Welcome to our summer season which follows our hugely successful New Writing residency in the New Vic Studio. All the following meetings take place in the Cooper’s Loft at the Bristol Old Vic, King Street, Bristol 1. Ask at the bar on the first floor for directions. Everyone attending pays £1.
Tuesday, 18 May at 7.30pm: Open Workshop
Tuesday, 25 May at 7.30pm: Meet Olwen Wymark
Olwen is the new Writer-in-Residence at the Theatre Royal, Bath. This is your chance to ask her questions about her plans for promoting new writing.
Tuesday, 1 June at 7.30pm: Open Workshop
Tuesday, 8 June at 7.30pm: Open Workshop
Tuesday, 15 June at 7.30pm: Rip this Joint by Tim Massey
A reading of Tim Massey’s new comedy in which an ageing rock band are terrorised at their last gig by a gang of teenagers.
Tuesday, 22 June at 7.30pm: Open Workshop
Tuesday, 29 June at 7.30pm: Scank by Sharon Stonier
A reading of Sharon Stonier’s screenplay which shows what life’s like for kids in care when social workers take advantage of their position — and get away with it.
We then take July and August off. Back in September.
New Writing 2000
This year’s season of new writing in the New Vic was not only an artistic success — we also made a small profit on the box office. That means we can put on another event next year, hopefully in the New Vic again. If they can fit us in!
Here’s how to get your script into New Writing 2000:
- Write a script for screen, stage, radio or television, either around 50 minutes long or full length. Keep the cast size down as low as possible. Closing date for entries is 30 November 1999 so you’ve plenty of time. All members of Southwest Scriptwriters are eliglble — even those who’ve already had a New Vic reading.
- Judging will be by a panel of independent readers and will be carried out anonymously. So put the title only on your script and not your name. Your name should be placed in a sealed envelope which has the title only of the script on the outside.
- Type on one side only of each A4 sheet. All genres and all writing styles are welcome — so start writing today. This could be the break you’ve been waiting for!
Eat This! in the Basement
The three directors from the BOV Theatre School who did such a magnificent job for us in our New Vic readings, Nora Evensen, Geni Hall-Kenny and Toby Hulse, have joined forces with a fourth colleague, Jenny Engdahl, to put on a summer season of four lunchtime plays in the New Vic Basement, which can be seen on dates in May, June and July. Please support and enjoy the work of these four exciting young directors.
Third outing for Gringos
If you missed last year’s New Vic reading of Toby Farrow’s play Gringos, or even the Basement production, you can now see a new full-length version in the New Vic from 8-12 June. It was fun the first time, fantastic the second — so don’t miss the third!
Leicester Comedy Festival success
Congratulations to Judy Thunhurst and Brian Weaving who both reached the last 16 (out of 185 entries) in the Leicester Comedy Festival. We expect both to be in the top three next year!
Film script opportunity
Damaged Stock is a Bristol-based film production company that secured development finance for three feature films for cinema release, with budgets of £1 million to £5 million. The only genres they are interested in are: Thriller; Action; Action-Adventure; Horror; Low-budget Science Fiction; Social Realist Drama; Controversial Drama; Gangster/Underworld; and Violent Film Noir. That means no comedy, costume drama or anything with a high budget.
Paines Plough and Theatre West productions
Please support the Paines Plough production Western Front featuring work by local writers at the New Vic on 4, 5 and 6 November, and Theatre West’s Autumn Season at the Alma Tavern which runs right through until 11 December.