What's happening at YTYT

All the shows to be performed in the Christmas Spectacular are in their final stages of rehearsal and I find myself in a state of perpetual frustration. So much of what we’re doing is almost brilliant…almost…so very close…so very, very close but ultimately, and sadly, it isn’t brilliant…yet… “So what is needed to make it perfect Sarah?” I hear you all enquire enthusiastically…well I’ll tell you… It’s employing all the things that we keep talking about in rehearsals and in notes… it’s making sure you know where and why and what and who at every moment…about knowing where you have come from and where you’re going…it’s about having a sense of the whole story and not just your part in it…and then in terms of your part its about knowing it inside out, back to front, from every angle and then making it look as if you’re discovering everything for the first time as if you’re living every moment…really living it… It’s about discipline and bravery, well directed energy…about being strong as a

Nathan Trout was the kind person that offered to do the blog this week and this time he didn't have to text it... It's been five months now since I last offered to be guest blogger and now with Christmas looming ever closer the production looks more like an actual play than it did then, it actually has a script now for one thing. The thing about a project like this has been the challenge of taking a classic like Dickens's A Christmas Carol and making it your own without ruining it, which I think we've managed to do in a number of ways including setting it in a timeless/modern setting rather than Victorian London and changing the characterisation of the ghosts. It's also been great fun and for me, whose not done a full Yew Tree production before, to start with devising scenes, to getting a script and casting to reading through to setting and re-setting scenes to running through the whole thing and finding ways to include all the newcomers. The point we're now

Alice with an extra features blog inspired by Say the Words Yew Tree's current Theatre in Education tour... On Friday I went to watch the final day of rehearsals for, “Say the Words.” A TIE piece on teenage pregnancy that Yew Tree have toured twice before. It was belting. I think the amount I enjoyed watching was a bit weird though. HA! It’s very rare I get to watch a piece of theatre again and again and I noticed lots of things. The issue is, I get asked to write a blog and I’m like, “Yeh!” Then I realise I don’t have a point and that I just noticed a lot…so I’m just hoping if I write what I saw then I’ll find a little conclusion, wish me luck. So, they were doing a “Stamina test,” and performed five times today which wouldn’t have been as impressive if they weren’t all so brilliant. Having been part of a TIE tour of a very different nature last year in college it was interesting to see a way of performing such a sensitive subject only exploring the aftermath. This obviously req

Josh Farrar ladies and gentlemen from the Crimson Company making his accomplished debut as a guest blogger... Last week my group (Crimson Company) moved to a new facility after being at the church for over two years. I was sad to be leaving such a large spacious building in which we have rehearsed and performed in for a long time, but i was also happy to be moving on, as the change was for the better. When I first entered our new space (The Orangery) I though it was quite small for a group our size, but it probably will take time to settle in after being in such a large space for so long. In the first week of us having a new area we told our news and played a few games as usual. But afterwards Gemma decided to split us off into groups and devise a small murder mystery piece. We all had loads of fun creating the small performances, and the end product of each groups were amazing. This week however we were split into groups again but we were asked to do a spoof of A Christmas Carol, whic

I’m sat here looking at a blank word document (somehow blank piece of paper has a much more romantic feel) with literally no idea what to write… There is too much…even if I was just thinking about today there would be much too much to write… Gold Christmas Carol rehearsals, a visit to Crimson’s new home at the Orangery and an afternoon with the Black Company working on The Musicians…all in the space of the one day… add to that Sapphire Company’s Beauty and the Beast rehearsal and a performance of Conversations and you see why it’s all just a bit much… as in to pick one thing…so erm… This isn’t good…the word document has been started but as yet no real point has been made…. Erm… Aha…I know… Having just sat here reflecting on the week for a good 5 minutes to see what stands out I’ve realised that a lot of the things that create the most vibrant memories are when actors have been entirely committed, in terms of the moment, the character, the process of making, creating, adapting and impro

Roberto Girgito delivering a blog for you fine people today. I had the pleasure of visiting the Sapphire Company that is run on a Monday night by Sarah, Danny and Callum. They are doing Beauty and the Beast which is very much in full swing. I got to do something that I haven’t really been able to do at a Youth Theatre session and that’s sit back and watch. I got to watch as young people were challenged; scenes were devised and revelations were made. The sheer amount of thoughts that were spawned from just 2 hours of Youth Theatre was incredible. The one image that has stuck with me was three girls who were all acting alongside each other. They did their scenes as asked of them, word perfect, matching blacks and very focused. The scene ended and everyone was given a minute to go over there lines and walk through their scenes. The scene they did was brilliant, performable and to a somewhat high standard. However Sarah called the three girls over and sat them down - ‘Here’s the next step’

So two rehearsals in the one day today for three different plays…not bad for a days work. Now being the artistic director of Yew Tree Youth Theatre has to be one of the most fulfilling jobs in the world but today seemed a particularly fulfilling one… The reason…and yes I do have a reason… is because today I have particularly enjoyed creating “moments” with my casts… It’s one of the most challenging and fascinating aspects of the craft of creating plays when you look at how a fraction of hesitation, a slightly different inflection in the voice, a minor alteration in the physicality or even more intriguing a change in an actors thought or intention can create something so significant on stage the memory of it will engage audiences in their present experience and stay with them in their future memories. So what moments did we create today…they are actually countless…the welcoming of the Cratchit family by Fred’s family and friends, the arrival of Marley…of The Ghost of Christmas Past, th

Hurray for Hannah...member of the Gold company...writing her first blog on the same day she signed up to audition for Sparkleshark...more than proud... This is my first ever Yew Tree blog, which is pretty bad really, considering I’ve been here for nearly 7 years ... not that I’ve got 7 years worth of stuff to talk about. This Saturday saw the continuation of rehearsals for A Christmas Carol. But it was especially special this week as there was the long anticipated arrival of Tiny Tim (woo!) in the form of Chris. After that cause for excitement we all got ready to do some hard work on the first half of the play. Even though it was amazing to start with, it was even more amazing by the end of the session. The set was on and off on time and everyone knew exactly where they were meant to be. Plus people were getting really confident with their roles, not using scripts and really getting into the characters. Also, the new people, who have only been at Yew Tree a few weeks/months are all AMA

This week in my blog at www.sarah-osborne.co.uk I was championing the values of journeys…of making sure a process is as cherished as its product…of the gifts available to us when we engage in a purposeful and authentic approach to developing the way we operate. It occurred to me today as I talked to a couple of the actors in A Christmas Carol that one of the things that has got harder for me as artistic director is signposting you, my youth theatre members, on the next stage of your own personal development. The reason is simple…there are so many of you in each group. When we younger – and smaller - it was so easy to work my way round the individuals in a group or cast with a word or two about their next challenge as in what they needed to develop to make the next step towards successful characterisation or the skills needed for a better performance. Now it often takes all my time and headspace making sure everyone is engaged and particularly at the moment that the productions are

Alice Proctor...veteran Yew Tree member of Gold and Black company... So on Monday I got roped into going to the Monday night group – well Sapphire, and it was cracking. Also I make it sound like a chore but it was mint to be back. There were loads of new faces and I tried to learn some names and panicked in cowboys and Indians but I coped haha. Also I felt really old especially when we were playing the bean game and Danny shouted ‘baked beans’ and we had to run into the middle of the room – there were tiny people close to being crushed. Aside from that Yew Tree is a wonderful and safe place honestly. Anywayyy, apart from the new faces, there were people who went when I was Cinderellering it up. I make it sound like it was years ago ha. Like some girls were wearing make-up that didn’t used to and there were some people who were stupidly tall and people whose hair was mentally long haha and people who I could hear in best and worst that used be really quiet. I sound like a proud Grandma.

This week at Yew Tree I had to compromise…specifically in my one rehearsal of the week… namely the first rehearsal of The Musicians with The Black Company …and compromise is not something I associate with the Black company…which, actually, is a good indication of how spoilt I am and in what high esteem I hold them... But compromise was what I was prepared for at the start of the day as I tried to get myself in a place where I could cope with it…I had key cast members absent and couldn’t get in the rehearsal space at the time I wanted to…I was starting rehearsals for a challenging play and our rehearsal time is severely limited…oh yes…compromise, at the start of that day was going on in abundance… Turned out it didn’t matter because I had a brilliant rehearsal…yes the whole process is always potentially jeopardised by individual cast member’s agendas that are consistently almost in play… but it doesn’t and didn’t matter because ultimately the rehearsal made me laugh and gasp and marvel