The Bot – as part of the Liverpool Fringe Festival

The Bot - As part of the Liverpool Fringe Festival

Thursday 10th October at 18.30 and 20.15 tickets £5-7

By William Thacker 

Directed by Edward Gray
When Prime Minister Tobias Quantick promises to rebuild Britain, his lack of decisiveness is a barrier to progress. When a scientist visits with an AI chatbot that can rule the country for him, Tobias jumps at the idea. But when the AI takes a dark twist, after his chief of staff makes a blunder, Tobias has to decide if the truth is really worth it. The Bot is a dark comedy and a political satire for our times.

Actors: Ted Grant, Denny McDermot and Lauren Blakeway

 

Book Here

Queer View – Play night as part of Queer words

Queer View - Play Night at the Studio Below as part of Queer Words

Saturday 31st August- 6.30pm and 8.30pm - tickets £5-£7

Enjoy three 20 minute plays chosen from entries from Grin Theatre and The Make it Write community.  There will be two performances of the three plays, one at 6.30pm and one at 8.30pm. Please book your tickets at the link below.

The Plays

Rivals by Sharon Colpman: Michelle and Sonia are actors but they are also a couple and they audition for the same parts. This begins to cause a rift between them but will this love/hate relationship pay off in the cut throat world of the audition room.

The Meat Rack by Paul Daley: George is a young lad of ambition but currently he is on the meat rack, selling himself to strangers. This dangerous world soon brings him to the attention of a tough, rich and bored man, looking for a toy to play with. Will George survive the encounter. (Some homophobic language used)

Lighten up by Tony Vale: Lionel is terminally ill in a hospice when he is visited by his devoted partner Isaac. This touching play looks at love, death and a changing world.

Book here

Queer Words – Spoken Word Night

Queer Words - spoken word night at the Studio Below

Sunday 1st September - Pay what you decide

Join us for a night of flash fiction, poems, monologues and duologues with an LGBTQ+ theme. Grin theatre are in collaboration with Make it Write for this non-stop evening of spoken entertainment. The evening is curated but if you have some work you would like to read out on the night keeping with the theme, please let the organisers know on the night. We have some vacant spots later in the evening.

Entry is Free but suggested donations at the door are £3-£5

Deadline for Entries 31st July

Queer Writing in Action- MIW and Grin Theatre.

Queer Writing in Action as part of the Queer Words Weekend

 Kiefer Wes Williams (The Plays the Thing) and Sharon Colpman (Writing Together) are your facilitators to bring you a workshop that looks at writing good queer characters for your plays and spoken word.

Participants will:

  • Initiate an idea for a play, duologue or monologue
  •  Learn how to create real 3D LGBTQ+ characters without resorting to stereotypes or getting things wrong
  • Explore how to approach play writing from a queer perspective
  • Give voice to the imagination and embrace Queer words

Course details

This course will run on 1st September 2pm to 5pm. It will be held at The Studio Below (39 Rodney St. Liverpool)

Doors will be open from 1.30pm where refreshments will be available, for a prompt start at 2pm. The course finishes at 5pm. Please bring a note book and wear comfortable clothing.

All participants are welcome

The course is £10

Book Here

LGBTQ+ Theatre Making – MIW and Grin Theatre.

Producing a Queer Christmas Carol - Making Good LGBTQ+ Theatre - as part of the Queer Words Weekend

 Kiefer Wes Williams (Grin Theatre Producer) and Sharon Colpman (MIW Producer) are your facilitators to bring you a workshop that will give you a better understanding of acting, writing, directing and producing Queer Theatre, by adapting Dickens’ A Christmas Carol from a Queer perspective.

Participants will:

  • Examine the Ghost of LGBTQ Theatre past, and it’s influences on modern theatre
  • Understand the importance of diverse voices in playwriting and theatre
  • Looking at the current LGBTQ+ topics of theatre present
  • Create an ideas for how to address queer theatre for the future
  • We will put together ideas for making a Queer Christmas Carol.

Course details

This course will run on 31st August 2pm to 5pm. It will be held at The Studio Below (39 Rodney St. Liverpool)

Doors will be open from 1.30pm where refreshments will be available, for a prompt start at 2pm. The course finishes at 5pm. Please bring a note book and wear comfortable clothing.

All participants are welcome

The course is only £10

Book Here

The Keys to Life and Spin the Imperfect double bill and fund-raiser

The Keys to Life and Spin the Imperfect

Saturday 18th May a pay what you decide event.

As part of a double bill at The Studio Below, Make it Write Productions have teamed up with 4th Wall Productions for a night of entertainment, drinks, food and fundraising. Network and socialise between the matinee and the evening show. Doors open at 3.30pm, first showing at 4pm last showing at 7.30pm

The Keys to Life by Brian Hutchinson and directed by Kevin Foott, assistant Director Rachel Pennington, enters the world of Sara, trapped within her own mind. It looks at the madness of humanity, how global events impact on our minds and how the actions of a single despot can trip someone into a solitary world of anxiety. This is also a love story told in poetical prose unlocking a subliminal message of hope, love and compassion. Unlock your mind to something bigger. Winner of the Endeavour award at this years Leverhulme festival

Spin the Imperfect is a tale of ambition, desperation and Intrigue: Meet Lawrence Maynard, a once-prominent playwright who’s latest play is teetering on the brink of failure. What wouldn’t he do to save his career? Find out how low you can go.

This show is written and directed by Ted Grant. Ted also plays Lawrence. It earned nominations at this years Leverhulme festival.

Spoken Word Night

spoken word night at the Studio Below

2nd May at 7pm Free or Donationon door

Join us for a night of flash fiction, poems, monologues and duologues. We are still taking entries for our spoken word event which will be a chance for the Make it Write Community to celebrate all their hard work. A bar will be available and some open mic spots will be available if time allows. Donations at the door

If you wish to enter, your duologues can be a maximum of 10 minutes and all other entries maximum of 5 minutes. Please cast and direct your piece yourself but if you are struggling to find an actor, let us know. Please include all actors names along with your submission. It will be first come first served.

entries to info@makeitwrite.org

Click the button below to be part of the community post on Face Book.

Click here

Progressing your acting – Towards the Professional Stage

Progress Your Acting - Towards the Professional Stage (Level 1)

Course details

This 6-part course is delivered by Grin Theatre’s artistic director Kiefer Wes Williams and produced by Make It Write Productions. 

The actor will learn how to fine tune their skills for the stage and progress their acting career.

The course of six sessions is designed as a springboard to the advanced actor’s course which is later this year. In order to progress onto Level Two, you must attend this first course.

Price £70  (can be paid in 3 instalments of £24)

At Level One the actor will learn the techniques and dynamics of acting including:

  • Characterisation
  • Voice
  • Improvisation skills
  • Physicality
  • Preparation for audition and performance
  • Emotional resonance and response
  • Focus on dialogue and line learning.
  • Building confidence
  • Understanding the script
  • Understanding teamwork
  • Monologue
  • Actors Toolbox
  • Listening skills
  • Classical theatre and play reading.
  • Marketing your talents
  • And many more topics

 

The course is designed to run over the course of 6 consecutive Saturdays 10-12noon at Studio Below, 39 Rodney Street

4/11/18/25 May 1/8 June

Come along if you want to sharpen your acting and performance skills. The course is strictly 18+

Book Here

Play with your Play – 25th April

A workshop where directors and actors play with your play. the intention is for you to introduce your work to us. Writers must attend this live event. Please do not enter if you are unable to attend.


Thurs 23rd May 7pm
The studio below, Liverpool
Facilitator Molly Farquhar and Luke Sookdeo
Deadline 12th May midnight

 We are currently looking for full plays 30-45 mins up to 3 characters that are fun and unusual, ripe for the fringe, for our director facilitators and actors to work with. They will choose three to work on live at the Studio Below. You have the chance to ask all present about your work and how to improve it. If the directors like it, you might get a chance to have it produced with us. This is a general introduction so we can get to know you. You will see your play on it’s feet and just what a director would do with it.

Please make sure your submission has a cast list at the top with ages and gender, where needed. Write a short synopsis of the performance and anything else you think might persuade us to pick your work.

Please make sure you give us full contact details including phone number.

The studio has no disabled access but do let us know and we can arrange a zoom reading at another time, should our director be interested in your play.

Email your entry to info@makeitwrite.org

Passing Moustache

Passing Moustache

3rd and 4th July at 7pm The Kings Arms Salford

A stylised and poetic look at how we process change… in ourselves, others and society.   What do we feel when faced with new ways of perceiving race, culture and gender. what are the prison bars we refuse to see?  The writing poses big questions but finds understanding in the minutiae.

The political is public but the personal is obscured, complicated by the secrets we keep from ourselves. 

Tickets are £8 full price, £6 concession

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Book Here

Cast and Crew

Cast

Alec Marriner                     Cory Sapienza

Barry Black                          Mark Prescott

Cee Green                           Michelle Phillips

Dalibor Rybar                    Terence Caddick

Eddie Pinkney                    Ted Grant

Fiona Fern                            Rachel Davies

Gerry Silver                         Sonia Sidje 

Crew

Director: Merv Jones

Writer/Producer:  Edward Gray

Stage Manager:  Siobhan Pearson

Graphic Design & IT: Blake Emery

Executive Producer: Sharon Colpman

A Make It Write Production

From the Executive Producer

I often get unsolicited plays landing in my inbox with an excited ping.  I usually redirect the sender to the writers drop in, but this was different.  It was from Ted Gray who was already attending the drop in and had told me about his play.  I read it.  At the time it was just the bare bones and it wasn’t the shape of a normal play.  It crashed over me like a wave and then reset with a chorus.  At 58 years old, I don’t often get excited about much, but I could see the potential in this extract.  The play became the Passing Moustache and I could not be more pleased to present it to you.

Sharon Colpman