end late. Perfick!

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You know what it's like - the first day is a relief and then the second doesn't get any easier. We've decided that the story is being told 'in the now' because the script has been updated from time to time so must be contemporaneous. There is a slide section in the play but, when the show is to be performed in school halls you run into blackout problems. So I have decided, through a process of osmosis with the designer, Rodney Ford and the stage manager, Ellie Bazeley, to print the slides onto sheets and pillow cases thus revealing the 'photos' whilst the family do household chores. After all, memories can creep up and get you any time.
The cast, David Grace, Cheryl Chapman, Vicki Jackson and Theo Herdman are terrific.

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Read through, relaxed; casting sounded right. Tech teams seem happy; Rodney Ford, the designer has come up trumps. He knows what I like and he makes it his.
We rehearsed the 'improvised' bits - horseplay scenes which need coreographing. They could have proved to be sticky moments but, it's a young cast who are keen to exercise the acting muscles and discover the acting 'rules'. I think it's going to be OK.
We are doing it in the round - my favourite form in schools, allowing the audience close proximity to the action and, therefore, I believe, a better chance for involvement.
The play, by Mark Wheeller, is about a lad called Dan Nolan who went missing on a night-fishing trip in the Southampton area on Jan 1st 2002. It struck me that we would have to decide in which year we would set the play - are we telling the story now or are we telling the story when the play was written? The nature of the narative would be amended by time. This is yet to be discovered.
There is an appendix which keeps the sense of loss alive whilst, poignantly, allowing the audience and the characters to laugh - to have hope for the future. Well done Mr. Wheeller.

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Midday: Just waiting for Jeni to come home from the shops and then we can take the dog (Jackson) out for a walk. Might meet my mate Jack (and Anne, his wife) for coffee later - might not. He's a bit fluid, is Jack. We played nine holes yesterday - he won, again. The less said about that the better.
Then it's as normal a weekend as this disfunctional family can manage before I start my first day on the Dan Nolan play at Hornchurch on Monday. Looking forward to it!
My mind is full of thoughts about this flippin' blogsite - design, content, uses, etc. - I think I'll have to reorganize the 'look' of the blogsite - inject a little excitement, with a little help from my friend, Ian Fenn.

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