Breathing Life into Words at the Royal Exchange

written by Mick Martin

There is nothing a writer likes better than hearing their words brought to full bodied life in the mouths and minds of actors.  A couple of weeks ago the Royal Exchange in Manchester kindly hosted us for a script reading and workshop day. 

We had a full team in: five very talented actors, the producer, set and costume designer, videographer and sound technician to run a few cues since the music is just wee bit central to this play.  It was a very productive and thoroughly enjoyable day.

A good rule of thumb for gauging whether a read through goes well is whether the actors ‘get’ it, when they immerse themselves in their characters and want to know more about them so that they begin to explore and question the hinterland of them. 

I know I’m biased, but I felt the play lifted off the page really well. The questions I had relating to shape and structure and the gear change shifts and story progressions along the way – ( ie whether they worked or not ) have eased and in a sense I see the play anew.

It is fundamentally a family story, about love and loss, fear too, of the future. It’s about the nature and pace of change in a world that Eugene, the main character, wishes would stay the same always. But it won’t.

It needs work. There are lots of thing to look at, but we have a play. It’s funny, moving, talks about a whole range of very prescient issues in these conflicted and difficult times, and all the way heart and soul deep in northern soul stonewall belters!

Check out our short film from the day, featuring interviews with some of the creative team and snippets of the rehearsed reading.

Images by Jude Wright