Another Great Year!

The time has come again to look back on another year and as we all prepare to mark the passing of 2007 and the dawning of 2008 I thought the time was right to look at 2007 from an STF angle.

It’s hard to believe that a year ago myself and the STF productions team were preparing for the auditions to find the company for ‘We Will Rock You’, in the run up to Christmas last year we were fielding calls from interested performers and accepting applications to join the company, indeed I remember spending my birthday on the phone to one very nervous young lady whom I had never met before and who was a little nervously needing some encouragement to audition, she needn’t have worried as she became one of our principal cast members who did an outstanding job.

It would be most difficult not to look back on 2007’s achievements from an STF point of view without focusing on WWRY. From a personal point of view this production has been the most fulfilling work I have ever been involved with for so many reasons, it was certainly one of those times where I was constantly pinching myself, such was my conviction that the whole experience was so incredible that I must have been dreaming it!

It is really only now that the scale of this achievement is finally sinking in, what everyone on the good ship STF achieved with this production is awe inspiring and we have been blessed with the finest talent available with far and away the most brilliant group of human beings I could have dreamed of, all being a part of something magical and hopefully a little ground breaking. More importantly though we raised a substantial amount of money for a very worthy cause. What I loved about the whole process was the sheer speed with which it was all put together, a three month prep once the rights were acquired, a month of auditions, then a rehearsal process of two and a half months before we hit the stage, bearing in mind that when we bought the rights we had no company, production team or more importantly…..funding! To everyone involved in any way, thank you all.

The year of course saw the normal exceptional high standards of amateur productions across Scotland and I know many of our members took part in many and enjoyed supporting others in their endeavours, there were so many highlights over the year, too many too mention here, but our congratulations to all companies across Scotland for your fantastic work which thrilled audiences up and down the country, It is lovely to be able to read the great feedback on these boards and we look forward to another year of great shows, from the list of what is coming up in 2008 across the regions my mouth is watering already and we at the STF look forward to getting out and about far more this year to support our colleagues across Scotland.

The forum itself has seen many changes this year as we start to expand our remit, after a lot of reflection on how we are evolving and the positive and supportive feedback I decided to revamp the site itself, a work which is still ongoing, and with the decision to keep STF as an ongoing charitable production company we have started to merge the forum and production arm into one umbrella body under the STF banner. There are many good causes that deserve our support, some theatre related, some not and as a consequence the STF will continue to provide support to others whenever and wherever it can.

I also hope that over the course of the New year the forum can strengthen it’s support of Amateur performing bodies across Scotland, the SCDA, NODA and many others do tireless work in looking after the interests of amateur performers across Scotland and we look forward to strengthening our ties to these organisations and supporting their great work, building a positive and forward thinking support to all participants in amateur entertainment.

The STF also are looking forward to supporting the efforts of The Alhambra Company to restore the Alhambra Theatre in Dunfermline to a fully operational live entertainment venue, this marvellous building has the capacity and will have the technical support to become one of the countries leading entertainment venues and will be able to stand alongside the countries existing prominent venues in offering the Scottish public a varied and high profile programme of entertainment as well as being a natural home to community groups and amateur performance companies. It is hoped to have phase one of the restoration complete and the theatre opened by spring 2009, over the course of the 2008 we will be supporting the Alhambra Trust by assisting with many live events over the year to raise awareness. I have been honoured to be asked by our good friend Paul Gudgin to take an active role in the Alhambra team and look forward to involving as many of you as would like to help in our various endeavours throughout the year. The spectacle that was The Alhambra Alive launch party and Open day weekend will live long in the memory and to have 250 people in The STF Inter Company Choir on stage singing three songs from ‘Les Miserables’ led by the incomparable Jeff Leyton was an incredible experience. Special mention too for the STF Alhambra ‘Big Sing’ at the close of the open day which reunited many of the cast from WWRY.

So that’s about it for one year, my personal thanks must go to all of my STF team who support me brilliantly and without whom there would be no site to maintain. Iain, David, Alan and Martin for all their great work, friendship and support over the last twelve months, a special thanks to Jason for being our tech Guru on the STF and for his continued sponsorship of the forum and for hosting us on his own servers. It really is hugely appreciated. My thanks also to the STF Marketing team and in particular to the WWRY Management and production team, Thank you all from the bottom of my heart for all your exceptional work. When do we do it again?

From all of the team to all members of The Forum, Thank you for your support and may we wish you all a Happy, prosperous and successful New Year.

Yours in Theatre,

Mark.

Friends and Forums

Well, as promised we have this week launched the long awaited revamp to the forum, albeit four months later than planned, however we have been delighted with the early response and the lovely new look and the compliments received by our members have made all the work worthwhile.

It’s been my aim since day one of the STF to foster a network that encourages people to work together for the benefit of all and we are well on the way to achieving that aim as we bid to consolidate the site and increase membership, the forum I feel can be a tool in bringing people together more and encouraging the realisation that we all, in our own cities and regions, can learn a lot from each other and can be a support for each others endeavours. I would like to think that in our own small way we have made a difference to companies and seen an increase, however small, in audience figures as we all make new friends and take a keen interest in each others productions. This is certainly the case in the central belt but we will now be making a massive effort over the next six months to increase our profile with amateur theatre lovers around the rest of Scotland. I plan to arrange more road trips to take the STF crew further out and about and we will be attending more productions in far flung areas so if you are mounting a show then get along to the forum and tell us about it and we’ll take it from there.

The other thing about the STF which has been a joy to see is exactly what I have touched on above, friendships. I have been delighted that so many have made new friends through these boards, friends in life are to be treasured and it has been lovely to see so many new relationships flourish as a result of online conversations. I myself have been stunned to realise the amount of new acquaintances I have made through my work on the forum and I can honestly say over the last nineteen months I have met people with whom I know I will enjoy a long and valued friendship with. It is my intention to arrange another STF meet and greet early in the New Year and this time I plan to do two or three before next summer in Glasgow, The Borders and the Highlands to encourage our members from those areas to enjoy a pleasant evening in good company with great conversation. There will shortly be additions to the STF Moderating staff and part of that remit will be to liaise with members in their own areas and encourage their involvement.

So it’s been a remarkably busy year for the forum and we still have just under two months until the end of it, there is plenty more life in the STF and myself and the gang look forward to your company over that time.

Take care,

Mark.

Gentlemen I implore you.................

Hi all,

It’s a remarkable thing you know, it’s been staring me in the face for so long but I’ve only just put two and two together and found the answer to one of the problems staring theatre companies in the face for all these years. How do you recruit men into your company?

When I started out in theatre not so long ago, as memory serves we had quite a few guys in companies and this never seemed a huge problem, they were along, they were enjoying themselves and having fun taking part in a hobby that found us guys in a position where we could make new friends and surprisingly find ourselves falling under the footlights spell. For those of us that came into the scene at that time that spell has lasted us from our late teenage years into middle age and indeed, many of my closest friends in amateur theatre land, bloke wise that is, hark right back to those halcyon days of the late eighties and early nineties, however in the naughties (I couldn’t resist…) we hear of more and more companies throughout the land complaining that they do not have enough men. I know from experience how true that is, many of the companies I have worked with find men a little thin on the ground so to sort the problem, you have to go right back to what other factors have contributed to the gradual disappearance of the strong male chorus over the years.

Okay, no rocket science involved here but I’m a guy so I think I understand the thought processes of my brothers out there, when I started out the likes of SKY TV was just in it’s infancy and they hadn’t yet splashed out Multi Millions on their Sports Coverage, Football was played on a Saturday afternoon and you were lucky if you had the rare treat of a live match on the Beeb or STV on a Wed night. (I actually remember having a portable TV on in the dressing room during a run of ‘Oklahoma’ to watch early European Football before it was re-named the Champions league!) So the footy as such wasn’t an important issue to the guys, we weren’t missing anything. Nowadays though, football is literally shown on any day of the week! Which means even those of us who are happy to do shows and love what we do still hanker after a nice Monday night or Sunday afternoon in front of the box with an ice cold beer, it’s a genetic thing which has been ingrained in our psyche and passed down from father to son through the generations so I have to fight the urge.

So……Solution one! Form a company that rehearses on Sunday and Friday evenings (Statistically less footy on those nights compared to the rest of the week) and have a bank of TV screens installed at the rehearsal venue with the sound on mute so no important goals are missed! Then book your show week to be on an international weekend so that there are no matches in the week leading up to it and just don’t do a matinee so the boys can enjoy an afternoon down the pub.

Sorted!

So what else puts off your average guy from coming along to join the fun, when I started out I wasn’t too keen on doing theatre if truth be told, I thought it was only for the Artsy types and the ladies, but I soon realised that there were a great many of the aforementioned fairer sex at these rehearsals and if you were willing to warble a bit then you could have some success in the courting stakes, surely a little bit of squirming around trying hopelessly to dance was worth the long term gains. I know dancing isn’t the most appealing thing to a lot of blokes but it is an art form in itself and you can quickly learn how to ‘Fake it’, ©Iain Hughes, so that you look like a Nureyev without putting in too much effort.

So, how about it gents, are you willing to give it a try? There are any number of groups in your area who would love to welcome you along and I guarantee you would have more fun than you would believe and make more friends than you could shake ref’s whistle at.

Don’t miss out.

Mark.

HSM and forum improvements

Hi folks,

So the summer rolls on, the weather so far hasn't been entirely kind to us however being brittle and hardy battle weary Scots we are used to the variance of weather extremes in what we call 'summer'.

First off a congratulations to my friend Malcy Burnett and all the Production team and cast of 'High School Musical' which has just completed it's run at the Edinburgh Playhouse. This was a two week educational experience for young performers run by 'Stage Experience' and the venue owners 'Live Nation' and the whole show was performed by a vert talented cast. A huge well done to everyone involved, the show was extremely well recieved and was a credit to you all. Personal congrats to Malcy for his direction and Matthew Masterson for his as always superlative lighting design. Superb work by all.

The forum is undergoing a revamp in a bigger way than I first intended and I am slaving away on a new front end user interface which I hope to be launching in the next few weeks. There will be loads of new features and hopefully the site will be better organised and offer more useful resources than previously. I will also be answering some of the questions I have been getting re the future of STF productions, we will not (contrary to reports) become a regular company but there are always possibilities. What those are will be revealed in the fullness of time but once we re launch things may become a little clearer.

Take care out there folks,

Mark.

STF The Movie!

Hi there folks,

The official STF Productions DVD of 'We Will Rock You' is now available for general order to the public at a cost of £15.00 This is a special edition 2 disc release for a limited period and features the show itself on Disc One plus a few special features on Disc 2 like A musical numbers section which you can select to run the Songs only plus an in depth look at rehearsals for the show and how things were put together. This is a once in a lifetime opportunity as SchoolsWillRockYou.com and QUEEN Productions have granted their blessing to us making this available for a limited period with all proceeds after costs going to The Sick Kids Friends Foundation, we are very grateful to them for this opportunity, it is almost unheard of for any rights holders to grant the right to film their productions in any way.

The Disc is fantastic and the sound and visual quality must be seen to be believed, if you would like to order a copy then please drop me a line (mark@scottishtheatreforum.com) or PM me and I will confirm the details for you. Please note this release is for a strictly limited period as we want to respect the Rightsholders property in every way and these will not be mass produced. Copies of the show will as part of our licence agreement be sent to the Rightsholders. A VHS Video is also available upon request.

Our thanks to Eilsel Productions for the fantastic footage. STF Company members please note, separate arrangements are in place for cast.

STF New features coming soon.

Hi there everyone,

As part of a range of improvements to the forum we will be updating the site soon and adding new features. I am really keen to keep improving the site and trying to encourage more new members to be a part of our community. We are particularly keen to find new members from other areas, Glasgow, The Borders, the Highlands and more, I intend to travel about to support more productions from around the country. We are all really keen to welcome even more debate from across Scotland and form friendships with our colleagues from far and wide.

I am working on some new developments to the site which fingers crossed will make their debut soon. With the growth of networking sites such as Facebook, My space and of course Bebo I am looking at ways we can integrate any of these you are a member of into your profiles. Hopefully this will encourage more and more people to share the STF experience around.

I am also developing a new feature which will, once completed, be a record of all amateur companies across Scotland, it will show their location, their current production, contacts, Fee details, rehearsal details and a host of other info to help those of you not involved in shows (and indeed those who are!) find a company close to you who would be happy to welcome you along, I see this as a great reference for the newcomers to Am Dram and also a way for companies to recruit new members. If you are involved in a company and would like to be featured then email me at mark@scottishtheatreforum.com

I am also really keen to get things rolling on our 'Featured Company of the month' section, I asked a while ago but you all must be really shy, we can do it two ways, either you can send me a load of info and photo's about your company and maybe even an article or you can drop me a line and I will arrange to get along to a rehearsal and take photo's and write an article, how about that? Don't be shy, drop me a line and we can get this rolling, it would be great publicity for your company and we would make a really big feature out of it.

Plenty more to come folks so keep spreading the STF word out there.

Regards,

Mark.

Close season? Not on the STF!

It's that time of year when most of us are looking out our beach towels and factor 50 Sun lotion and looking forward to feeling the warm suns rays beating off our pale Scottish skin, for some of us that will be a reality, the lucky few who will fly off to foreign climes to forget all their worries. Enjoy yourself, you deserve it! Chill out and relax so those batteries can be charged for the year ahead.

Traditionally for all of us obsessed with theatre we have now entered the close season, venues across Scotland have closed their doors to get on with essential maintenance, most amateur companies take at least the month of July off to allow members to enjoy what little summer we get with our families, the kids are on holiday (and the teachers, a lot of them connected to this forum!) for six or seven weeks (they don't know how lucky they have it! Grr..) some of us have used their Holidays up for the summer to put in the graft on shows that have now come down and some of us will be taking our loved ones away for a break, yet at the back of minds out there, is the feeling that we are being deprived of something.........

I have been amazed on speaking to friends and fellow thesps with regards to the dismay that some feel at the loss of any rehearsals during the next month or so. Dissapointment that they are being deprived of some vital social interaction. Now don't get me wrong, my friends aren't sad and lonely people with little else to do, no these are outgoing, popular social butterflies with a large social diary who would have plenty to occupy their time with or without Amateur theatre but i am continually surprised by the comments I hear........."Oh it's going to be so boring"..........."What will I do for all those weeks".........."Oh I just don't know what I'll do with myself"...........
Personally I will throughly enjoy doing as little as is humanly possible for the next few weeks, i can quite happily be a couch potato, it doesn't cause me any problems. maybe it has something to do with having finished a show which obviously pumped more adrenalin around collective bodies than your normal canned variety of production would do, maybe it is the slow realisation that the chance to do a show which rocks so hard it hurts doesn't come around too often. What show? I hear you ask........well........

Oh you know which one! The afterglow still burns bright, it's going to be a long, long, long time before I can get this one out of my head and i think that goes for a few others too, The lovely Scaramouche (**Show Girl**) is still floating around Planet Mall somewhere, bless her, and as for Killer Queen, well.........She is still rocking and that's all I'll say for now....(Directions to the Dominion....no problem )

But it's OK for them, they can sleep soundly in their beds at night, after the Holiday the tables turn and the remarkable Iain Hughes and the spectacular Carol Sinclair have to deal with me......and my attempts to dance!!!!!!! But that's for another blog I think, maybe halloween!

So back to the Forum, c'mon everyone, tell me what you want to see on the site and like a genie in a lamp I will do my best to provide it. get emailing or posting and tell the world about the friendliest online theatre community out there.

Did I say 1000 members by Christmas? I didn't did I?

Woops..........

Mark.