On Sunday, August 29,  Russell and myself listened to Lauren read the workshop script. This gave us an even closer look at the narrative, characters and movement.

 

The key here was to go through it page by page with a director's eye. By that I mean what can Bella be doing as she is telling her story and how can she get from point A to point B on stage while narrating the lines and acting out what she is doing? It was a long session!

 

 As a writer you can't be too precious about your words; the bottom line is that they serve the action, narrative and character. If anything is repetitive or cumbersome then it has to go.

 

Some lines were cut but there were places where we actually needed to add lines either to enhance and bolster a specific aspect of the drama, a character or to provide continuity.

 

On August 30,  I took Russell, who lives in Brighton, to see - for the first time - the geographical delights of Northumberland. A drive to Bamburgh Castle and the scenic road home via Seahouses, Walkworth and Amble gave us time to talk about life in general and the script, although in Amble it hoyed it down and we had to run past drenched and disheartened staycation tourists eating their fish and chips in the rain as we rushed back to the car. Welcome to the volatile North East weather, Russell! 

 

In between talking about football (Croyden-born Russell is a Crystal Palace fan), politics, theatre and laughing at our collective stories, we threw in ideas about Wor Bella, which were further dissected and discussed at the pub in the evening. 

 

Working with actors you personally like, respect and trust to deliver the goods is hugely important but working with a director you trust implicitly is essential for a playwright. Both parties have to totally believe in the play and what you are creating. 

 

Having first met and worked together on a play Trevor (Wood) and I wrote called Maggie's End for its London run in April 2009, when Russell, a top actor, played a smug New Labour Home Secretary, we have become close friends and trusting collaborators. I think that tight relationship is reflected in the strength and high quality of the work we produce. 

 

The excellent reviews of these plays and the standing ovations in the North East, Northern Ireland and London are indicative of this - also of the quality of the actors, technicians and whole Wisecrack team. 

 

Since the days of Maggie's End at the 450-seat Shaw Theatre (off London's West End), Russell has already directed four of my solo plays - The Accidental Activist (2015) - in which he also acted; Hadaway Harry (2015, 2017); The Great Joe Wilson (2018); and Carrying David (2019 and 2021). The three latter plays comprise my book Geordie Plays (Volume 1). He also directed the first Joe Wilson Night I produced in 2017.

 

Wor Bella will be Russell and my fifth full play together and by now we know each other's style, humour - and foibles! His genius of seeing a play on paper and knowing how the scenes link together and will play out is just incredible. 

 

So on Tuesday, August 31, with scripts and pens in hand, Russell and I formally discussed further edits and a few days later I produced another re-write. This time it was 14,000 words, approximately 45 minutes each way. Spot on!

 

This is what we call the "rehearsal script" - the script that will be used in rehearsals in March and in the book of the script that will be printed as an educational tool for the project.

 

Just as an aside, in an effort to "make a name" for  themselves I've heard stories of how some directors fancy themselves as writers - and want huge re-writes from the playwright. Some of these re-writes change the tone and style of the play from its original intention. To me, this would be totally unacceptable. It begs the question why the director (paid to direct a specific play, not co-write) took the job in the first place! Hardly a team player.   

 

Russell's outlook and directorial motivation is to put my vision on stage by adding his unique touch. That's why when we have agreed on a rehearsal script I only attend rehearsals for the initial read through, take any questions and then let the director, the cast and technical team get on with the business of creating a fantastic play that is true to my original vision but with their invaluable input. 

 

Russell is the type of director who listens intently to ideas by the cast and encourages them to touch depths in their acting they have never before reached, or even thought they were capable of reaching - but the final decision always rests with him. It has to be that way; good plays can't be directed by a committee or spoilt by a gobby, self-important actor - the polar opposite of proper teamwork,  whereby actors are allowed freedom, encouraged to suggest ideas and try new things. 

 

During rehearsals there will be tweaks to the script when Russell and Lauren actually start to act it out (in theatre parlance, "blocking the play"). It may even need the odd line moved around so the dialogue and action flows easier, or a line just doesn't work, or a word changed here and there - depending on the beat of the piece - or I might be asked to write a new line so that Bella can move from one dramatic action to another but, by and large, our rehearsal script is the final script. 

 

Incidentally, any changes recorded on the rehearsal script will be added/amended so that we are left with the "post-show script". That will be the  starting point for the next run of the show - but that is in the future. 

 

If I'm needed for anything during rehearsals I'll pop in  - or if I'm passing their rehearsal space I'll briefly say hello but I consciously avoid rehearsals - they bore me rigid!

 

The play is put together at a different tempo and pace each day, and while the actors tend to be good friends of mine, having the writer there is perhaps intimidating and could mean them holding back from offering ideas and suggestions. That reticence is the last thing I want, so I make myself scarce. Truth is, I have lots of other important things to do. 

 

In reality, rehearsals are a process between cast and director so my brief time there is usually spent eating biscuits and cake - another incentive not to stick around, this time for health reasons. 

 

I do, however, eagerly await the crack every night from Russell, usually over a pint. I always marvel at his invention, initiative and enthusiasm. Of course, not everything goes smoothly and we iron out problems together. 

 

As I have explained, preparation is the key to a successful show. I've heard horror stories of the script actually being re-written during rehearsals by the writer - and in some cases the cast! - which doesn't make for a pleasant experience for those involved nor does it generally make the production any good. Although, in the cinema world Casablanca is a very rare exception.

 

All this stems from lack of preparation, and truth be told, a lack of professionalism. This shoddiness isn't fair on the ticket-buying public who spend their hard-earned money to come to shows and are entitled to see a top-professional production. People may come once to see an under par show but there won't be great word of mouth - by far the best marketing tool to advertise a show. 

 

Like life, everything stems from the top ie leadership. When there is incompetence or weakness at the top, everyone else suffers. This reinforces the importance of the writer/director bond when it comes to theatre.

 

It's now early September 2021 and my personal rehearsal script will lay dormant for six months until rehearsals start. I won't hear it again until the read through on the first day of rehearsals. In that way it's easier to come to it with an more objective perspective. It's also a huge relief that my writing job is almost done - the onus is now on the cast and director to work together to produce the quality of work that will continue the rave reviews and standing ovations of the other plays. 

 

Of course, I could keep looking at the script every day - tweaking, tweaking and tweaking some more -  but the old adage is that you don't finish a script, you abandon it. Ask any writer and they'll tell you, if you don't take a break, a script will drive you mad!

 

Rehearsals for Wor Bella start in early March, 2022. The countdown has begun!

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Learning Lessons of Our History

By Lynn Gibson, Co-Founder, Women's Banner Group

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The Women's Banner Group (WBG) was founded in November 2017 to gain recognition for the women of the Durham Coalfield that history has forgotten.

We campaign at both the Durham Miners' Gala and beyond.  

The WBG stands up for women's rights, human rights, dignity at work, period dignity, the right to choose, body autonomy, body neutrality, LGBTQI+ rights, refugees and asylum seekers.

We also stand against intolerance in all its forms: racism, homophobia, sexism, ageism, misogyny, greedy capitalism and selfishness.

The WBG believes in educating young people in debate and that their voices matter, and that they should be seen and heard, that all people should be encouraged to learn their own history and learn lessons from that.

We firmly believe women's histories should not only be remembered but taught and recorded. This and so much more. We don't just make banners!
Wor Bella appeals to the WBG because one of our founding reasons was to gain recognition for the historically important women of the Durham Coalfield who history has forgotten. 

Sadly we are becoming more and more aware of just how much working class women’s achievements have been missed out of recorded history. 

The way the heroic munitionettes were treated was shocking: from playing football to crowds of tens of thousands during WW1 (the 1918 final in Middlesbrough attracted over 22,000 spectators) to an FA initiated ban in 1921 that disallowed women's football games from taking place on the grounds used by its member clubs. That ban remained in effect until July 1971.  

We are delighted Ed has written a play about this and that the incredible efforts of the millions of women who stepped into male roles in the munitions factory during WW1 and played football to crowds of thousands (to raise money for wartime charities) is being remembered.

If you are interested in finding out more about the Women's Banner Group please contact us via our website https://womensbannergroup.org.uk/