It might seem as if all has gone quiet on the theatre front, but don’t you be deceived.  The last post about CurvingRoad’s new production was all about the workshop here.  Since then we’ve held production meetings where the  “creative team,” which includes the director, set designer, lighting designer, stage manager, producer meet to discuss logistics.  You’ll notice that in this list of “creatives” the playwright is not mentioned.  Correct.  We are now getting to the point where the writer fades into the background and begins to feel the reins of control swiftly slip through his/her fingers.  As a writer myself, this is a bittersweet moment.  The theatre is all about taking a writer’s imaginings and bringing them to physical reality on stage, right?  But the person least involved in that is the writer himself.  To be honest, once the play has been handed over to the creative team, the last person that team wants to see is the writer.  The play is now theirs, and although an occasional rewrite may be requested, now’s the time the writer should be slinking off to his office to begin conjuring up new worlds.  Yes, come out to take your bow on opening night, but otherwise, let it go, let it go.
     Okay – there are some exceptions.  Sometimes a work is created in an especially collaborative way, and the writing might be done in the presence and with the input of the director and actors.  Sometimes a director and a writer will know each other very well and have an especially close working relationship.  But generally speaking, once the script has been accepted, the writer bows out as gracefully as possible, and the more gracefully the better.  So,  for example, casting? That’s the job of the director and producer.  Although it can be scary, it can also be fascinating for a writer to see who has been chosen to bring his words to life.  It may be exactly the sort of person he had in mind.  But it may not.  And that is where the piece really does take on its own life.  The words become a part of other people’s imaginings, and so the magic begins.  Some writers don’t see this as magic.  Some see this as frustration and betrayal.  Some writers have been known to walk out on productions, disavowing any future connection to it.  But  I believe that, in today’s theatre more than ever, those writers should probably stick to writing novels or poetry or short stories. I’ve said it before but it bears repeating: today’s theatre is a collaborative effort.  Embrace it or risk all sorts of pain and frustration.
       I am happy to say that CurvingRoad’s new playwrights, J.D Smith and Michael Hart, understand this.  When asked to do rewrites they have each said, “yes, of course.” And now that the rewrites are done, they are sitting in Washington and Edinburgh (respectively), preparing to do an occasional promotional piece or interview (if we’re all lucky and the pr firm can sell the idea), and then book their flights to London.  June 8 is sooner than you think.  Here’s our new flyer to prove it:

And here’s the  plug.  If you want to come and can’t quite read the flyer above, book tickets via the box office at The Old Red Lion Theatre 0207 7837 7816.  And stay tuned for future installments of that exciting new series, “How to Put on a Play”…….