Welcome to OUDS
From OUDS
Dear All,
It's the week you've all been waiting for. The newly-revamped New Writing Festival has landed and is filling up the Burton Taylor all week. After thirty-six script submissions, three rounds of judging, hundreds of auditions and a month's rehearsal we have the four best new plays being performed in Oxford. At the time of writing there are only two tickets left for the early slot on opening night, so get booking! The shows are as follows:
Revival by Carla Neuss - Crispin's bar is unlike any other: you tell him a story, he'll make you a drink. It's a beautiful system until, one by one, the rules begin to break. Tuesday, Thursday and Saturday 7.30pm
The Fireflies by David Shackleton - Spitting and cursing, 'The Fireflies' rises from the remains of twentieth century Absurdist drama to flare brightly for an instant, before darkness closes in, and the ash settles. Tuesday, Thursday, Saturday 9.30pm
Toffee by Charlotte Geater - Alfie's girlfriend vanished a while ago, his friends are tired of comforting him, he's still got the same songs on repeat, and he's wondering if talking to you might help. Wednesday and Friday 7.30pm, Saturday 2.30pm
Instead of Beauty by Richard O'Brien - When school-friends John and Matthew start at university and meet two very different girls, all four find out how little they know - about love, sex, each other, and themselves. Wednesday and Friday 9.30pm, Saturday 4.30pm
AS IF THAT WASN'T ENOUGH, there are two critically acclaimed shows this week, each hooking at least one five-star review. Bent by Martin Sherman explores homosexual persecution under the Nazis and is on at the Keble O'Reilly all week. Then there's Lorca's Blood Wedding at the OFS. Set to the original music, this production brings Lorca's passionate and intensely lyrical drama to life, a tale of honour, grief and rebellion against the suffocating constraints of a harsh rural Andalusian existence.
News just in - director and actor Sara Sugarman will be visiting The Ruskin School of Drawing and Fine Art on Thursday, March 11th, to spend the day talking about narrative film and discussing practical exercises for interpreting scripts. They're looking for three or four actors to take part in the workshop. Email thea.warren@keble.ox.ac.uk if you'd like to be involved.
OUDS is also opening up funding applications for TT10 shows. If you would like to apply for funding then please email Josh Randall on treasurer@ouds.org with a copy of your bid, budget and a cover letter with the amount you are requesting clearly specified. The deadline for entries is Weds of 7th week and interviews will be held over the following weekend. We are happy to consider any show no matter how large or small, experimental or traditional, ensemble or monologue so please come forward - we love hearing your ideas.
Also, this term the wardrobe will be open at the same time every Tuesday, Wednesday (BopShop), Thursday, from 1-2pm. We've just had a fantastic new delivery of 40s and 50s items including some military uniforms, so come check it out.
Happy Seventh Week!
Roland Singer-Kingsmith
OUDS President 2009/10
