Wales team - don't miss this programme tonight (Sat 27)!

Research made simple - see it if you can, 5.55, BBC2 - Coalhouse.

Ideas for Wales

Hi all
Really looking forward to the big creative week next week - I've been looking at the work of Wales's most famous writer for some inspiration, which I'll draw on for the workshops. The keen ones among you might like to have a look at an online script of Under Milk Wood, which was written about Laugharne, not so very far away.

And we're off

Kia ora ra everybody

I've arrived back to Wellington from Nelson and i am amped. The scripts that Sarah and i have recieved from the crew in Nelson, are fitting together and we're on the right track to having a complete script. I can't wait to get the Uk scripts so we can play around with them and have a complete show. I just wanna say big ups to the Nelson crew! Keep up the good work, and Big ups to Sarah for being the bomb and making this happen for these dudes in Nelson.

Ka kite ano

Jamie

hey :)

hey im tash and only a couple of weeks ago me and a group of friends got involved with strangers in brynaman south wales. We found out about it from our drama teacher and since then we have been dedicated to the project! I've only been to 3 lessons now but im going to carry on going coz its a great way to meet new people and improve your acting. Peri rocks which makes it better coz shes nt borin lk sum drama teachers........ :s

We all saw a show called vortigens kingdom which was interesting and wer goin 2 cardiff soon 2 see the producers so lkin 4ward 2 tha!!!!! only 2 days till strangers!!!!

xXx

Congratulations Nelson!

Hi All

I just want to say a huge well done to the Nelson group for working so hard over the last few weeks getting ready for the rehearsed reading of our script yesterday. The scripts you've written are really interesting and the story we have developed very exciting. Big thanks for giving up your weekend to finish odds and ends and well done for the performance yesterday. Get blogging to let us all know how you think it went and everybody watch this space for some edited highlights of yesterday.

Slough and Wales groups I promise to get some more info up here about where our script is headed too. Also it would be great to find out more about what your doing and maybe see some of your writing on here soon. During our performance yesterday we shared some of the Slough poetry and your ideas for the refugee song which went down really well. We'll have a clip on here shortly.

Jamie (Nelson writer)-thanks for all the work this work on the script and for running some brilliant workshops across Nelson this week.

Talk more soon,

Sarah (Strangers Nelson)

Latest Updates :D

Hey Peri and everyone in the Strangers Project :D
Im still working on some ideas, but there not quite done yet so be patient and they'll be up soon :D Nearly done though.

Its all a bit weird over in the US at the moment - as you know I've started Highschool over here now, and Im now taking Health Class.
Well, this weekend I have to look after an electronic infant which acts just like a real baby and its driving me totally crazy! Its fine during the day but then when it gets to night it wont shut up! lol. Its evil!
Its also very weird because as I get to know people from around the area and at school they all realise that I have an accent so they're always asking me to say stuff, but they love the way I talk, and they want to know all about England!
And even though Im getting used to the area, its still really scary having to meet new people because you dont know anyone and Im no longer in my comfort zone - so Im not as confident as I used to be. :(

Oh yeah!!! I've finally signed up for a drama class!!! woohoo!
My first session was on Thursday evening and they all wanted to know about England and so I dropped the Strangers Project into the convo and they all find it really interesting and they are going to have a look at the blog!!! Yay

Anyhoo, thats the latest so far :D
Talk to you lot later :)
Mel
xx

RECAP...it gets you in the swing!

Hey everyone!

I've just spent the last 20 mins going through all the comments boxes and recapping over September posts as well. Its really good to recap as it reminds you how things are developing...and so far so good! The only way is up! And with the Slough half term next week and Wales half term the following week there's gonna be loads more stuff to blog soon!

Keep those comments going as well - its really cool when someone answers your post! lol

Hope everyone's having a funky weekend - Wales criw - get posting!!!! ;D

Peri

Hullooooooo

Hey I'm Becky, from the Nelson, NZ Strangers team thingy ... I'm sitting here with everyone at the moment and waiting for more people to arrive to do script development stuff so I thought I'd post my first blog thing on this! So hello! Here I am! I'll write more later when i have more time :)

Hi everyone!
My name is Comfrey and I'm part of the group working in New Zealand. I live in Nelson but I was born in Wales and it's been great working with new people and being able to talk about my ideas.
The scenes that I have been doing are the first day at school and the Sargent's diary entry(it's the same Sargent that is in Danielle's scene). The first day at school one is about a girl who gets into a fight at school and and gets detention, she has to do detention with the girl who she got into a fight with and they find out their not so different.The Sargent diary is about a Sargent who has a lot of trouble with his men.
By for now,
Comfrey

Hi from New Zealand! My name is Danielle. I'm 14 years old and i'm in the Strangers programme in the Nelson region. I was born in Nelson as with my parents and my nana. But my family has lived in New Zealand for several generations. This strangers programme has been really good for me, to meet new people and to try something new which is playwriting. I'm into music, i get singing and keyboard lessons. I think this is a great programme, linking in with Wales and Slough countries. It'll be cool to see how we all link up and our productions all fall together.

My scene that im writing is about a boy (Percivall) who has run away from the orphanage. He can't go back and he is desperatly looking for a place to stay. He finds a place to stay for one night. He is inside talking and looking around the husbands and wifes home (the husband is the Sargent from another scene) when he knocks over and breaks something precious of the Sargents. It becomes a bit awkard.
This scene basically shows that Percivall has nowhere to go and needs somewhere to stay since he's run away form the orphanage.

I'm really enjoying being part of Strangers and i can't wait to hear form everyone else and to see your scripts.
bye!!! :)

Jamie McCaskill

Tena koutou katoa

My name is Jamie McCaskill and i am the writer/facilitator of the Nelson branch of the Strangers project. We're going great guns here. I have recieved the first part of the scripts from the group we are working with here in nelson and they're primo. A great place for us to start. I'm in nelson at the moment with Sarah about to go out and do some recruiting and working with our crew as well. Loving the project. Loving Sarah and looking forward to collaborating with everyone where ever you are in the world.



Hei konei ra

Jamie McCaskill



PS picture coming

Greetings from Jon Blake

Hi to everyone - I'm Jon, writer attached to the Brynaman team. I'm mainly known as a writer for teens and children (my website's at www.jonblake.co.uk) - but I also write tv, radio and stage drama for adults, as well as a lot of songs (one of which has already been forced on some of the Brynaman regulars). Most of these are at Soundclick. Really looking forward to soon meeting the Amman valleyites I haven't met yet, as well as making contact with the writers and others in Slough and New Zealand (can't say I've been to NZ, but I have stayed in Slough!)

Hello!

Aha, ok.
So I'm Rosie. I'm quite a shy person, and I've joined the Strangers project in South Wales. It's perfect for me, because it's in Brynaman and just down the road from where I live. I'm quite nervous when I meet new people but it turned out that everyone was really easy to talk to and I made some new friends!! Yay! And I'm really looking forward now to future rehearsals, but I'm still really confused about how all the plays link up between us, New Zealand and Slough!
Anyway, I'll see the South Wales group on Tuesday,
Byeeee!! xx

NZ media bits

kia ora people!
I'm the person involved in the video and music bits in Nelson - other professionals will be contributing as well over the coming months, and my role initially is to film the documentary. I'm also helping with the development of the Slough song 'Refugees' which was recorded after a skype session. We hope to add our own ideas to the song this month.
The lovely photo was taken at Craters of The Moon near Lake Taupo/Rotorua last year, when it was cold and rainy!
I've been in Nelson for a year and lived in Reading for 12 years before that where, amongst other things, I worked with Real Time who are coordinating the video elements of the project. I work at The New Hub, a youth recreation centre and venue, where we hope the Nelson performance will take place in February.
In the next few days I hope to edit a sample of stuff I filmed at the last workshop and stick it up on the blog.
Looking forward to seeing how this all unfolds.

Cheers

Chris

OUR CINEMA

Sitting in the balacony
Friday night the seats are busy
Or its Orange Wednesdays
81 years of films and people
Young and old, boys and girls
Courting, romance, weddings, families
Miners saving all their pennies
We remember days gone by
And thank them for the memories

PLEASE ADD MORE VERSES THROUGH THE COMMENT BOX

Interviewing the ladies of Brynaman about the cinema in days gone by

On Friday night, 4 of the Wales Strangers, along with Peri and Julianna, went to meet with a local Welsh language ladies group called Merched y Wawr (ladies of the dawn). They are really like the WI (Women's Institute) and bake cakes and make lots of tea and come together socially on trips and events.

We went to film an interview with the ladies about their experiences of Brynaman Cinema as research for writing our Wales script and found out about some interesting characters and what went on in the back seats! ;D

The biggest change for young people of the village from the old days to today was that there was youth club every night of the week with different chapels where the young people of the town between 14 ad 25 years would gather in groups of over 100! There was no need out hang about on the streets as there was always something to do. These days the youth club is only open on Monday nights and is currently closed for refurbishment until the new year :(

People would queue for the cinema for hours and whilst one audience came out of the doors after "first house" the queuers for "second house" would be in their way!

Two very interesting characters were Betty Ben Tips the usherette and a man who worked there called Phil who was big and could neither speak nor hear and all the young people would behave when he was around...Peter is going to look at writing a scene about them over the weekend ;) Nice one Pete!

The ladies also confirmed that there used to be operas at the Public Hall and Owain's nan used to play the piano at those events.

Another interesting thing was that if you were over 15 you had to pay more to come in so the girls would spend ages trying to "dress young" to look 14 or under to save money. These days young people tend to dress up older to try to get into 15 certificate films! Very ironic don't you think?!

There was loads more info we discovered but this is just a taster to give you an idea.

Diolch i pawb yn y Merched y Wawr am yr atgofion a diolch i'r pobl ifanc sy wedi neud y cyfweliad yn digwydd.

LONELINESS MACHINE
5 people standing in a line across the front of the stage, facing upstage.
One girl sitting alone on the ground behind them facing the direction of the audience but looking down, humming a sad and lonely tune, and playing with her fingers on the ground drawing lines etc. She is seen by the audience through the other people’s legs as if they were jail bars or something similar.
The people in the line have their heads hanging down to begin with, but raise them up to be facing the back wall whenever they speak (so the audience knows who is speaking).
Person 1 I just don’t know what to do with myself since he left me for that other woman …
Person 2 I miss my mum … life just isn’t the same without her …
Person 3 Off to school again … there’s still no one I know there though …
Person 4 I don’t fit in here, I don’t know why I’m here … I’ll just keep laughing along with the rest of them anyway …
Person 5 I would like to have someone to love, but I just don’t have time … its just too much effort …
Person 1 Was I too boring? Too annoying? What did I do wrong that she did so right? I’ll always compare myself to her now …
Person 2 It’s just the little things that remind me of her, and every time I see that photo it makes me cry …
Person 3 No one will talk to me at lunch because of how I look … I’m just the same as them but they can’t see that …
Person 4 There’s no reason why I should feel like this – I should be having fun but it’s just all a bit superficial …
Person 5 Running a business like this gives me no time for any of the things I’d really like to be doing … I should be happy with all this money but I’m not …
For the next section now, each of the five people standing turns around as they speak to face straight out to the audience, addressing them. They start in a cannon in number order, each saying their bit about 3 – 4 times before stopping suddenly all at once as if they’ve just heard something.
Person 1 I know they won’t last long, I can see what she wants … he’ll regret it … he’ll come back … I wish he would come back … I miss him … what went wrong?
Person 2 The way she always told me to wear a hat in the sun … the cup of tea at 6.30 in the morning and stomping down the hall yelling ‘wake up’ … her enthusiasm about vegetables and healthy food … always helping with school stuff … the funeral …
Person 3 I wear the same clothes … I live on the same street … but I come from Zambia and they don’t know how to talk to me … I sit by myself … I eat by myself … I work by myself …

Person 4 The drinks are on the table … music is playing … everybody’s laughing, and I’m laughing, but it’s not funny … I don’t know why I can’t relate … it doesn’t make sense …
Person 5 I don’t know where to start … I’m distracted on the outside by everything I have to do … maybe I’m just too old for this … I’m out of practice, it’s been a while … where do I start?
Everyone is silent with their heads tilted slightly as if they’re listening to something. The only noise is the girl still sitting and humming behind them. She looks up suddenly at the audience and says
Girl I thought I was the only one.

First draft by Becky and Tammie Nelson Strangers Group

Fab!

Hi all,

Most of you won't know me, but i work for Communities First in the Upper Amman Valley and was in on the workshop this week with the Wales group. I just want to say that it was fab and i loved your ideas, especially about using a love spoon to symbolise our 'wakapapa' (hope i spelt that correct)! Great! Looking forward to Friday and interviewing Merched y Wawr :) Hope you lot in Slough and New Zealand are having a great time too, can't wait to see what else you come up with and see the performance!

Martyn and Charlie's Interviews . . . Look closely - they are there!

Alex and Peter's Interviews after watching the Welsh play "Vortigern's Kingdom"

Seasons greetings (not really)

HELLLOOOO!!!! I'm Tammie, I'm from the NZ Strangers group, haven't used this before so just thought I'd see what happened if I went "post blog" like you mean it.. and ja ;) blieb giel und so klingt des kamine kerars glux melodie! keep your nose on the joy trail x Tam

Hey from the USA

Hey guys its Melissa.

Im originally from Slough and thats where I started with the Strangers project - and where I met Peri :D She rocks! But she had to go back to Wales no matter how much of our persuasion techniques we used to try and get her to stay. lol

Anyway, I moved to California just over a week ago and its all a bit weird at the moment - I've started school and Ive been making friends and going to wrestling matches, but Im still missing my friends back home and I cant wait to see them again.

ALSO - this is the big one! They dont do drama on our school curriculum!! How weird and unusually cruel is that?! A school isnt a school without a drama class! If it wasnt for the strangers project I would have gone totally crazy!!!! lol

Anyhoo, people to see, places to go :D
Missing everyone from the Ghetto Slough!
Missing Piece of the Pie theatre group and SYPC :D

Keep it real
Mel
xx

Hey Hey Hey!!!

I Finally got it to work...at last!!! WEHEY!! It's been great fun doing the strangers project so far...Peris the BEST!!! It's a shame though that i cant be in the performance as im in Awstria Skiing at the time! :[ !! Skwl was boring as ever 2day..ive had lds of hmework!! Bummer!! Well cnt think what else to say lol..

speak soon

Owain

x

Well hello!

hello to all of you who are reading this! whether you're in Newzeland, Slough or lovely South Wales.
I'm Peter by the way! 14 years old, moved to wales from England in 2004! I live in Gwaun Cae Gurwen aka GCG.
I hope you're all well! Hows Newzeland or Slough? Wales is good! the weather isn't too bad! There's actually NO RAIN yet.
School was pretty boring! No drama! ahhh i felt so empty :(
Thank goodness for Strangers! without this project i would not have gotten my drama hit!
We've just finished a meeting down here in Brynaman! it was really good! thanks to Peri and everyone that made it so fabulous! We had some really good ideas after doing the clay sculpting exercise which oddly enough involves no clay! But it really makes you think about your own movement. The idea is you have a person stood in front of you, your clay, then you mold them into the word you've been given. I.e if Peri said sadness, you'd have to make your clay look like what you think sadness looks like. This is a REALLY good exercise!
And thanks to Peri we're off to the theatre in Pontadawe to watch a play! it sounds pretty interesting! its a comedy about welsh roots and welsh folk law. I'll get back to you about what it was like!
Have a good night sorry i went on for so long! bye for now!

Pete x

Hey

Hey Dudes...=)
my name is charlotte but i like to be called charlie im 15 and live in glanaman in wales..i stareted the strangers project at the start of september...i realy like the project beacause you get to meet new people and i love drama. i also love dancing and gymnastics and i think it would be awsome that we could do a dance in the play. i was realy inspired that thelma in slaw read to us a poem when we skyped them...(well done)...and all the people in slaw are amazing love you =) cant wait to speak to you agen....and also i cant wait to meet u people out in new zealand=) sorry i was'nt ther when we skyped you =(....well i hope every one is ok and il speak soon love you miss you...xxxx

YAY

Hey lol we have a meeting tonight and im soo excited lol we finally in the idea stage woop and from what i have heard all 3 groups ideas are soooo cool So yeah COME ON ..... and good luck to the rugby teams lol now the welsh are out..... grrrr


Lexx

Introducing Krissie....Enthusiastic Slough Blogger

Hi guys!

Well, I'm Krissie. I work at Slough Young People's Centre which is one of the organisations involved in the Strangers project. We're doing an Afterhours Arts Academy course called Strangers Drama run by the lovely Lizzie - which I'm sure some of you might even be going to at the moment. I've heard great things about the work which is being done and I'm sure I'll come down from the office upstairs one night and see some awesome performances.





Here's a bit about me. I love Drama and studied it at University and these days I prefer acting to directing though it changes quite often! I love the theme of Strangers for the project as I come from a very diverse family: my parents are Finnish and German, my brothers are American and I am the first English person in my family for four generations. I think we stretch back as far as France six generations ago as well so I'm pretty international and I love that. I really enjoy looking back at my family's roots and seeing how it makes me into the person I am today.





Anyway, loving the photos and blogs that have gone up so far and looking forward to meeting everyone via Skype at some point!

A cool moment Peri simply had to share...

Hey everyone,

Just got back from a most excellent Strangers Wales 3rd Tues night rehearsal and just invited some more of team Wales to join the blog!

While I was on here I suddenly had a thought that Strangers NZ may still be online through the webcam so I gave them a call and although the team had left I still got to chat with Sarah the director and Chris the Filmmaker as they packed things away.

Their skype with Slough sounds really cool and I hope as more people sign up to this blog we can all meet each other here as the project continues. I'm so glad we can use all these means to communicate - its opening up a whole new world!

Thank you team Wales for an awesome rehearsal - you are all stars! If you want to post some of your monologue/scripted scenes straight on here, thats cool.

Bye for now! Peri x

Introducing Nelson Project Manager-Sarah Jones

Hi Everyone,

I'm Sarah and I'm the project manager and Strangers Director in New Zealand. I've met quite a lot of you when I was back in the UK in the summer. Hows Strangers going with you? Here in New Zealand we're finishing our scripts ready for a rehearsed reading in the Nelson Arts Festival! Time is short but pressure can bring great rewards. I'll post some script examples up soon.

Anyway I'll need to think about getting some shut eye as we are skyping with you lot in Slough at 7.30am our time tomoz!

Get blogging soon and tell us what your up to with Strangers. Don't be a Stranger now!

Talk soon

Sarah

Introducing Strangers Wales Project Manager...

I'm Peri, the Wales Project manager for strangers and I thought I'd just write a little bit about myself to start the ball rolling, and maybe others would like to do the same...

I live in Brynaman, where the strangers project takes place in Wales. My first language is English but I have learnt Welsh as second language and I am passionate about keeping the language alive. My grandfather was from North Wales and he spoke Welsh as his mother tongue, but all the rest of my family speak English.

Through this project I have already learnt a lot about the local history of this area and think its really cool that our village cinema which was opened in 1924 is still very much alive today, even though it burnt down and had to be rebuilt. The idea that all the local industrial workers clubbed together to raise the money to build the place and now we all attend it at the weekends and on "Orange Wednesdays" is just awsome!

Looking forward to finding out so much more to develop our script in Wales and can't wait to hear about the progress of the NZ and Slough projects...

Looking forwrd to meeting you guys!

The final shot

Here is the Final shot of the rehearsal in Brynaman on Tuesday night.



"Very serious in the olden days.
All we need is the black and white.

Mae pawb yn edrych hen fashiwn iawn.
Du a gwyn a bydd en perffaith."

Old fashioned Photo shoot

In Brynaman we explored the idea of what takes place in the moments before a photgraph is taken and we're interested in using this in the performance since being inspired by Alex's family photos from the 1940s.

Masks

Found these and thought of us! Just kidding I think some of us met these characters in the Aelwyd in August though...