Glyn Maxwell on The Lifeblood
I wrote The Lifeblood in 1999. It’s had three cracking professional productions (2000 in London, 2004 in Edinburgh, 2008 in New York) and, when Simon and Clive asked me if I had another (smaller-cast) play to replace the impracticably large-cast City of Tomorrow, I had no hesitation. I was always going to direct it; I really didn’t intend to act in it! But a lot of talented women came forward, and no men at all – with the brilliant exception of my friend and collaborator of half a century, Danny Swanson – so, with a little rewriting of men into women, I have a marvellous cast and a whole new play to share…
At the heart of it all is Mary (played by Celia Roberts), the deposed and imprisoned Queen of Scots, ever trusting that her ‘dear sister queen’ Elizabeth – both were descended from Henry VIII – will come to her aid after 18 years of house arrest. Sometimes hopeful, sometimes forlorn, but ever turning towards the light, Mary dreams of escape to France, trying to plot a course between friends and enemies, intimates and traitors.
There’s her dear secretary and confidante Claudine Arno (Francine Ross) who wants to grant Mary’s every wish but knows that one false move will mean the end of everything… Their forbidding gaoler Dame Edith Paulet (Hannah Sayer) is a staunch Puritan whose task it is to make life as harsh as possible for the despised Catholic ‘Madam Stuart’…
Into their cramped and crushed lives rides the mysterious stranger Gorge (Danny Swanson), who promises Mary a romantic rescue and glorious homecoming to France… And, always in the background, plotting and planning and going out of his way to bring about the historical calamity we probably feel is coming – the original spymaster Sir Francis Walsingham (introducing, well, myself).
But all of these characters will be derailed, overturned by events. Must Claudine stay at Mary’s side at the cost of her own neck? What should Dame Edith do, when given a monstrous command at the price of her soul? Can Mary – just for once in her reckless lifetime – resist the seductions of a gallant figure like Gorge? Can Gorge, in the face of Mary’s mercurial, flirtatious spirit, actually remember whose side he’s on? And does Walsingham have the faintest idea why Mary so haunts his imagination, night and day?
All of these are based on historical figures, but of course I’ve cut and pasted and compressed, like Mr Shakespeare did with Holinshed’s Chronicles. A lot of what Mary said is historically accurate, especially her remarkable performance at her Trial, where, weakened and aged by imprisonment, without legal representation and stripped of the papers that would have proved her case, she nonetheless mounted a brilliant, learnéd and witty defence against 50 judges who had been pretty much commanded to find her guilty. (I should point out that I only have four judges, but you get the idea.)
Full disclosure: I fell for Mary in the making of this play. People do. And others feel the opposite. When we did the play in Edinburgh, I got into a chat with an old shopkeeper who lamented ‘Oh, if that woman had only kept her legs together!’ like it was soap-opera gossip of the day before. Mary divides us, and perhaps those of us whose spirit tends towards the European, the romantic, the catholic with a small ‘c’ – as against the Protestant island pride of Good Queen Bess and her fifty judging men who’ve carried on judging us and fearing strangers ever since – will always mourn the doomed, open-hearted, irrepressible Queen of Scots.
Glyn
Director
April 2022
Roll on the drums please...
It’s that time again – time to unveil the new mainstage season at the Barn, for 2022 to 2023: a return to variety, with something, I hope, for everyone. Thanks to all the directors, who’ll be presenting their shows at the Directors Evening on Friday 6th May.
Everyone welcome!
As always, this is a provisional programme and subject to the vagaries of theatrical licensing. We’ve secured the rights for the vast majority of these shows – but there are a couple we’re still negotiating at the time of going to press.
SEPTEMBER
Calendar Girls (9f, 4m)
By Tim Firth
Directed by Hannah Sayer
23rd September – 1st October
This hilarious play is based on the true story, and the 2003 film, of 11 fearless WI members who famously posed naked for a charity calendar, kicking off a trend that’s raised millions for countless organisations since. After the death of her husband, Annie’s fundraising idea not only exceeds all her expectations but also makes national and international headlines.
OCTOBER
The Ghost Train (8m, 4f)
By Arnold Ridley
Directed by Cliff Francis
15th – 23rd October
A diverse group of passengers find themselves stranded in a deserted railway station overnight, the site of a fatal crash several years earlier – and the subject of a supernatural legend. Full of twists, shocks and humour, this perennial favourite is regarded as a modern classic and established the ‘social interaction’ genre of strangers forced together in constrained circumstances.
NOVEMBER
Blackadder Goes Forth
By Richard Curtis & Ben Elton
Directed by Keith Thompson
4th – 12th November
A selection of episodes from the final and arguably the best and blackest series of the classic TV comedy. Set in the Flanders trenches in 1918, the show follows Captain Edmund’s doomed attempts to escape certain death under the command of General Melchett, aided, or encumbered, by Private Baldrick and Lieutenant George.
NOVEMBER
Haunting Julia (3m)
By Alan Ayckbourn
Directed by Maureen Davies
25th November – 3rd December
One of Ayckbourn’s few departures from middle-class comedy sees him tackle the supernatural, in this rarely performed play from 1994. It explores the relationships of three men to Julia, a gifted musician who took her own life at 19. A boyfriend with secrets, a father whose sanity is under question, and a psychic who may or may not be trustworthy, all help us discover the truth.
DECEMBER
Matilda Jr (7m, 6f)
By Dennis Kelly & Tim Minchin
Directed by Simon Parr & Darren Barsby
From w/c 19th December
We’re handing the stage over to Barn Youth for our end-of-year spectacular – the junior version of the phenomenally popular musical, Matilda. Perfect for all ages, the show’s based on Roald Dahl’s timeless tale of a telekinetic girl who loves reading, overcomes obstacles caused by her family and school, and helps her teacher to reclaim her life.
JANUARY
The Height of the Storm (1m, 4f)
By Florian Zeller
Directed by John Davies
13th – 21st January
A couple look back on 50 years of marriage during a weekend visit by their daughters and realise their relationship may not be as perfect as they assumed. A mystery bunch of flowers, a woman from the past, a locked room – maybe all is not what it seems. A beautifully moving study of love, loss and the unbearable pain of absence.
FEBRUARY
War and Peace (6m, 6f)
By Leo Tolstoy & Helen Edmundson
Directed by Steve Thompson
3rd – 11th February
Tolstoy’s classic intertwines an epic account of Napoleon’s invasion of Russia with the tale of three aristocratic families. With a vast canvas of locations, characters and experiences, this 1996 adaptation cleverly condenses one of the longest novels ever into a stirring evening of war’s effects on families, love and friendship.
MARCH
Treasure Island (variable)
By Bryony Lavery
Directed by Laura Eddy
24th – 1st April
In this rip-roaring adventure for the whole family, inn-keeper’s grand-daughter ‘Jim’ opens the door to a terrifying stranger with a huge sea-chest full of secrets – and embarks on a non-stop adventure of murder, money and mutiny. This ingenious version of Stevenson’s classic premiered at the National in 2014, as its Christmas show, hence some larger-than-life, even panto-y aspects.
APRIL
Alys, Always (5m, 6f)
By Lucinda Coxon
Directed by Mel Powell
14th – 22nd April
A young journalist comes across a crashed car and is drawn into the world of the injured driver, whose family is a world away from her own. Premiering at the Bridge in 2019, this gripping psychological thriller, brimming with surprises and unease, explores the fault-line that separates the entitled from the unentitled.
MAY
Being Jane Eyre (variable)
Written and directed by Lou Wallace
5th – 13th May
Probably the shortest version of this epic story! As Charlotte Brontë creates her famous novel, her characters tumble onto stage and she places them in the action. Narrated by Charlotte and peopled by a constantly shifting group of actors, all watched over by the ever-present Bertha, the play is a storytelling romp with lots of music, movement and laughter (apart from the sad bits!).
Clive Weatherley
Artistic Director
From the Chair
Welcome to April’s Barn News
Welcome to April’s Barn News – we continue to navigate our first season back after shutting down, with fingers a little crossed. Hangmen starts this week as I write, and we’re working out how to deal with any eventuality. It reminds me continually of the resilience of theatre – the old cliché that the show must go on has stood us all well over the last few months. I remain extremely grateful for all the hard work and determination of all our cast and crew over the season so far.
Learning to live with Covid and the relaxation of the laws sounds simple in theory but in practice it still leaves us and our cast, crew and audiences with a number of challenges: in a few weeks’ time we’ll no longer have free tests so, ironically, some of the decisions we have to make will be taken away as in most cases we won’t know whether anyone is ill or not! Strange times indeed.
I mentioned last month that the Directors Evening is just a few weeks away – and I and Council have had a sneak peak at what Clive has in store for us. Get Friday 6th May in your diary now, if it’s not there already, and come and see what next season will bring – and how you can get involved.
Some slightly less cheerful news now about a play that many of us were looking forward to. You may have noticed that Kiss Me Quickstep is no longer going to happen – sadly, despite a number of extra auditions, Jon was unable to cast it. In particular I believe he was struggling to cast the male roles. It’s such a shame when a club as vibrant and thriving as ours fails to get enough people to audition: please cast around your friends and family (pun intended) next time you see an audition notice and let’s give our directors the best choice possible.
I’m also going to ask again that you think about who is going to be your next chairman – or one of the other roles that will need filling from the end of this year. The club is stronger with a properly representative Council, and the club rules do mean that a number of us need to step off stage-left and let a new Council take the club forwards.
Do think about it and catch one of Council either at the Directors Evening or after one of the next few productions.
In the meantime, see you at Hangmen, September in the Rain and The Lifeblood!
Simon Parr
Chairman
Membership & Council
Minutes for the Council Meeting February 2022
Please find the minutes of the meeting of the Barn Theatre Council held on
22nd February 2022.
Our membership news depends on information we get from YOU
New member
Gillian O’Gorman
Membership level: ordinary
Interests: interval coffee, programme selling
Welcome to the Barn!
Season update
Most of you are probably aware that, even after a truly heroic effort by Jon Brown and his team, Kiss Me Quickstep couldn’t be fully cast and the production has sadly been cancelled. Thanks to Jon for his tenacity and for trying so hard: KMQ may return one day or, if not, we look forward to enjoying another of his productions in the future.
Now for the good news: Cliff Francis has stepped in with a replacement show, the very funny (and slightly ironically titled) STOP! …The Play. This comedy by David Spicer takes place both backstage and onstage as five neurotic actors, a stressed stage manager and a crazed director are desperately rehearsing the world’s worst play, which keeps being re-written by the playwright. Each new re-write is more hilariously terrible than the one before and, although it shouldn’t really happen, somehow the show manages to go on. Think Noises Off – but written today rather than 40 years ago.
Auditions have been rushed in and Cliff and his team are all set for getting the show ready – with, hopefully, fewer problems than those experienced by its characters…
Clive Weatherley
Artistic Director
STOP! ... The Play
Cast and Creative Team
Cast
Hugh – Matt Gray
Linda – Amy Walker
Kriston – Joe Hogan
Gemma – Laura Mead
Evelyn – Lester Adams
Walter – Keith Swainston
Chrissie – Lauren Ryan
Crew
Director – Cliff Francis
Assistant Director – Alfie Hart
Production Manager – TBC
Stage Manager – Sharon Francis
Lighting – Nick Mogg / Clifton Hoyle
Sound – James Rowles
Set & Props – Kris & Pete Moore
Costume – TBC
Rehearsal Prompt – TBC
Studio news
I’m pleased to report that my search for an Artistic Director for the Barn Studio is over. Cliff Francis, clearly thrilled and inspired by the space he’s working in for September in the Rain, has stepped up to the plate!
The Studio has become, intentionally, the home for less mainstream material than we would present on the main stage. That might include new writing, unsettling or unconventional subjects, and fresh treatments of the familiar – think of Studio highlights over the past few years which include The Wasp, 2 Across, Mammals, Equus and, most recently, Sydney and the Old Girl. Cliff’s ideas for the Studio reflect this direction, and the sample shows he’s proposed overlap very closely with mine.
I look forward to working with him to bring our audiences more challenging and thought-provoking drama in our unique Studio space!
Clive Weatherley
Artistic Director
Barn Theatre Building - The Future
At the Barn Theatre we’re very lucky with a beautiful and well equipped building. But we do have challenges and we should always be looking at ways we can improve. Most recently we’ve built the Studio space, and refurbished the auditorium and the toilets. What’s next?
We’re looking for a group that can plan for the future of the Barn. Think about what further improvements we can or should make. We’re looking for people who are prepared to think radically, and consider improvements we can make throughout the building.
This is our building – now is the time to build for the future!
If you’re interested in being involved, send an email to [email protected]
Michael Merry
Facilities Director
Social scene
Firstly I want to welcome Lesley Payne to our social committee – I know you’ll bring some excellent ideas to our team!
Secondly I’d like to thank everyone who came to the cocktail evening. We received some very positive feedback and are sorry for all the sore heads the next day!
Finally, our next social event will be held on Saturday 18th June. This will be a music night and a look back on the season. We’ll give you more information in the next edition of Barn News. In the meantime save the date for 18th June, 8pm to midnight.
If you want to secure a place, email [email protected]
Hannah Humbles
Social Director
Alternative dialogue
Ah, do you remember the days when petrol was only £1.65 a litre?
When I said ‘give her a jab’ I didn’t mean that!
Well, you won’t be needing that Chelsea season ticket any more!
Spotlight on Victoria Rive
Actor, lettings manager, backstage, front of house, etc.
What is your favourite play and why?
I don’t have a ‘favourite’ play, but I went to the Peter Hall promenade production of Entertaining Strangers at the National. It was the first time I’d been to a promenade play, and I’ll never forget the total engagement, and intimacy, created within the performances using that space: Judi Dench was in the cast, and I found myself standing next to her as she performed, crying in the anguish of her character. Quite brilliant.
What’s the best show you’ve been involved in?
No ‘best’ just quite a lot at the Barn that have been a joy to be involved with, on stage and backstage, thinking especially of Les Liaisons Dangereuses, Dancing at Lughnasa, The Lady in the Van and Lilies on the Land, among many others.
If you could have lunch with any three people (real or fictitious / dead or alive), which three people would you choose and why?
Bill Bailey: he’s funny and clever; Judi Dench – but not crying: she’s a great raconteur; and Toto Wolff: ’cause he’s gorgeous… and obviously a very interesting person.
If given complete freedom to start afresh, what profession would you choose and why?
Acting? No, only joking. Probably something in film production – continuity would suit me – or getting paid shed-loads of money for just walking around with a clipboard.
What is the craziest thing you’ve ever done?
Crazy stupid? My husband made me go on ‘The Big One’ at Blackpool: I screamed for 3.5 minutes. (The ride reaches a height of 213 feet (65m) and has a first drop measuring 205 feet). Aaaargh!
If you were to change one thing about yourself, what would it be?
Excuse me?
If you were stranded on a lonely beach, what are the five things that you would want to have with you?
Sun umbrella, lotion, books, a waiter, and a chef for the BBQ – wait, there is a BBQ isn’t there?
What is one of your favourite quotes?
Be yourself, everyone else is already taken. Thank you Oscar.
If given a chance to skip work for a day, how would you spend the entire day?
May not be relevant in these weird days! On that beach!
Victoria Rive
Barn Theatre, Sustainability, Environmental impact
Do you have an interest in shaping the way the Barn has an impact on the environment? Can you help make us a more sustainable building and company?
We want to hear from you.
We’re looking for volunteers who can join us in identifying ways the Barn can be more sustainable and reduce its impact on the environment.
If you’re interested, please email [email protected]
Michael Merry
Facilities Director
Erratum
Our reviewer of A Bunch of Amateurs in the March issue of Barn News implied that Rachel Thomas has been a Barn member for 47 years. In fact, 25 years would be more accurate. We apologise for the error!
Mike Smith
Editor
Letter to the Editor
I would like to thank the Barn Council for funding the Faux Wood workshop on Sunday 27th February.
David Pullins took us through the process and techniques he uses to produce the fantastic effects of faux wood. It was so interesting and very helpful for doing sets, etc. David was so informative and very helpful. I made a few mistakes but practice makes perfect! Some of the work produced by others on the course was amazing.
A special thanks to John Cook for arranging this. I hope we can have other workshops in different areas as it’s so useful and helpful for the theatre.
Once again, many thanks!
Stephanie Dunn
Playing away
Darren Barsby is appearing in The Hound of the Baskervilles at CoPs (25th March to 2nd April) and at Hertford Theatre Week on 4th April. Mel Powell is directing Eventide, also for CoPs at Hertford, on 8th April.
Matt Greenbank, Will Smith and Alastair Woodgate are appearing in Green Room’s Sunshine on Leith at Wyllyotts from 3rd – 7th May.
An audience with Glyn
Welwyn Garden City Literary Society will be hosting a special presentation by Glyn Maxwell on Monday 9th May. Glyn will be discussing his plays City of Tomorrow and The Lifeblood (on at the Barn from 22nd – 30th April) as well as reflecting on other matters of literary interest.
Glyn’s talk will be taking place at 7.30pm in St Bonaventure’s Parish Hall (next to the Church) on Parkway, Welwyn Garden City. As this is an event of much local interest, the Literary Society will be extending a warm welcome to any visitors who wish to attend. Space will be limited, and places can be reserved by contacting the Secretary on 01707 891074. Please leave a voicemail with your contact details.
Rising up to the challenge of... YDF!
The 78th WGC Youth Drama Festival saw a packed week, with 18 pieces of theatre performed over six nights on the Barn stage.
With three plays on most nights, Saturday began with a matinee with two entries. The final night also saw two entries, followed by the much-anticipated awards ceremony. A packed auditorium watched the curtains open for the final time revealing Adjudicator, Tristan Marshall; special guest, Councillor Siobhán Elam; WGC YDF Chairman, Michael Merry; and Secretary, Hazel Halliday, seated beside an organza-draped display of the nine awards to be made. As the strains of Eye of the Tiger rang through the theatre, the audience let out a collective gasp, as a bamboo cage was lowered from above the stage. Safely locked inside, were the toy tigers that were the chosen companions for each award in 2022.
The first tiger was awarded to Beaumont School, St Albans. Michael explained that Tigger Tiger was a special award agreed upon by the backstage team to be given to the team who they considered to have been the jolliest throughout the week.
Tristan began by talking about how hard the last 18 months had been to workers in the theatre industry. He touched upon the mental health stresses that Covid had imposed on the acting community, as all activities and contacts with friends and colleagues in rehearsal rooms, on stage and in theatre bars had been withdrawn. He’d been delighted to have acted as an observer to the 2021 WGC YDF online festival and to see that, even in those dark days, theatre was still managing to happen, albeit virtually. And now, to be back on stage and live in the theatre was wonderful.
Speaking of the week just ending, Tristan said: ‘The actors and the work that we’ve seen now that we’re back in the room, gives me incredible hope for the future. Some of the actors we’ve seen tonight, and during the week, are going to be the people who in the next 5 to 10 years we’ll see on TV and on the professional stage and we’ll say, ‘I remember that face – weren’t they at Welwyn?’. Because these are the young people who will be the next generation’. He continued: ‘It’s so exciting to work with youth theatre, because what we’re seeing is the theatre industry renewing itself with new ideas, and new excitement. With new ways to look at old plays and exciting ways to look at new plays. So, I’m hopeful for the future and I look forward to seeing plenty of the people that we’ve seen over the past week on the stages of the RSC and the National and the Globe’.
Tristan also commented about the incredible variety during the week, saying ‘We’ve seen large ensemble casts, we’ve seen one actor (twice). We’ve seen school groups, youth groups and drama schools. We’ve seen original work, devised work, adaptations of classic plays, but we’ve also seen two versions of the Scottish play and two Greek plays’. He admitted his bias for Shakespeare, but also confessed to a passion for Greek plays and said how wonderful it was to see two this week – one by a junior team and one by a senior team.
And so, on to the awards themselves…
Senior Winners
1st – Youth Committee Cup
Limitless Academy of Performing Arts
Brook for Nothing by Paul Adam Levy
Directed by Peter Heppelthwaite
2nd – Nero’s Cup
St Albans High School for Girls
Milady by Beth Flintoff
Directed by Holly Whymark
3rd – Annand Cup
Limitless Academy of Performing Arts
Scaramouche Jones by Justin Butcher
Directed by Peter McNally
Junior Winners
1st – Elizabeth Cory-Wright Cup
Junior Archer Players
Oedipus the King by Sophocles (translated by Ian Johnston)
Directed by Mark Carter
2nd – Hinton Cup
Stagecoach
Me, Me, Me, Me, Me, Me, Me by John Pritchard
Directed by John Pritchard
3rd – Louis Davis Cup
Beaumont School Junior Drama Company
When This is Over by the Company with Company 3
Directed by Katherine Rowe
Technical Award – Ball England Cup
Limitless Academy of Performing Arts
Scaramouche Jones by Justin Butcher
Directed by Peter McNally
There were two other nominees for the Technical Award
- Limitless Academy of Performing Arts for Brook for Nothing
- Junior Archer Players for Oedipus the King
Adjudicator’s Award – Glass Star
Stagecoach for the pineapple dance in Me, Me, Me, Me, Me, Me, Me Written and Directd by John Pritchard
There were two other nominees for the Adjudicator’s Award
- Company of Teens for sheer creative audacity
- STAHS for the play the adjudicator would most like to see again
Medals for Individual Excellence (in no particular order)
- Mark Carter (Archer) for directorial imagination and vision
- Lexie Doe (Stagecoach) for learning the most numerically complicated script
- Katherine Rowe (Beaumont) for wrangling the biggest cast with invention and imagination
- William Muir (Limitless) for the Adjudicator’s personal highlight of the week (and a difficult category to win) – the most uncanny impersonation of a 1970s DJ (Kenny Everett)
- Rosan Trisic (STAHS) as John Pym for the most perfect transformation
- Sophie Albert (STAHS) for technical mastery of cueing and showing how sound and lights are done really well
- Theo Brignall (Limitless) for the most demanding acting workload
- Jay McCarney-Redford (St George’s) for keeping it together, despite the bloody cat!
- Mary Robertson (Pump House) for a brilliantly chatty performance, and for ‘talking too much’ so well
- Bluebell Muir (St Chris) as Inspector Fix for adaptability and capability in a fast-moving production
There were three nominees made by the Festival Committee for the jolliest team during the week:
- Beaumont School
- Junior Archer Players
- Hampton Gardens School
Tigger Tiger was awarded to Beaumont School.
Hazel Halliday
YDF Secretary
Dates for your diary
Performances
In the Studio
September in the Rain
by John Godber
Directed by Cliff Francis
6th – 9th April at 8pm
Matinee 9th April at 2.30pm
On the main stage
The Lifeblood
Written and directed by Glyn Maxwell
22nd – 30th April at 8pm
Matinee 30th April at 2.30pm
Barn event
Directors Evening
Friday 6th May at 8pm
All photos used in Barn News are courtesy of John Davies
and Simon Wallace (MeltingPot pictures)