Last Friday was a first for me. I attended the initial reading by Theze Guyz of my one-act play, Tea Party of the Gods. It was a real pleasure to be there at the start of the play's first production.
Theze Guyz are an amateur company set up to give everyone, no matter their abilities or experience, a chance to perform. This year is the company's 21st anniversary, and they're planning to mark it with three performances of three plays. I'm honoured to have been asked to supply one of them.
Tea Party of the Gods follows what happens when an elderly lady, her cleaner and a delivery lad find themselves taking refuge from a thunderstorm under a kitchen table. The situation forces them to confront memories and realise that what they had assumed to be real was not always the truth. Happily, everyone laughed in the right places (and none of the wrong ones!).
It wasn't quite as I'd heard it in my head, but that's fine because it showed me that the play has a life of its own. The reading highlighted a few lines that I want to alter, and being there at the start allows me to make those changes with the agreement and input of the director and cast. It's so valuable to get other people's perspectives on the characters and staging. I'll attend as many rehearsals as I can, and I'm expecting to learn a great deal.
Along with my play, Theze Guyz will be performing Bride to Be by experienced writer, director, performer and founder member, Sarah Love. Maxwell P. I. by Darren White will complete the line-up. Performances are due to take place in September, and I'll supply the details as I have them. You can discover more about Theze Guyz on Facebook.
Meanwhile, my play Antarctica, which was runner-up in the inaugural Walter Swann Trust contest, short-listed for the Windsor Fringe Festival and performed at West Yorkshire Playhouse, Ilkley Playhouse and as part of the Northampton Playhouse Festival is available at http://www.silverbirchingtonplays.com