page last updated 04.10.08
October 2008
November 2008 sees the return of our popular Youth Theatre Group production at
the village hall. This year we are offering an evening of two, contrasting,
one-act comedies which highlight the talent that we have at youth level.
Gilly's
Gem by Sandy Taylor.
Gilly is a well-travelled, wealthy business woman and her
'gem' is Millicent, her live-in cleaner. Millicent
is a bit of a skiver on the quiet but proves amazingly resourceful when
Gilly gets targeted by a con-man. This charming situation comedy is a great
favourite at one-act play festivals but is usually performed by adults.
Play director, John Birch, (who also directed James &
The Giant Peach) has been fortunate to cast five of our most talented youngsters
who have enjoyed the challenge of portraying some of the subtleties of adult
behaviour.
Ernie's
Incredible Illucinations by Alan Ayckbourn.
This hilarious play is gradually building a reputation as a
children's classic and has been widely performed by schools and youth theatre
groups throughout the UK.
Ernie is a boy with an incredible imagination – everything he imagines becomes real, much to the consternation of his parents. They take Ernie to the doctors in search of a cure, but things don’t go exactly as planned. Secret agents, a boxing granny and mountaineering in the local library make this great fun for all ages.
Come along and support Youth Theatre in Ravenshead.
Performance nights are Friday 21st and Saturday 22nd November 2008. 7.30pm start at Ravenshead Village Hall. Tickets are all £4.50 each available from Godfrey’s or The Box Office.
May 2008
Stop Press - Double Win for Youth Theatre Talent.
Ravenshead Youth Theatre Group continue to enjoy success in the
12 years and under category at the annual NANDA Youth Theatre
Festival. Ellie Thomas picked up the award for Best Actress and Gethin
Williams was Best Actor at the event which was held on May 10th at
the Dukeries Complex, Ollerton.
Ellie and Gethin joined a large RYTG cast in The Spiriting Of Burd Ellen
a one-act, comedy fairytale about the abduction of Burd Ellen - King Arthur's daughter,
directed by Mandy Buckley.
Ellie played Burd Ellen's rescuer - her brother, Childe Rowland, and Gethin played a
Herdsman, one of the characters that Chide Rowland encounters on his way to rescue his sister.
RYTG's dominance of the under 12 category follows last year's Best Actress success
for Charlotte Kirk. Also receiving Highly Commended Certificates this year were
Jordan Rodger, Marisha Milek, who played Merlin, and Saachi Oza, who played the
Elven King.
November 2007
NOTTINGHAM PLAYHOUSE VISIT
Members of the Youth Theatre Group recently visited Nottingham Playhouse Theatre
for a special Backstage Tour to gain an insight into what goes on behind the
scenes in a professional theatre. Before the tour began the youngsters had the
opportunity to meet the principal actors from ‘Beast On The Moon’. Youseff
Kerkour and Karine Bedrossian, who were preparing for the final performance of
the Playhouse’s November production.
One of the highlights of the tour saw the group actually onstage on the set of
‘Beast On The Moon’ to get an actor’s eye-view, albeit of an empty auditorium.
Our tour guide also explained the different configurations of stage and seating
that could be employed and the effects that could be achieved with sound,
lighting, revolving floors and trapdoors.
Backstage, most of the staff were busy preparing for this season’s pantomime,
‘Dick Whittington’. We saw some wonderful costumes in the wardrobe department,
skeletons that will glow in the dark were being made in the props studio and in
the large paintshop a team of painters were busy on a 40’ high backcloth that
would eventually become King Rat’s cave.
Our Youth Group members had an intriguing glimpse into the workings of a
professional theatre. They came away realising just how many people are involved
backstage in bringing a production to life and that a career in theatre doesn’t
have to involve acting.
Our thanks to Nottingham Playhouse for their hospitality and to Judy and Alan of
the Village Bus for getting us there and back again on what was a fascinating
and enjoyable afternoon.
October 2007 update
The Youth Theatre Group continues to go from strength to strength with a membership of 20+ and 10-15 members on the waiting list. We still meet each Tuesday, in term time, evening in St Peters Church Hall Ravenshead from 07:30 to 09:30pm. At each session the group members participate in workshops centred on different aspects of theatre and drama. These include learning skills and improvisation work. We also play games and have lots of fun.
Pantomime 2007
Some members of the Youth Theatre group were involved in the 2007 Pantomime; Sleeping Beauty. The members helped with building and painting the set, acting in the chorus and singing and dancing in the musical numbers. They proved to be a great asset.
NANDA 2007
For the second year running the Youth Theatre group entered the Nottingham and Nottinghamshire Drama Association Youth one act play festival. It was again held at the Dukeries Theatre complex in Ollerton. We entered two plays, one was Star Dusters by Naomi Sinclair and the one was “What Theatre Really Is” by James Saunders. Never were there two more contrasting pieces. Star Dusters was a traditional comedy/farce set in a theatre; luckily for our set builders! It was about six cleaning ladies who decide one night to have a go at putting on a play themselves; with humorous results.
“What Theatre Really Is” was quite different; a form of a naked sketch about the very nature of “theatre” that had no set or props to speak of other than that which was developed by the members of the Youth Group themselves. Both pieces received positive comments from the adjudicator who particularly praised the group for their comic timing. We came away with two awards, a Highly Commendable Certificate for Fiona Hill and newcomer Charlotte Kirk won the Best Actress under 12 award. An enjoyable evening was had by all.
Onwards and upwards
The Youth group is currently looking at ideas for their NANDA entries for Spring 2008 and for a main show in November 2008. However before all of that they will all be involved in the main group’s Pantomime in January 2008, “Treasure Island”; so watch out for some particularly dastardly pirates. Yo Ho Ho and Bottle of Rum!
About the group
Ravenshead Theatre Group has long catered for the drama needs of young people. In September 2004 our group expanded to include a youth section with 25 members.
Whilst most teenagers were enjoying the long summer break away from school / homework, a small group of them were busy learning lines for the first Ravenshead Youth Theatre Group (RYTG) production.
The group was first established in October 2004 based at St Peters Church Hall in Ravenshead. Following an initial estimate of 10 – 15 potential members (with a limit set at 20) the group was overwhelmed when 25 local children asked to join. We are pleased to say that 9 months later we still have 25 members with 2 eager thespians waiting to join the group.
Ages range from 11(minimum) to 16 (maximum). On reaching 16
youth members can transfer to the main group. The group meets most Tuesdays at
St Peters Church Hall 8-9.30pm. The group's activities include workshops,
productions and games. The group is managed by its members and the activities
are overseen by the Committee which includes youth group members. To date RYTG
has been involved in the Village Hall Christmas event and the 2005 Ravenshead
Theatre Group pantomime – ‘Dick Turpin’ and have performed their own production
of I was a Teenage Jekyll and Hyde
For further information please contact Anne Marie Butler on 0115 9566376.
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Animal Magic
One of the most enjoyable aspects of the Tuesday night meetings of the
Youth Theatre Group has to be improvisation. We, the organisers, create
scenarios, characters and unfinished scripts, than the members split into teams
and are given approximately 20 minutes to develop their ideas into short
sketches. The results can be spectacular, imaginative, witty and demonstrate
great teamwork and quick thinking.
Following the Nanda Festival in May, we ran a series of improvisation evenings
taking a light-hearted look at the world of animals. This coincided with several
requests to perform "Zartan" (one of our Nanda Festival entries) at the Village
Hall. Being a Tarzan spoof, one-act play, "Zartan" also features animals. We
could see a theme developing for our Autumn Production!
Over the summer "Animal Magic", an evening of one-act plays, songs and sketches,
took shape and was rehearsed. Many of the sketches were
original and were developed from our improvisation sessions. Alongside "Zartan"
we had "A Dogs Life", a superb one-act play by Pam Valentine. We also threw
in a dash of Disney favourites, a cut of a TV classic and a sprinkle of Creature
Comforts. The perfect recipe for an entertaining evening.
We hope you were able to come and support the young dramatic talent of Ravenshead
and have as much fun watching "Animal Magic" as we did putting it
together for you.
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Youth Group at 2006 NANDA festival
On Friday 5th May, two teams from Ravenshead Youth Theatre Group
performed in the Nottingham and Nottinghamshire Drama Association (NANDA)
One-act play festival for actors and actresses aged 19 or under.
This is an annual two-day event that highlights some of the best youth theatre work in the region and attracts teams from what could best be described as semi-professional theatres such as The Lace Market and The Robin Hood Theatre at Averham.
This two-day event took place on Friday 5th and Saturday 6th May at The Dukeries Theatre which forms part of The Dukeries Complex at Ollerton. Teams
were
invited to perform a One Act Play that is no longer than 45 minutes. and
prestigious trophies can be won for Best Play, Best Actor etc. Entries are
restricted to young people aged 19 and under at the time of the performance.
This was the first time that Ravenshead had entered a competition of this nature
and something of a step into the unknown. Our adult organisers, directors and
helpers were unsure of the standard we would have to achieve to compete with the
other, more experienced teams. All of the other competitors had taken part in
the festival in previous ears and most of them had actors aged 18 and 19 in
their casts, whilst the Ravenshead group has an age restriction of 11 - 16 years
and the average age of those attending the festival was 13 - 14.
Both Ravenshead teams acquitted themselves magnificently and certainly weren't intimidated by the opposition.
Richard Maddock was nominated for Best Actor for his role as Lord Greycoat in
the Tarzan spoof 'Zartan' and received a Highly Commended Certificate. Hannah
Newton also received a nomination and Highly Commended Certificate for Best
Actress in the under 12s section, also for 'Zartan'.
THE PLAYS
Ravenshead Team 1 are presented "SUMMER VOCATION" by Kathy Mead. A gentle comedy about the seasons and the weather, in which Father Time has sacked last Summer because it was so dreadful. An interview panel is assembled to appoint a new Summer to the post.
Ravenshead Team 2 presented "Zartan" by Nick Warburton. A
spoof comedy based on the Tarzan story in which a young child lands in the
jungle. Unlike the 'real' Tarzan he is not brought up by the apes - but by an
entirely different set of creatures!
