1066 Youth Theatre

'The Dragon' Day four is finished and we NOW have a show together! We have completed the main structure of the piece - now just to rehearse smaller things like transitions. The way it’s been devised this week: incorporating everyone’s strengths, bringing acting, movement and music in, is incredible. It’s been so full on, using every minute of the day, creating and trying new things.  Completely and utterly exhausted but so extremely excited for the performance. Can’t wait for an audience to see our hard work!  This has been my first year doing YT and such an amazing experience. I've loved working with brilliant directors and having the chance to meet and work with such a talented cast!  Bring on the show x Ellie x

Cast photo Today was the second day of our week-long project, and for the first couple of hours we warmed up with some activities before we really got into the piece. Working together, we devised our own monologues that were personal, and came from a place that we all related to and understood, all to do with being our age, and living in our town.  With the play there is a choreographed dance that some people are doing, me included. The dance is all about resilience, and overcoming anxieties, so throughout the dance we did small naturalist movements, playing with our hair, pulling clothes, and fiddling with our hands, whilst others danced. The way that the acting and the dance came together showed how multi-talented all of the cast is. Dancing can communicate emotions and combining dance with naturalist acting can really express a message. As well as dance, some of the cast are preparing songs, and playing instruments, and each are gently mixed with drama and act...

Poster for 'Hollow' Today was the first day of our new Youth Theatre project, 'Hollow'. This piece is mainly a devised drama piece, meaning we create the scenes ourselves rather than use scripts. Before we started the hard work of creating the beginning, we played some drama games to allow the cast to become familiar with each other and build our bond ready for Friday's performance. In the morning we were given some lines to learn and we had to create actions to go with the lines. It was challenging because we weren't allowed to do obvious actions; we had to be open-minded! In the afternoon, some of us started our dance piece that will be part of the show. It was very fun creating a different style of dance that not many people are used to. This is my third year of participating in 1066 Youth Theatre and I can honestly say it's the highlight of my summer every year. The cast are like one big family and Niall and Barb (the directors) are always the...

Day 10; Our last day of normal rehearsals and we’re putting our best foot forward into the weekend ready to step into Monday’s technical rehearsal with our lines learnt, our scenes sharp, and a focused mind so we can smash through the week and feel confident in time for our first performance on Wednesday night. Today we broke down each play, identifying areas that needed work and finding ways to make pieces fit, before a full (although out of order) run through this afternoon. However, while we were not on stage we all got our own time to get to know our characters even more. I for example as Anne Bonny, a ruthless pirate, encounter many battles and fights which have been both thrilling and challenging to choreograph and consistently get right as I don’t only have to use just stage fighting but I also have multiple sword fights, all of which are different. This has stretched me out of my comfort zone both physically and mentally, as has the whole process which is one of the many reason...

As the rehearsal process draws to an end and we come closer to the opening show, everybody is still working tirelessly to ensure the show is of the highest quality. As somebody who has partaken in Youth Theatre for 3 years now, it is exciting and amazing to see younger actors really come into their own and show their fantastic acting skills. Many times I have been blown away, moved emotionally and belly laughed thanks to the cast of wonderful people. Not only has the acting and show come a long way from when we started nearly 2 weeks ago now, but the whole cast feels like one big family with the whole experience of the show being a fulfilling, but most importantly, an enjoyable one. The play that has been wonderfully written by the Whiteheads is a fantastic exploration through the sea and the different myths, stories and events that occur on and beneath the surface of the vast ocean. Even though everyone is completely shattered due to the intense schedule, the show has really come toge...

Day 8 of 1066 Youth Theatre has proved to be another fun yet challenging day; each play is almost finished now and it is starting to really come together. Only a week left until the shows, which is both equally terrifying and exciting. Each day has brought something different: we are constantly working, whether it’s by ourselves practicing lines with each other, going through fight scenes, dances or rehearsing on stage. This is my fifth, and last, year of doing 1066 Youth Theatre. It’s been incredibly fun making new friends and working with new actors, sharing ideas and doing as much as we can to make it as amazing as possible.  Today we tried a new piece of verbatim theatre called Doaa’s Story and we sat down and broke up the lines between us all. It’s an incredible story that we are very excited to tell and it feels like the perfect way to end not only the play, but my time in 1066 Youth Theatre. This has been such an incredible experience. It has become one of the most ...

Second day of the second week, and everyone’s well on the way to completing this wonderful show. As well as rehearsals on stage, we go off and learn our lines with friends, or work on a small bit for later. It’s really useful to have that time to figure your parts out, and help out others too. There’s a piece about a sea goddess, Sedna, showcasing a lot of people’s talents. The myth it is based on is the Canadian Inuit story of how the creatures of the sea came to be, so the dancers do quite abstract and flowing movements, choreographed thoughtfully by the dancers themselves. They are accompanied by musicians, providing music that fits perfectly with the mystical atmosphere of the story. It’s incredible to see so many talented people together and working alongside each other. I’m constantly amazed by everyone, and impressed with what we’ve managed to achieve. Along with members who had been in previous shows, new members have been blowing everyone away with their pure awesomen...

With this only being my first year at the youth theatre, I have been amazed by how inviting, enthusiastic and dedicated every one has been. Not to mention talented. I have had the opportunity to work along side a variety of different actors and actresses that all bring different skills and techniques to their roles - as well as form friendships with people I would not have met if not for the 1066 Youth Theatre.  Though it is only a week since we began, it feels like much longer due to the amount of progress we have made in all of the short stories. The contrast between each of the many plays keeps us all busy as we switch from mystical stories of sirens and the Greek gods, to intense sword fights or an emotional scene. Although each day can be tiring, it seems worth it every time we run a play through and see the story forming. Today, a group of us worked on creating a way to show the sea carrying my character Cherry in The Giant's Necklace . We tested a few lifts we wante...

For the last few days, Charly and I have been working on the dance choreography for our dance and music piece, which is called Sedna. Today we taught the six other dancers the choreography and it went really well. We had a few difficulties transferring it onto the stage but we are working on fitting everything in. This is my second year at 1066 Youth Theatre and it's so nice to see everyone working together as a group while the stories are coming alive. I feel privileged to be lead dancer 2 as I have never really had the opportunity before to choreograph something in a play. Lily Pierce - Dancer lead 2, Brother 1, Eva

We began today with photographs, as Peter Mould arrived to take shots of the cast whilst we worked on scenes from several of the plays that we are performing in this year’s production. After that, we began to organise our creepiest play, Ghostly Galleons - an eerie tale about ship disappearances. In this play, we tried to create a strong sense of discomfort in the overall atmosphere - providing a sinister setting to the tales.  In the afternoon, we came together to work on ‘A Bonny Pirate’ - a play about the life of the renowned female pirate, Anne Bonny. We began work on the rest of the play and also did some work with stage fighting as a crew of pirates storm the ship. After this, we also put some more work into ‘Salt’ - a Russian folktale about a foolish merchant. This year is my first time taking part in the 1066 Youth Theatre, but I have been blown away by the amount of dedication that is put into the performance by everyone involved. I feel as though the ...

Day Three.   With this being my final year of 1066 Youth Theatre I am truly determined to get the most out of this production, and its proving to be one of the most challenging years yet! Each story has its own unique physicality, from creating lavish boats to overwhelming stormy soundscapes, scenes of deep emotion to high intensity sword fights; it's safe to say that Niall and Barbara are keeping us busy! With stories beginning to come together and come to life, the production is really starting to take shape and I am so excited to see where we are in a week after having already created so much in just three days.  Today we took more ‘Actors own’ time, which allows us to break off into smaller groups to look at specific scenes or key moments as well as start to discover our characters individually. I personally used this time to re-read over the story ‘The Shore’, this time really focusing on viewing it from my character, Grace’s perspective. This he...

It’s only the second day of rehearsal but it already feels a though a week has gone by. This is my second year doing 1066 Youth Theatre and so far it just keeps getting better. Last year I came into this group knowing nobody and coming out with a whole set of friends I'd have otherwise never met. This year I'm still finding myself meeting people whose position I was in a year ago, and trying to make them feel as welcome as everyone else did to me. In the morning we worked on developing the first story, using most of the cast to create a boat. It is so great to see so many people of different ages and experience working together so well. For the afternoon we all separated off into groups to work on small projects. It is so nice to be trusted to work alone and makes you more responsible in terms of improving your own acting rather than relying on others to point it out to you. However, it was nice to finish the day as an ensemble, joining some scenes from yesterday with new ...

What a fantastic first day at YT! The set has really taken shape and the actors can now work on the stage. The set builders at the Stables are an amazing bunch. By the afternoon we were able to start working on the stage. The first day is always the hardest – and the best. We get to see all the actors and technicians who we will be working with. This year’s group are committed already. What always surprises me is that many of the actors have learnt at least some of their lines. Even better is giving them lines in the rehearsal and they fly with them. The bravery shown today in trying out new things in front of everyone was brilliant too. This year we are producing seven pieces under the title of Song To The Siren – Tales of the Sea. Today we have worked on group scenes which helps bond the group. It has been a rewarding first day. Can’t wait to see what this amazing group of actors produces tomorrow. To find out more about our rehearsals for this production, follow t...

The time has come! When I joined the 1066 Youth Theatre I would never have known it would be such an experience. I can put my hands up and say this has been one of the greatest shows I've ever been part of. I have never met such a friendly and professional group of young people. Even though I am only 17 myself, I feel a lot older and have found it really interesting to meet so many young people as passionate about acting as I am. I'd just like to give a huge shout out to everyone in the ensemble because even though they don't have many lines, they still have to put in so much effort, and I can say from experience that this is no easy task. I would also like to thank everyone in the stage management team as they have helped us understand the discipline required backstage, including when to come on and where our props are located. Without them this production wouldn't be possible. I also want to thank the directors Niall, Barbara and Maureen for allowing me to be a p...

The countdown is on. Two days until our first show and we are all very excited. Today has been very busy as we had our very first technical run and full dress rehearsal.  We started at 12 and finished at 8. When we got there, we had to do a cue to cue. This a rehearsal for the lighting, sound etc, and not the actors (for once). After the cue to cue, we had our dress rehearsal with lights and sound. Being under the stage lights was very hard as it was very, very hot. This is my first year acting with 1066 Youth Theatre and I have loved every moment of it. If you haven't done the 1066 Youth Theatre then I would definitely recommend coming next year. Lily Pierce (Ensemble in David Copperfield )

Well, as Fatboy Slim once sang, 'We've come a long long way together'. I can certainly say that. We are starting to do full runs, and on Monday, a technical run through. I cannot say I'm not excited. These past two weeks, for me, have involved the building of props and rigging a few lights (if you see the prison bars, kite, and neck sign, think of me). It has been a social adventure, making new friends, and noticing more and more about them everyday. A learning experience as well as many life skills, such as how to make a good cup of tea, have been learned. Yesterday I got my first experience handling the lighting board. I sat down in front of the desk, my inner fangirl screaming inside me. It was definitely fun playing with the moving lights. Cutting out colour is certainly not as fun, but just as essential. Today was a rest day for the actors, but a work day for the lighting, and a hard one at that. Once we finished aligning the lights, making sure they lo...

I am part of the stage management team and am working with Jane on the book for David Copperfield , which is something I have not fully done before. We note down every movement an actor makes: their entrances and exits, whether they sit or stand, walk past each other or lift someone. We use symbols and signs for each character and action so we can record the blocking and keep up with the rehearsal.  Changes are very frequent when blocking a production, especially for David Copperfield because it has a lot of movement. Soon enough the show changes and reshapes itself. The closer the production comes, the more jobs you have to do, for example finding props. This week we made the props list and then found them all in the cupboard or loft. Looking through all the used props is one of my favourite parts of working backstage; Finding notebooks where actors have written their lines from plays performed before I was even born is incredibly interesting. But for me, the best ...

In a few days we will be ready to take the stage, and show the public our interpretation of David Copperfield . The play has come together remarkably well, from just practising a few lines to a full play in just a few weeks. Although it has been quite a challenge, the rewards have made it all worthwhile. I have learnt new techniques and grown in confidence. Today we ran through the whole play. For the ensemble, Act One is where we are needed frequently, whereas in Act Two we are needed less. This allows the younger actors to gain experience from watching the main cast. This is my first time acting with 1066 Youth Theatre. Overall it has been a phenomenal experience. I have made new friends and learnt a lot. I would love to do it again next year and would recommend it to anyone. Photo by Peter Mould Eve Brownbill (Ensemble in David Copperfield )

Well, today was an intense one for the year 11's of the cast, as we went off to get GCSE results and came back to a very welcoming cast full of support for us. To me personally, it really highlighted the relationships and the cast's ability to support each other. Today we worked on tidying up a couple of scenes and increasing the pace of the play. We changed the opening of the play, which is extremely important because the opening scene of a performance really needs to capture the audience and draw them right in. In the scene, each member of the cast can be seen placing props and other Victorian elements of the set. David Copperfield has a twist and a touch of modern, not only shown through the stylised elements of the play, but also the costumes that have been planned. We also ran Act Two near the end of the rehearsal to again tidy up scenes. We spent the day without scripts on stage, pushing us to really know our lines. This was very good as it stopped us from relying on...

It's now exactly a week until the opening night and I can't quite believe how quickly it's passed and how far we've come.  Although most of us could quite happily fall asleep on our feet when we get home, it is so satisfying to watch things come together in such a short space of time. Today we have rehearsed the whole of Act 1 and have gone over many scenes from Act 2 as well. One of the scenes I was very excited to go over was the wedding scene as I have been asked to provide live music for a dance. This was equally challenging and nerve-racking as it is a completely new experience for me. However, with a lot of unwavering support and practise, we managed to get the music to fit with only a few mistakes on my part.  A scene was also added for my character at the beginning of Act 2 and, despite it being only a few seconds long with no dialogue, I feel that it gives more of an insight into how he is feeling after the events of Act 1. This is my first time perfor...