Session 8 - 03-03-2011

Back from a week out, the team return for a full ships compliment!

This session was intended to finish up any outstanding recordings, check on the progress of the different groups, prioritise tasks that need to be done, discuss the logistics of the final event and generally move the project forward.

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Emma allocated jobs to various members of the group before the session. Claire and I went to the recording studio to re-record the introduction speech; Ayla, Josh and Louise went to the library to work on the poster; Alex and Vicky sorted through the soundscapes they had recorded over the last few weeks, before passing them over to Charlotte for final editing.

After our short and painless recording session we met up with the rest of the group as they were getting to work. People were buzzing around discussing their roles and their progress. The air was generally upbeat and enthusiastic.



Emma took me aside to discuss a few issues arising. We discussed how we were going to invite people to attend the event. So far, we have the website, an entry on CreativeTorbay and a Facebook event for friends and family. Emma suggested personalised invitations to certain groups in Totnes and other notable figures. I am in the process of compiling an invitation list of Totnes groups and people who have helped us in planning the process.

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We ended the session with every group updating their peers as to where they are. As it stands, nearly all the conversations are edited, the soundscapes are taking shape, the poster is still being compiled, transport has been arranged for next weeks testing trip to Totnes and everyone knows what they need to do for the next week.

Finally, taking advantage of a full attendence, I grabbed a quick photo of the students!

Session 1 - 06-01-2010

Week 1 - Project Introduction

Today was the first session with the cast of the project. The session started with a wonderful in-depth contextualisation of the whole idea behind the project by Emma Whittaker. This included a look at some of the material from the test project designed for Ashburton.

Then it was over to me :-)

I started with a brief explanation of my role in the project. I said that I would mainly be working with them on the creating and devising process for the next few weeks. I had planned a few short exercises to the get their creative juices flowing.

1. Improvisation Game - Park Bench - Participants are given strange personalities and sent to sit on a park bench one by one. They will interact with their fellow actors to create a scene

2. Linking Game - Film Styles - Based on the "Whose Line is it Anyway?" game. Two participants act out a simple scene. They will then be made to re-run the scene in the style of a film (e.g. Western, Musical, 20's Gangster, James Bond)

3. Devising Exercise - Scene from a Stimulus - Participants are split into groups. They are given an object, a word or phrase from which to devise a short piece of theatre. They are given about 10 minutes to create a piece

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After Lunch, we had an hour session to start thinking of ideas for the content. I explained in a little more detail the ideas I had thought of beforehand. I also showed the cast a picture of the area that we would be focusing on in Totnes.

It was clear from this early stage that people had a lot of interesting ideas for both the recording content and for a possible theatrical accompaniment, and as such were keen to make the project their own.

As an initial devising task, I asked the cast to conduct a little of their own research into Totnes. This would include looking into possible locations, as well as researching any interesting local legends or stories on which to base the story.



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Overall, the first session has left me feeling very positive about the future of the project. The quality of the devised pieces that were created in such a short time was truly astonishing - A very heartening sign indeed!

With the second session promising a visit to Ashburton to test the audio, I hope that the cast will have a good idea fixed in their heads about how the project will work. Until then, its back to the research!

Welcome to "Interactive Drama Totnes 2011"

Hello and welcome one and all!

Thank you for taking an interest in our project. It is still in the very early stages of development, so any input would be welcomed!

For those who may not know, we are planning to create an Interactive Drama experience in Totnes. The story will be written specifically for Totnes, with Totnes landmarks used as inspiration and as the stages for the final piece.

The project involves the Apple iPhone. The participants will travel around Totnes guided by voice recordings, which will be played through headphones to tell a story based on where they are in Totnes.

The project will draw on the knowledge and stories of the residents of Totnes, which will be used to write the story.

If this project interests you, or even if it something you might like to see and hear when we are finished, please follow our blog to stay updated!

At the moment, we are looking at a date around Easter (this is still provisional)


Thank you for reading, and on behalf of the team, we hope you will follow our process with interest!