 Hi all,
Long time since I blogged.
Just to say part of my work 'Pindar's Olympians' will be in Live Canon's Olympic Warmup - details on 'Coming Soon' - in London and Oxford in a couple of weeks.
Pindar is awkward in modern translation, so I have taken the Olympic Odes, selected some of the main ideas and the best stories, and put them together in a five part work reflecting the five rings of the Olympics. There's a lot to do with song there, too. I hope anyone who sees the good work Live Canon do will enjoy this wee piece of work.
All the best!
JT
We have just finished a tour of primary schools around Fife where we have been telling the story of Theseus and the Minotaur.
The stories have been told by the combination of The Storyteller and the Music Man, John Taylor and Brian Craib, and it has been a LOT of fun. John told the tale with musical accompaniment from Brian Craib. You can see some pictures on the link above.
We have visited 10 schools in about 6 weeks, reaching in excess of 600 school pupils throughout the Kingdom of Fife, rangins from Pittenweem Primary up to Springfield and Guardbridge. Our biggest performance was for around 230 pupils and our smallest for 27.
The story went down well and the children all really wanted to know more about Greek myths and the worlds of Ancient Greece and Rome! Fabulous!
Look out for more next year!
JT
It's been a while since last I blogged anything much at all.
Over the summer we had some lovely audience members watch our show of Cretan Myths - much more in a storytelling style and in the wonderful setting of the cave of St Fillan in Pittenweem at the Pittenwem Arts Festival. Take a look at Past productions and Galleries on this website for pictures.
Very soon, in a couple of weeks we're also doing a new version of Theseus and the Minotaur for the St Monans Community Arts festival (I hope they get better weather than the pouring rain we have here today in St Andrews). We're doing two performances, and I am excited. The music is written by Brian Craib for his children, Hannah, on electric violin, and Andy, on electric double bass. Should be great fun and we're looking forward to two morning performances. Find out more at Coming Soon section on the website.
Take care, one and all!
JT
Auditions will take place for our new production of ' Oedipus: The Reason of Tiresias' in THE BARRON THEATRE, North St, St Andrews on Fri 12th March, 6pm-9pm and Mon 15th March, 5pm-7pm Open to all members of the community. We look forward to seeing you there! JT
Theatre Odyssey has been promoting the wonderful worlds of Greece and Rome through all the arts since 2000. We are finding more and more that schools are closing down Classics departments, people don't know what Classics is, the teaching of Latin and Greek is in decline, and there is a need for people to learn from history more than ever.
To commemorate Theatre Odyssey's tenth anniversary we want LOADS OF STUFF to happen throughout 2010, helping promote Classics and artistic expression!
If you agree that something needs to be done about the state of Classics in the UK (and worldwide!), then...
DO SOMETHING!
CARPE DIEM!
SIEZE THE DAY!
WHAT CAN YOU DO TO HELP?
What can't you do? Try organising an arts event in your area, however small, to help raise awareness. Feel free to use the image on this page in promoting your event, then email us at carpediem@theatreodyssey.com with details of your event, images or videos too. We'll gladly and gratefully publish details of your event on this page!
SOME IDEAS
The list of potential arts activities you might try are endless. The only rule is that it must have SOME Classical basis, however tenuous! Here's some ideas:
- A public reading of a Classical work (play, poetry, philosophy?) Why not try somewhere people would be anyway like the pub?
- Paint a picture based on a Classical myth
- Classically-based photography is always interesting
- Write a poem, story, or play with some Classical influence
- Organise a school play if you're a teacher
- Try a Classical craft, like pottery? Why not make your own kylix?
- A production of a play
- Storytelling in your local area
- Into crafts? Try crocheting or knitting a Classical scene
- Make a collage based on a visit to Greece or Rome
- Something else...
Think about how you will get your work seen by other people? Or do you just want to post it on theatreodyssey.com?
No matter how small your project is, it just might make someone think about Classics, and that's what we're all about!
GOOD LUCK WITH YOUR PROJECT! We're looking forward to seeing the fruits of your labour!
A couple of followers on Twitter have wondered how I make my Christmas wreath, so here's my instructions... I think it's a pretty nice relaxing thing to do for Christmas and have done this for a number of years. I can't imagine buying a wreath, and although I might not be too good at it per se, it does make a more rustic and enjoyable start to Christmastime! Here's how it's done:
WHAT YOU NEED:
Branches from the bottom of a Christmas Tree, Scissors, String, ribbons/tinsel/holly/baubles/whatever you want on the thing!
HOW TO MAKE IT:
- Start by cutting off some branches from the bottom of your Christmas tree, or ask at a local farm selling trees for ofcuts. They just burn them otherwise.
- Taking the cut end of the first branch, try weaving in your second branch, just by twisting round the first branch. Try to use branches that aren't too thick, and aren't too thin, and that are all about the same thickness so that you don't get a bulge in your circle.
- Add your 2nd, 3rd, 4th branches, or however many it takes until you can join the ends easily, and weave the last branch into the others to make a circle.
- Aiming for the cut ends, bind the branches with string, tying as tightly as you can to maintain the circular shape as best as you can.
- There are always areas of the circle that look less leafy and full than others. Keep back some smaller branches to weave into the balder areas (I hate using that word - makes me self-conscious! ;-) )
Once you have your wreath structurally safe, by using nothing other than the branches themselves and a bit of sring (all those plastic moulding things, though easier, are less enjoyable and totally unnecessary), start adding your decorations. My wreath has a couple of wee baubles on it, some tinsel, gold beads, and a couple of bits of artificial holly from the attic!
- Using string, make a loop and feed the string through the loop, around the top of your wreath. Use this string to hang your wreath over your door, and then that's it! Spreading the festive cheer!
Good luck! And Merry Christmas!
JT x
Hi all,
I have been remiss in my blogging of late so thought I'd best let you know how things are going with Theatre Odyssey.
The rehearsed readings of Grecologues were great fun, and highlighted some things we could go on working on. They were well received by the audience, who were a mixture of students and townsfolk from St Andrews. Huge thanks were due to Malia Appleford and her friends in Chicago who put together and recorded the Newsreader segments and sent them over to us in Scotland. This was a huge success and broadcasting these Grecologues made it clear that fighting to save Classics is a worldwide endeavour.
Other Grecologues also went well, and in particular I really was taken aback by Tiresias, played by Harry Gooch. I have decided on the back of this to do more with the Tiresias character, who was portrayed here as a hermaphroditical receptionist for a plastic surgeon's office. It sounds ridiculous and funny, and in many ways it was, but this prophetic character telling us his/her story while trying desperately NOT to drink from a water bottle, knowing that to do so will ultimately result in death, was deeply tragic, and that took my by surprise. We're looking at trying to adapt this into a one man play. More on this anon.
Before I do that though, I'm about to start working on a modernised adaptation of Oedipus Rex, set in an office environment. It will take a fair bit of work, but the intention is that we work on hosting an open reading of this by April, with a view to a full production happening in October 2010. Wish us luck!
JT
Hi everyone,
Just to say thanks very much for everyone's support in the One-Man Odyssey. Having not performed the show in eight years, it was very rewarding to do these shows on the beaches of St Andrews and Pittenweem (and in St Fillan's cave when weather was rubbish - very atmospheric!). It's been particularly nice to bring these shows closer to Homer's original intention, and to do them for free, in a storytelling style, on beaches to interested people. I have met so many lovely people over the last couple of weeks, it's been really interesting and very enjoyable...! Our next show should be the much-delayed Grecologues, which have been developed over the last couple of years and in which there are some old friends from Theatre Odyssey returning to the stage!
All the best! Keep in tou
Hi all,
Just an update to let you know I've been rewriting the One Man Odyssey (I know I said I wouldn't but have decided to anyway) and am quite excited about doing it again. Especially for those of you who didn't see it eight years ago!!!
This production is going to reflect my view of the story more this time, and will have a folkier feel, including a little bit of live music now... fun fun fun!!!
There are also new dates as we're doing this show as part of the St Andrews Inside Out festival. I'll be performing the show from 30th July to 1st August (Acts 1 to 3 on consecutive days) at the Castle Sands in St Andrews.
JT x
I'm really excited to announce the new production of the One-man Odyssey. Click here to see photos and details of the new show in August!
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