Dramaturgy Shy: Katy Baird @ Edfringe 2017

Disco music, pop culture and free chips... Webcam modelling, drug dealing and flipping burgers: Katy Baird explores what we are and aren’t willing to do for money.  A show about work – the best jobs, the worst jobs, and everything in between.

Some people work to earn money, some work to feel fulfilled, some people don’t work at all and some people run away and join the circus… Join Glasgow-born, London-based artist and activist  Katy Baird at Summerhall (Venue 26), one of the Edinburgh Fringe’s most exciting venues, for a very personal story looking at the ups and downs of what it means to serve you – the great British public. 

For the last twenty years, Katy has been at the frontline of the customer service industry. From getting you high to supersizing your whopper meal, she has done everything she can to make you happy.

Workshy is a unique, vulnerable, often hilarious autobiographical portrayal of the relationship between labour, class and aspiration.

What was the inspiration for this performance?

This performance is about work and the things we do for money. It is my own personal story about the jobs I have done and the various ways – both illegal and illegal - that I have made ends meet. 

In the show I talk about working for over a decade in those service-sector jobs that we all engage with but often don’t even notice. When you go for dinner, when you travel or when you go out on a Saturday night there is always someone there serving you and for a long time that someone was me! In fact, it still is me but I am just doing it in a much more visible way now. 

I also talk about the way we make money below the radar – all the hustling to get by when you just cant face serving people 8 hours a day for little thanks and little money. Those times when what you need more than anything is to have some agency and just be someone for a change.

I was inspired to make this show because I feel that voices like mine are not heard enough on stage. It is real life I am talking about - my life, my world and my story. This is not a performance written by someone about what they think this life is like and performed by actors from a completely different background pretending to have had these experiences. It is not bittersweet, its not a coming-of-age drama where we realise that everything will be fine in the end. 

It is confrontational, unapologetic and most importantly funny – cause life can be all these things sometimes! 

Is performance still a good space for the public discussion of ideas? 

Well I have to say a big YES to this otherwise why would I do it? At the moment it feels more important than ever. So much of our lives are virtual and online now that we need and crave space to congregate, to think, to have a dialogue. 

Creating a dialogue is particularly important to me and I create the space in Workshy to hear from my audience – I ask them about their life and their aspirations directly. I also intentionally create a moment where we can all come together and chat about the ideas brought up within the show informally and with a drink. This for me is super important because then we can talk and share experiences and thoughts together.  

It is not the job of performance to tell us what to think. Its function is to pose questions and ideas in order to enable us to possibly think and feel about things in a different way. 

How did you become interested in making performance?

I was in the right place at the right time! When I was 26 I made the decision to go back to school and began an Access to University Course at Stow College in my hometown of Glasgow. This led to a degree in Sociology and Theatre at Glasgow University, which I began in 2003. The early noughties were an amazing time for performance in Glasgow.

The annual National Review of Live Art festival was in full force bringing the most political and influential artists working in live performance to Glasgow every single year! Back then both the Tramway and CCA also had fantastic performance programmes and I was exposed, for the first time, to the work of Forced Entertainment, Campo, Gob Squad, Lois Weaver and Annie Sprinkle to name a few. 

Not forgetting the wonderful Arches – a performance space that supported Glasgow based artists like myself, showing my first ever performance, as well as more established UK and international artists and was such an important part of the performance ecology in Glasgow. This was an incredibly exciting time where it felt like anything was possible and I became inspired to make-work and to be part of this weird and wonderful community of artists. 

KATY BAIRD - Workshy from Pacitti Company on Vimeo.

Is there any particular approach to the making of the show?

This is my first full length theatre show and it took me four years to make.  I started preforming first drafts and small ideas and slowly worked on developing it whilst also working full time in office administration so it was a stop and start kind of process. I asked for help where I could and I watched a lot of performances and did a lot of research into what I wanted to talk about. It was a total labour of love for a long time but the hard work has been work it as it led to an amazing UK and international tour and now Edinburgh.  

Does the show fit with your usual productions?

I would suggest that Workshy plays with the conventions of theatre but it is most definitely a theatre show, this is a departure from my other artistic work which is often body based and and performed in Live Art Festivals or club contexts. 

With Workshy I wanted to reach a new and different audience this is why I am so excited about preforming at Summerhall and the Fringe in general. 

What do you hope that the audience will experience?

First and foremost I hope that they will laugh and have fun. Although we will all have just met I try to make it feel like we are all down the pub together having a few drinks and maybe doing that classic thing of disclosing a little to much information with people you have just met in a social situation.  

What strategies did you consider towards shaping this audience experience?

I use the same strategies I learned whilst selling drugs - always be nice, always treat everyone like an old friend and most importantly always make sure you deliver a product of very high quality! 

In this new personal, political performance, Katy puts herself out there one more time to serve you, giving you everything you want with a little help from some disco classics, drinks from Katy’s Bar, a mid-show delivery of free chips for everyone in the audience, and of course, plenty of ketchup. At the Edinburgh Fringe for the first time following a successful UK tour, including shows at the Folkestone Fringe, IBT Bristol International Festival, and in Hamburg, Germany.

“Workshy is a potted history of my employment life,” says Katy. “Over the last twenty years I have spent my time working in Butlins, Burger King, Wetherspoons, as a drug-dealer, as a kitchen porter, on the dole, on the sick, in nightclubs, as a sex-webcam ‘model’ and most recently as an artist and Arts Administrator. 

Workshy is a performance to be enjoyed and to be consumed; it is an opportunity to be able to spend time with new people, to see a bit of your life on stage, and to consider how we see and think of people in relation to their working environment. It’s about going behind the headlines and challenging the negative media narratives.” 

Unflinching critique of austerity Britain; savage class satire; a night down the pub... all that and a bag of chips!

Summerhall – Anatomy Lecture Theatre | 2-27 August, 21.10 (NOT 3rd, 9th, 16th, 21st)

£9 / £7 / £5 | 75 MINS | 18+ (CONTAINS NUDITY, ALCOHOL SERVED) 

Katy Baird is a Glasgow born, London-based artist and activist who often finds herself in uncomfortable situations of her own making. Her solo work is intimate and autobiographical, reflecting on gender, class and sexuality. She has performed at Live Art festivals and venues across the UK as well as squat parties, clubs and raves.

Deviser and performer: Katy Baird
Production Manager & Lights: Patricia Roldan-Polo
Producer: Emma Beverley

Listings information:

Summerhall (Venue 26) – Anatomy Lecture Theatre | 2-27 August, 21.10 | (No show on 3rd, 9th, 16th & 21st August)
Tickets £9/£7/£5 | 75 mins | 18+ (Contains nudity, alcohol served)

Buried Dramaturgy: Colla Voce @ Edfringe 2017

Buried: A New Musical

by Tom Williams and Cordelia O’Driscoll

‘I don’t think I’ve ever met another me before.’

He’s a shy, seemingly-average young professional. She’s a sarcastic thrill-seeker. After matching on an online dating service, this young and fun-loving couple form a unique relationship when they discover something special they have in common: they’re both serial killers.

What was the inspiration for this performance?

Our writer and director, Tom Williams, has recently finished studying Psychology at university, where he became interested in the discussion of how we view people with personality disorders. He saw how this topic was exacerbated when examining those who commit violent crimes, especially serial offenders, and asking whether someone who is psychologically devoid of morality can be considered responsible for their actions. 

After discussing this idea with Cordelia O’Driscoll, our composer, it occurred to them both that musical theatre would be an interesting medium to explore this topic - it’s been a very collaborative process between the two of them.

Is performance still a good space for the public discussion of ideas?

Absolutely - the theatre is definitely still a shared experience and viewing a performance can open up a discussion between audience members about what they are seeing on stage. We hope that Buried may open up a discussion of the ways we view psychopathy; we aim to ask these questions, without necessarily providing an answer, as we think it’s really important for the audience to make up their own minds.

How did you become interested in making performance?

For most of us, our university experiences have been a huge part of why we perform. Most of the members of Colla Voce Theatre have been heavily involved in the performance societies at the University of Sheffield, which is where a lot of us met. 

The societies have been great in letting people grow in performance and writing, and offering a lot of opportunities.

Is there any particular approach to the making of the show?

A lot of the process has been making sure that the show’s tone (between being a black comedy-musical, but also a show about murderers) remains consistent. Discussing such a heavy topic has definitely been challenging, but that’s why they decided that a musical would be the best way to explore such a dark, confusing and sensitive subject, allowing the heaviness of the content to be lightened with song and black comedy.

Does the show fit with your usual productions?

As a company, this is our first completely original piece of writing (and our first production outside of our hometown of Sheffield!), but it fits very well into the style of our previous shows. Our company performs musical theatre with a fresh take, showcasing the unusual, the forgotten, and the undiscovered. In particular, we specialise in performing small-scale musical theatre in unorthodox spaces. All of these things apply to Buried, and we can’t wait to share it with a new audience.

What do you hope that the audience will experience?

Overall, Buried’s purpose is to entertain. We hope that our audience will have a good time, whether that’ll be because they most enjoy the comedy, the music, or the questions the show raises about psychopathy and morality.

What strategies did you consider towards shaping this audience experience?

To prevent the show from becoming too heavy, the light, folk style music and the comedy contrasts with the darkness of the subject matter. Despite the main characters adopting charming, likeable, and exciting personalities, they are still serial killers, creating a moral conflict that forces the audience to consider the line between good and evil.

Buried: A New Musical tells the story of these exceptional

characters as they join forces, setting out on a trail of deception and murder whilst simultaneously attempting to navigate their way through the world of normal, adult relationships. Combining a beautiful, folk-inspired score and a bitingly funny script, this new musical puts a bloodthirsty spin on the traditional rom-com formula, examining the world of relationships when pushed to its extremes.

As a new, emerging theatre group, Colla Voce Theatre has enjoyed great success in the company’s hometown of Sheffield. They now premiere their first piece of original writing: Buried: A New Musical written by Tom Williams and Cordelia O’Driscoll.

The company performs musical theatre with a fresh take, showcasing the unusual, the forgotten and the undiscovered. Whether they are producing stories that rarely get told, or stories that have never been told before, Colla Voce Theatre attempts to challenge the conceptions of what musical theatre can be

Interviewing Dramaturgy: Nick Card @ Edfringe 2017

The Interview

Newbury Dramatic Society

3.05pm 7-12 August 2017, theSpaceUK @ Surgeons’ Hall, Venue 53, Nicholson St. Edinburgh EH8 9DW.

What’s the worst interview you’ve ever had?

The play tells the story of

a corrupt businessman who thinks he’s found the perfect job; all he needs to do is to get through the interview, and hope that his deceitful & unscrupulous past doesn’t catch up with him. It’s a dark and intense drama full of unexpected twists & turns.

What was the inspiration for this performance?

There were a few things that inspired The Interview.  The initial idea came to me several years ago when I attended a job interview.  Whilst I was waiting to be called in it occurred to me that potentially you are in a very vulnerable position; you are in an alien environment talking to strangers who you desperately want to impress.  

I then contemplated how awful it would be if the interviewer(s) was to suddenly turn on you and subject you to something traumatic...

That idea lay dormant for a few years but then shortly after moving into my new flat I had a major problem with my heating and whilst shivering in my bed on a cold winter night I remembered it again.  I was in an extremely bad mood and in the following few days I vented my anger by writing a short story about a corrupt businessman who is subjected to a harrowing interview; this businessman basically became the target for my wrath.   

The short story was very well received and it went onto to become a play.

The very intense style of the production was largely influenced by the film  'Phone Booth' and the TV drama '24'.  Whereas the narrative, which includes a number of twists and turns, was at least partly inspired by 'Sleuth' - I've watched both the play and the film and it did make quite an impression on me.

Is performance still a good space for the public discussion of ideas? 

Absolutely.  When a performance is done well and the audience suspends their disbelief then it can be an excellent way to bring up issues and potentially give understanding to different viewpoints and experiences.   

How did you become interested in making performance?

Through my media education at college and university.  Although it never became my career I have always devoted a lot of time to creative projects since then.

Is there any particular approach to the making of the show?

It is a traditional rehearsal process of blocking out moves and then acting out sequences in a room.  The room is actually the lounge/diner of my flat and using gaffer tape we lay out the dimensions (or virtually) of the stage so that we can accommodate the space we will have in Edinburgh which is very small. 

I try to strike a balance between giving the actors the freedom to express themselves and explore their ideas but at the same time keeping them on track with the story and characters; structure without a straitjacket. 

Does the show fit with your usual productions?

Yes and no.  It does fit with my usual productions in as much that it is a small cast who get very emotional.  However,  the overall narrative is a departure from my previous plays as it involves a lot more twists and a totally unpredictable ending.

What do you hope that the audience will experience?

An emotional rollercoaster ride where they are genuinely surprised and shocked: we hope it will provide plenty of food for thought. 

What strategies did you consider towards shaping this audience experience?

From the point of view of the writing/production process, we tried to provide just enough information to set up the twists of the play without giving the game away too early.  From the marketing side we've been careful not to give spoilers: for the promotional images we instructed our photographer to keep certain props out of the frame...   

“The Interview” premiered at

Newbury’s AceSpace 2016 and was a critical and commercial success. For Edinburgh, it has been revised and updated, with even more surprises.

This is the first time that local theatre group Newbury Dramatic Society has taken a production to the Edinburgh Festival Fringe. Written and directed by West Berkshire based playwright Nick Card, the Interview features an amateur cast, led by American actor Stephen Holcomb, all making their Edinburgh Fringe debuts.

Supported by funding from Greenham Trust.

• Nick Card is an established author, poet and playwright based in Newbury, Berkshire. He took his play "A Grave Reunion" to the Edinburgh Fringe in 2012.
• Producer Paul Strickland and writer/director Nick Card are available for interviews.
• Newbury Dramatic Society was established in 1962 and aims to provide opportunities for people in the West Berkshire area to participate in the development and performance of drama to a high standard. Performances are staged both in established venues and within the community.
• Greenham Trust aims to support and promote any charitable purpose for the benefit of the inhabitants of West Berkshire and the neighbouring wards of North Hampshire. 

The Best Dramaturgy Ever: Delicious Theatre @ Edfringe 2017

Delicious Theatre presents their debut production

‘The Best Play Ever’

An original comedy about friendship, creativity and maverick pie detectives.

theSpace on North Bridge (Venue 36)

North Bridge, Edinburgh, EH1 1SD

21^st-26^th August, 22:05 (1 hour)

Deep in the medieval dungeons of the Royal Palace, two strangers dwell. The Crown Polisher and the Horn Blower have been framed for the murder of Eric the Court Jester and have been condemned by King Louis to write the best play ever or face execution by royal blade. 

Over the course of their imprisonment, the two are forced to collaborate, and question why they are in prison in the first place. Who knows? Maybe they even write a play...

What was the inspiration for this performance?

Joe Large and Lucio Gray conceived the idea behind this play about eight months before they approached me to direct it and hearing about how exactly they came up with it fed a lot in to how we went about putting it on to the stage.

In the early summer of 2016, Joe and Lucio had watched a lot of serious student theatre and thought that perhaps everyone could do with a good laugh to cleanse their theatrical pallets. And so – just like the maverick pie detectives in the play – they decided to be mavericks and write something very silly, set in a pseudo-medieval land about the struggles of writing good drama.

        

                                            

Most of their inspiration came from trying to do something a bit different, a bit kooky and a bit silly. When they first handed me the script I could draw parallels between duos like Fry and Laurie and Blackadder and Baldrick, with a little bit of Rosencrantz and Guildenstern existentialism sprinkled on top for good measure.

It’s a remarkable script to read off the page – it’s gloriously tightly wrought comedy – and upon my first read, it was very clear that this play had to be performed by the writers. And so the casting decision was made and the process begun.

Is performance still a good space for the public discussion of ideas?

Yes, absolutely! I believe that theatre has always been a platform to discuss ideas, and performance can expose these ideas to a multitude of people. Even a fun, escapist comedy such as The Best Play Ever values the ideas of friendship, persistence and laughter in the face of adversity. We hope that the fond attachment that our audiences will develop towards our protagonists will open up discussions about these ideas.

The discussion of serious, political ideas and issues in theatre is as fundamentally important as it always has been. Especially currently in a society which seems increasingly hostile and divided, theatre is offering people a chance to express themselves creatively. But we believe that there’s still a place for escapist, fun comedy like The Best Play Ever. Comedy is very important – we must laugh in the dark every now and then. 

How did you become interested in making performance?

I’ve always been very interested in the relationship between literature and theatre, the process of bringing things page to stage and how a deep analysis of the text can fuel interpretation. I originally approached theatre as a performer, but after having had some opportunities to direct at University, I found that this was where my true interest in theatre lies. Making performance in this way enabled me to realise on a stage my own interpretations of works of text, which I found to be deeply interesting and rewarding.

Is there a particular approach to the making of the show?

Yes – the approach to this show has been massively collaborative and experimental. The main difference between this show and any other that I have done has been the fact that I am working so closely with the writers. This has meant that many aspects of the show have been massively collaborative. In this sense, we have been able to mould the show in to exactly what we like it to be from doing things like redrafts during rehearsals, trying out new lines and seeing how far we can push the comedy. 

Does the show fit with your usual productions?

This is our first production with Delicious Theatre, and whilst we hope to create a multitude of very different productions in the future and with a blend of different people to create shows, we hope that The Best Play Ever will fit very well in its originality and ambition.

As a director, the show very much fits with my usual productions. I am greatly interested in directing comedy and specifically plays of the farce genre. Most recently I have directed comedy musical Guys and Dolls, and prior to that two farces of my own writing, Election Day (about a student election) and Foul Play (about sixth formers attempting to perform twelfth night). The Best Play Ever has an excellent farcical quality to it – especially in the middle section – which I have particularly enjoyed working with Lucio and Joe on. Perhaps one day I will segue away from comedy but for now I can’t resist it…

What do you hope that the audience will experience?

Fundamentally we hope our audiences will have a really enjoyable hour of escapism and come away feeling a sense of real fondness for the silly characters that they’ve just seen on the stage. 

What strategies did you consider towards shaping this audience experience?

In the rehearsal process, considering our audiences were some of the main discussions we had surrounding the script. Because it is a comedy so dependent on audience response, we had to have a small rewrite in between our three performance locations (Manchester, Surrey and Edinburgh) which considered venue changes and target audiences. A way in which we have shaped our audience experience was through improvisation, both in rehearsals and on stage, which kept the performance very fresh and new each night.​​​​​​​​​​​

Delicious Theatre is an exciting new company formed by a group of experienced young theatre makers based in Manchester. They aim to create innovative, experimental, and accessible work, whilst collaborating with artists of all disciplines.

Director: Emily Oulton is a National Operatic and Dramatic Association Award winning director.

Producers: Sophie Graci and Katie O’Toole are experienced comedy and theatre producers within University of Manchester Drama Society and Durham Student Theatre respectively.

Writer/Performer: Lucio Gray is a Manchester In-Fringe Theatre Award-nominated writer, performer and musician.

Writer/Performer: Joe Large is a writer/performer who trained with the National Youth Theatre.

Performer: Charlie Diver is one of the leading actors in the University of Manchester Drama Society, having featured prominently in MIFTA winning play Lion Man.

Old Dramaturgy: Christian Barry @ Edfringe 2017

OLD STOCK: A REFUGEE LOVE STORY

Playwright: Hannah Moscovitch

Director: Christian Barry

Songs by: Ben Caplan & Christian Barry

Old Stock: A Refugee Love Story is a humourously dark folktale woven together with a high-energy concert.

This genre-bending music-theatre hybrid starring Klezmer-folk sensation Ben Caplan is inspired by the true stories of two Jewish Romanian refugees coming to Canada in 1908.

It's about how to love after being broken by the horrors of war. It's about refugees who get out before it's too late, and those who get out after it's too late. And it's about looking into the eyes of God.

From August 5-27, Old Stock: A Refugee Love Story is playing at Canada Hub (part of the Summerhall program), every night at 9:30PM, except for Mondays.

What was the inspiration for this performance?

Old Stock: A Refugee Love Story is a hybrid, grown form 3 unique seeds. First, I was a fan of Ben Caplan. He is an electric performer and a unique talent. I wanted to bring Ben’s power and presence into the theatre. Second, there was a burgeoning international refugee crisis and the Canadian gatekeepers (namely our former Prime Minister) were being shitty. 

The politics of fear and division were being employed in a sad attempt to win an election while children were drowning at sea. Third, my wife, Hannah Moscovitch discovered that her great grandparents had fled persecution in Romania and made their way to Canada by way of Pier 21 in Halifax, NS.

Is performance still a good space for

the public discussion of ideas?

Yes.

How did you become interested in making performance?

Michael Jackson. When Thriller hit the shelves in Canada, I was lucky enough to have two older siblings with great taste in music. I spent hours upon hours, nose to nose with the hi-fi stereo, soaking up MJ’s brilliance. 

I think that record is largely responsible for the early-stage development of several of my performative instincts: Choreography, singing, rhythm, and a respect for performers that embody a whole-hearted wild abandon. MJ and Ben Caplan have that particular trait in common. Increasingly, I find myself making shows with professional musicians. I think Thriller is a big part of why that is.

Is there any particular approach to the making of the show?

Our approach in making this show was organic and practical. Ben and I wrote songs, while Hannah researched and unearthed her Paternal family’s history. We knew we were making a concert-theatre hybrid more so than a “musical”. However, we took structural inspiration from the great musical Cabaret - where the songs in the “here and now” are always commenting on themes or exposing subtextual ideas that live in the scenes. 

We were nearly always working at the same time, but not always in the same room - Hannah would write, Ben and I would jam, then we’d come back together and smash things together. Eventually we had an albums-worth of songs, and a one-act play. Then it was my job to put it all together in an interesting package.

Does the show fit with your usual productions?

People who are familiar with my work will likely recognize some stylistic tendencies - minimalist staging, "Brechtian" structural devices, direct address narration - but ultimately, each new work is unique. There is no road map when making these shows. Form and content are developed in responses to one another. Image informs the development of text and vice versa. The most important thing is assembling a team of wonderful and inspiring collaborators, then I try to design a process that encourages generous risk-taking.

Usually it takes 3-4 years to amen a new 2b show, from inception to opening night. We dedicate a great deal of time and resource before we take our shows on the road.

What do you hope that the audience will experience?

I am hoping that people are able to put a human face on the refugee crisis. This is a show about Jews fleeing Romania for Canada in 1908. But it’s also about today. Here. It’s about people looking for a place to call home, and a place to build a life. And maybe fall in love.

What strategies did you consider towards shaping this audience experience?

See above.