One can get obsessed with a particular work of art and I confess that obsession is the only way to describe my relationship to The Merchant of Venice. I have directed it twice professionally (the RSC and Birmingham Rep), twice at drama schools (LAMDA and Bristol Old Vic Theatre School) and taught and lectured on it often. When working on select scenes with students at the London Drama Studio (Ealing) it began to occur to me that there was an inner play about a small network of relationships that was the core of the bigger play that wrestles with huge themes of Justice and Mercy, Marriage and Money, Race and Class, and it is this inner core, essentially about the tortured nature of Love, that my production for Shakespeare in Italy will focus on.
Antonio loves Bassanio in a tortured way because he struggles to understand the true nature of his feelings and has no idea either how to express them or whether they will ever be reciprocated. Bassanio loves Portia but is tortured by how real that is when weighed against his desperate need of her money to repay his debts to a man he also loves, Antonio! Portia loves Bassanio but is tortured by the terms of her dead father's bizarre will that dictates her marital future turns on the outcome of a crazy-seeming lottery. The conversation of the lovers before Bassanio makes his choice turns around the metaphor of them both being on the rack, the Elizabethan torturers instrument of choice. Shylocks torture, apart from his foul treatment by the Christians of Venice, is the death of his adored wife Leah and the duplicity of his daughter. My version of the play, which I have called A Merchant of Venice, excludes much that is well known, to focus on just six key characters whose entangled loves, desires and fortunes hinge on better understanding of themselves and their relation to each other in the blackly comic world of a modern Venice, the sublime and terrible Serenissima.
Bill Alexander

www.theplaygroundtheatre.london

#TheMerchantofVenice #Portia #Shylock #Antonio #Bassanio #Gratiano + #newcharacter #Venice #merchantventurers #laserenissima #shakespeare
@PlaygroundW10
#AssociateArtist #RSCHonoraryAssociateArtist

We are delighted to announce that through a unique partnership we have been successful in winning a grant from Arts Council England for a free four-day summer school in East Brighton for 14 - 18 year olds. It will give young people the opportunity to play and have fun with film-making, drama and music to explore an orchard environment.
The Apples and Eyes Project will take place in Racehill Community Orchard at the top of Wilson Avenue and be led by an experienced team of actors and practitioners from the Shakespeare in Italy Theatre Company, alongside the Trust for Developing Communities and Brighton Permaculture Trust.
The natural world was a driving force of Shakespeare’s imagination. His plays abound with references to nature. Oberon, the king of the fairies in A Midsummer Night’s Dream instructs Puck to drop a love potion in Demetrius' eyes:

‘Flower of this purple dye,
Hit with Cupid’s archery,
Sink in apple of his eye’.

“We are thrilled to be working on this project in Brighton, which we hope will be the first of many. Young people will be assisted to use their creative, dramatic skills in a natural setting, encouraging them to explore the transformative powers of both and to have fun in the process,” said actress Mary Chater who devised the project and is one of the founders of Shakespeare in Italy.

Youth Work Manager Caroline Vitta for the Trust for Developing Communities in East Brighton, is looking forward to taking part: “The trust is excited to be involved in this great project for young people at the Racehill Community Orchard. East Brighton has a strong community arts base and the partnership can build on this by giving young people the opportunity to get involved in film making, music and drama in really beautiful surroundings whilst being supported by the fantastic Shakespeare in Italy Theatre Company.”

Bryn Thomas, Director of Brighton Permaculture Trust said: “I am delighted that this project is taking place at Racehill Community Orchard, giving local young people a chance to connect to nature and explore the space in a creative way. In practical terms, it will also help us towards fitting solar electric lighting in our cabin and tools store and to install rainwater harvesting for watering the orchard trees.”

TO JOIN THE SUMMER SCHOOL AND FOR MORE INFO, please email Caroline Vitta - carolinevitta@trustdevcom.org.uk

#youngpeople #14-18yrolds #summerschool #orchard #naturalworld #filmmaking #brightonandhove #brighton #permaculture #organicgrowingtechniques #biodiversity #sustainability #StanmerOrganics #solarelectriclighting #brightonpermaculturetrust

https://www.theguardian.com/stage/2021/jul/19/david-mamet-oleanna-sexual-harassment-drama?CMP=Share_AndroidApp_Other

With Jonathan Slinger as John and Rosie Sheehy as Carol

Writer Mark Daniels has a show on @CamdenFringe Aug 2 - 4 @TheHenChickens

Corona Virus - A Great British Farce

He won our playwriting competition, 'Lockdown, Taboo and You' with it in March this year.

Tickets https://tinyurl.com/jy3wcfc7 #SaveTheArts #NewWriting

This show is #Catharsis

This show is #Therapy

This show is #Gibberish

We ran our 6 day summer school from June 14 - 19 at #ThePlaygroundTheatre, Latimer Road, London W10.

Emma Lucia Hands led sessions on #AMidsummerNightsDream, Philip Cumbus on #MuchAdoAboutNothing, Lucy Bailey and Michael Corbidge on #TwelfthNight and #TwoMerchantsofModena and Sarah Sayeed sessions on the Voice and Music with text.

Below is some enthusiastic feedback plus photos and short videos from Faisal Mohiuddin, Annette Probert, Valentina Vinci, Marilyn Homer and Lynn Strugnell.

Ages ranged from 20 - 79 and the participants came from Liverpool, North Wales, Hull, Glasgow, London, Newcastle, Milan, Milton Keynes, Warwickshire, Cambridgeshire, Berkshire etc with English, Welsh, Bangladeshi, Indian, Italian, Swiss, Greek, Australian and Scottish nationalities present.

THE SIX DAYS WAS A LOT OF FUN WITH PLENTY OF LAUGHTER. IT FELT GLORIOUSLY NORMAL TO BE TOGETHER, WORKING IN A THEATRE SPACE AGAIN. 

This course was one of the best things I’ve done in a long time. I took a risk as I had no idea what to expect, and it was brilliant. Thank you to you and the team for putting together a great week. Lizzie Miles

I just wanted to say that it was an absolutely stunning two days with Philip Cumbus. Not only did I learn so much, but there was such a warmth and openness and inclusiveness in the room. I was particularly impressed by the diversity of the collective brain, as it is unique to be in a group that has so many people from different experiences, ages, cultures all sharing and contributing and being brave and generous. That is a testament to your vision of the project and also to the teachers for being so empowering and encouraging! Elena Pellone

I very much enjoyed learning with top professionals; people who really know what they are doing because they have solid experience of theatre work and particularly directing. Julia Holden

Excellent combination of Lucy Bailey and voice coach Michael Corbidge. I really appreciated the detailed pre work Lucy and Michael put into the course. It was well thought out and structured to the right level. It was well paced but most of all tremendous fun. The best aspect was the fact that it was almost wholly activity based. The length of the 4 day module was perfect as was the length of the day and the breaks given. I cannot fault the programme in any way. David Choules

I have never wanted to act but discovered that being involved in the process all day long ( 10 - 4.30) really helped my understanding of the characters, their words and actions. I gained insight into the feelings and emotions behind them as well as their effect on me as I received and spoke the words.

I felt included, a part of something happening that was much bigger than me. Marilyn Homer