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NOVEMBER UPDATE:

Unfortunately I had misunderstood the situation regarding APE being able to take bookings from Schools for TOO MUCH PUNCH FOR JUDY/LEGAL WEAPON. It appears that the availability chart they have refers to whole week bookings for areas. I guess one way forward is for teachers to discuss it at their panel meetings to see if there is interest in your area... if areas are able to create a weeks worth of bookings they should thencheck the avalability chart and approach APE direct.

I am disappointed about this too and am hoping to continue discussions to see if there is any way to progress the situation.

However... it has to be said that there are huge advantages for schools in areas where RSO's do book it in that those schools will recieve a heavily subsidised tour... whereas with direct marketing schools would have to bear the total cost of the Theatre Company. So another route is to talk to your local Road Safety Officer to see if they are interested in bringing one of the plays to your area.

Hope this helps.

Do in any case visit Apes new and exciting site to see what they are up to... they are a really vibrant Theatre Comapany.

www.apetheatrecompany.co.uk
or
www.apetheatrecompany.com

WHEELLERPLAYS NOVEMBER NEWS 

Ape Theatre Company Website.

There is to be an Ape Theatre Company Web site where teachers will be able to book performances of (amongst other things) both LEGAL WEAPON & TOO MUCH PUNCH online. Click here or here to access the site.

Missing Dan Nolan.

The final OYT performances of this play have now been presented. In my view the best performance was the very last… where my cast “found” ideas which gave it a freshness rarely seen in youth Theatre. This was due to having performed it so many times… that they were sufficiently confident to “perform”. Alex Chalk (Greg), Kate Dean (Pauline), Rachel Dennett (Clare) & Darren Harley (Dan) have proved an exceptional cast to work with and give this play a fantastic start in life. I would like to offer a very public thanks to them and the hardworking OYT backstage team (notably Danny Sturrock) who worked SO hard to get this play on stage and give it such a good reputation.

I am obviously indebted to Pauline and all the other people who gave their words to make this play possible. Thanks.

My own view of the quality of our production was backed up by the award of BEST YOUTH ENTRY at the prestigious (& he) Woking Drama Festival. In addition to this we received 6 out of a possible 8 nominations! I hope I will be able to quote some of the adjudication we received in the coming weeks. The performance was filmed by Carlton TV who plan to use extracts in a program they are putting out in December called Missing At Christmas. 

We were delighted to read this quote from Pauline Nolan in the local paper by way of a reaction to our success:

“I feel very proud. Although we’ve lost Dan, he’s gone on and done something well with the play. We’re very pleased. It’s a very positive reward for all the young actors and the hard work Mark Wheeller has put into the play. All the issues about Dan’s disappearance and the safety issues surrounding teenagers are in the production which has also created an awareness of the National Missing Persons Helpline.” Pauline Nolan.

Today (Nov 3rd) we had our third review in the Southern Evening Echo. I have copied some extracts for your interest:

Review: 

Dan Nolan - Missing, Oaklands Youth Theatre, Sarisbury Green Community Centre

I feel privileged to have been invited to see Mark Wheeller's play about the disappearance of the late Dan Nolan again. This time, with the same four young actors, performance experience shone through. It is just as compelling, gripping and tragic as before… just as harrowing. We can only ponder at the enormity of the grief and trauma experienced by Dan's family, his young friends and schoolmates. We must, however, relish Mark Wheeller's powerful story telling of such a sad story with tragic consequences.

by Jan Foster

I was also really thrilled to hear from Looe (Cornwall) Youth Theatre who have now performed this play four times. Such was the reaction that they have been invited to perform it again at Looe Community School… I quote from the letter of their director:

Hi Mark, We are doing another production of DNM at the local comp. school, following several letters received by the school from some of our audience, who felt very strongly it should be seen by more young people.

I am delighted to take this opportunity to perform to a school audience, although some of the children have had serious reservations about whether their peers will take it seriously. I have no doubt that the majority can not fail to be affected by the play in some way and the cast have all put personal worries behind them for the greater good of the whole.

Regards

Val

This is fantastic news… our YT showed it to two year groups… 9 (200 of them!) & 10 (150 of them) and literally you could have heard a pin drop… the play is proving to be very powerful when performed… and the message is SO important. It induces much the same reaction as Too Much Punch does. Good luck to those young performers and congrats to their director Val.

This play has now been performed on average once every two weeks since it was written… what a great start it has had… hopefully word of it’s power will spread… fast.

Amateur Stage

I omitted to mention in my last newsletter that there was a tremendous article in the September edition of this magazine devoted to Wheellerplays. Thanks Dawn!

Edexcel Chief Examiners Report.

I was delighted to read that my plays along with those of Ayckbourn, Campton & Godber proved to be the most popular choices of contemporary playwrights for school students presenting plays for the Edexcel GCSE Drama exam. Wow… very pleased to be in such company. I was also for a while linked through to the Willy Russell and John Godber pages (& vice versa) on Amazon saying people who had bought my script had also bought theirs. There has been some updating on Amazon recently regarding my plays… (including one saying Arson Around - now Arson About - was written in 1949 it wasn’t, I’m in the throes of completing it now!)… which has led to this link being cancelled. 

The Gate Escape:

The second tour of this finished in October and was again incredibly successful. I am given to understand that a third tour is being planned. Thanks to the whole team (Haymarket Basingstoke/Solent Peoples Theatre) wonderful! I am utterly delighted and can’t wait for it to be released for schools to use in January 2004. I have now seen the proposed cover for the book… it looks fab! I have a great feeling about it now though I admit I had reservations about when I first accepted the commission. (Working on this when I was so immersed in and committed to Dan Nolan Missing was at times very hard). Many a time I wondered how I could make a play on the subject of truancy become exciting and fun to do without glamorising its subject matter? 

Eventually (though I confess, not at first) I have resolved this problem and I now think the play will be welcomed in schools as a great fun piece to do with the added benefit of a serious and important issue raising role. I also think (or is it hope?) it will be seen on tour and become a favourite TIE production rivalling my others that have gone on to be so popular over the last 15 years or so! It certainly helped having an excellent professional director to assist with the development of the piece as it made its way onto the stage… thanks Brendon!

Arson About.

I have nearly finished this now… (page 27 - of about 35 - at the time of writing.) improving on the first version, thanks to developmental ideas from NT Superscripts Series Editor Andy Kempe… thanks Andy! This should be completed by the end of this month and published in June 2004.

Workshops

I am presenting my first Workshop targeting teachers of Key Stage 2… Bringing Fun Back into the Classroom 

Tuesday 18 November London

Wednesday 19 November Manchester

I understand that the booking forms for the course for Secondary Drama teachers has just gone out looking at improvisation as a base to curriculum Drama work… I have entitled the course HOOKING BY STORYLINE. It is the first course I have done for Keynote not related to my plays… but looking at teaching methods which aim to give students more enthusiasm/confidence in developing all their Drama work.

Thanks for all your continuing support.

Mark

I will start my news page this month with the sad news that the bones discovered in Swanage were those of Dan Nolan. My thoughts have been with the Nolans… and as usual I have been so moved to hear the words his mum has spoken in the press… most particularly in the excellent article in the Times. Understandably the Nolans want to “get to the bottom” of what actually happened… as this find poses at least as many questions as it seems to answer. For their own peace of mind they must establish what Dan’s last movements were… I wish them well with their quest for more information.

Our (Oaklands) Youth Theatre are presenting the play four more times. Once at the Oaklands Community School where I teach as a “benefit” for the fund that is probably going to buy something to put in Hamble to remember Dan. We hope to have this performance professionally videoed for the Nolan’s, ourselves and anyone else who may be interested. We are then going on to perform the play at the Woking Drama Festival and finally perform it (twice) at Sarisbury, a village just outside Southampton.

There has been renewed interest in this play! It is to be published by Nelson Thornes in their Superscripts Series!!! I will be working on a re-work of this to be handed to NT by the end of December. Andy Kempe the series Editor has made some very exciting suggestions to assist me move this play forward… I am looking forward to working on this after such a long time on the back burner.

Wow!!! I was 4 pages into the re-write on this when the news About Arson About came through so, sadly this has to move to the back-burner for a month or so… but I remain excited about this and am looking forward to working with my excellent cast from Oaklands Youth Theatre in November… already the two lead actors have learnt Space Oddity, having not known it previously… and… guess what… they like it!!!

The audience response system is FANTASTIC! I saw the play in Basingstoke at the start of the tour and was delighted. It works really well. I can remember thinking when I first received the commission how it was going to be difficult to make a play about truancy funny/entertaining and moreover appealing. Working closely with Brendon Burns the director of Solent People’s Theatre (who in conjunction with The Haymarket Basingstoke are presenting a second tour) whose help in developing ideas for the play has been much appreciated I really believe I have achieved this… the script is great fun… and has a Big Brother link that students will find particularly interesting. The script is due out in January 2004 (dbda) and has already attracted significant interest thanks to Professor Ken Reid (Deputy Principal, Swansea Institute of HE: author of Truancy: Short and Long Term Solutions; Tackling Truancy in Schools; Truancy and Schools (all published by Routledge Falmer), who after reading it wrote this:

Ape Theatre are again touring this play… to ever increasing acclaim their 130-date tour (prior to Christmas will take them to schools in the following areas.

NTH.YORKSHIRE CHELMSFORD BRENTWOOD WALTHAM FOREST

COVENTRY POWYS (WALES) DARLINGTON STOCKTON

HAMMERSMITH AND FULHAM. JERSEY STAFFORDSHIRE

StopWatch Theatre are again touring this play… to ever increasing acclaim their 120 date tour (prior to Christmas) will take them to schools in the following areas.

Legal Weapon is once again touring Scotland quite extensively… unfortunately I do not have details of this tour… but I think it is going in to most Scottish high schools…

Ape Theatre is again touring this play in England and Wales… their 90-date tour (prior to Christmas will take them to schools in the following areas.

CHESTER CARMARTHAN NTH.YORKSHIRE NORFOLK

LEICESTERSHIRE MILTON KEYNES BATH & N. SOMERSET.

Thanks for all your continuing support.

Mark

Wheellerplays September News

Hi… hope everyone has had a good summer… mines been great… but very busy!

Growing Up And I'm Fine.

Wow!!! Nearly completed a first draft of this (against my worst fears!)… though it has changed considerably from the original conception I had! It is now a fan tribute (fact and fiction mixed) to the David Bowie Ziggy era music. I hope that it will become eventually a play that both adult and Youth groups will chose to perform… and… it is a comedy!!!

It has been really good over the last three years to write plays I am passionate about. I always thought I was a writer who had nothing burning to say. With these three plays… GRAHAM, DAN NOLAN-MISSING and now this I have been passionate about the content… surely it must make them better plays?

I am now committed to premier GROWING UP… (though the title will have to change in the coming weeks as it refers to a period outside that which the play covers) with the Oaklands Youth Theatre and am to cast it on 14th September. How I will love sharing my passion with them! The question remains will they love it too? As you can probably tell I am VERY excited about this one!!!

Also Rachel and I have tickets to see DB in November… can't wait… though I think it would be fair to say Rachel isn't quite as excited!

Dan Nolan - Missing:

Due to the unusually high sales for a new play I am delighted to show that Dan Nolan-Missing is still at the top of my Wheellerplay chart. It is going to take something quite special to knock it off! Thanks to those who have shown an interest by purchasing it.

It may be worth pointing out that it is now… together with all my plays available online through http://www.amazon.co.uk

We are concluding our (Oaklands Youth Theatre) performances of the play by presenting it at the Woking Drama Festival and the Sarisbury Festival. We hope to video one of our forthcoming performances.

Tragically there appear to be no developments in Dan's case over the last three months. My thoughts go out to the Nolan's and hope that something is discovered soon to allow them to get on with their lives.

The Gate Escape:

I have completed some significant developments for this play and am very excited about the forthcoming our to Hampshire schools. The director is planning to equip the audience with voting pads so that at various stages in the play they are able to express their opinion on various dilemmas the characters face… wheellerplays come into the 21st Century!!!

Dbda have announced that they are publishing the play in January of 2004. It will be an ideal piece for schools… KS 3 or 4.

The success and volume of the touring programme has given this play a very high chart placing prior to it's publication… thanks to the haymarket Theatre and Basingstoke & Solent Peoples Theatres co-production. Special thanks to Brendon Burns whose commitment to the project has ensured its success! Thanks B.

I believe it is a matter of when rather than if it goes on tour nationally… there is already some interest… so watch this space.

No Place For A Girl:

It is great to see a rise in it's chart position due to some performances in the latter part of the Academic year. It was written as my attempt to create a "hit musical"… unlike most of my work… I'm still hoping it's a late developer… it is a grrrrreat show… as Tony the Tiger would say! Nice show… shame about the title! Check it out!

Schools Workshops

I am delighted to report that I am fully booked for in school workshops for the coming term… but would be pleased to hear from anyone wishing to have a workshop in the Spring/Summer Term.

I am presenting my first Workshop targeting teachers of Key Stage 2… I have included the details below.

KS2 Drama: BRINGING FUN BACK INTO THE CLASSROOM: DRAMA ACROSS THE KS2 CURICULUM

Tuesday 18 November London
Wednesday 19 November Manchester

This course for all Key Stage 2 teachers. I will offer ways in which Drama can be used in and out of the classroom as a tool to explore other areas of the curriculum and as an activity in itself. The accent will be on "fun" in the learning environment… "serious fun".

The course will be predominantly practical (with no more alliteration!). Although it aims to be fun, and practical, will avoid embarrassment! It will offer teachers a range of skills to use as part of their own programs of work and many ideas that they can use and apply in their own classrooms. It will offer a simulating and thought-provoking day!

The Keynote website is: http://www.keynote.org.uk/ thought I have to say I can only find details of the secondary courses here… perhaps I am missing something!

Thanks for your continuing support…

Mark

July News

Hello all:

Yes!!! Finally I can announce the publication of KING ARTHUR (ALL SHOOK UP). If you go to the following link... and then on to the Newspage you should find details of it
http://www.schoolplayproductions.co.uk/schoolplay.htm

It is a fun sung through Pop style Musical (cantata) telling the King Arthur story. It is ideal for concert use being about 15 minutes long but would also suit staging. I guess it is a kind of "Joseph and His Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat" (in it's original form) piece. It was originally written for a Junior School but could equally be used in Secondary by KS 3 groups.
If this is successful... and early signs are that it will be... we hope to produce more in the (All Shook UP) series... I have already begun work on ICARUS (ALL SHOOK UP) but that is in its very early stages (two numbers completed)... the opening song revealing a murder!!!

At the moment I am working very hard on GROWING UP AND I'M FINE (putting the other revisits to plays on hold for a while). It will be a comedy(!!!)... and is (at the moment) turning out to be a salute to the music of my teenage years (early 70's) rather than a homage specifically to Mick Ronson... but I am working on that... my current idea of the ending will see that Mick is paid my full respects. 6 pages (of about 35) are currently in first draft form. It is certainly fun working on this one... and discovering all those old songs... I've just discovered that little known band JET have had their cd re-released... wow!!! They toured with Hunter Ronson Band in '75 and should have had a huge hit single with NOTHING TO DO WITH US... but didn't. Has anyone else heard of them???
I think this will be a fine choice of play for Drama Festivals... but there's a long way to go yet!

Finally... I had a "note" from the director of Wacky Soap... I have copied it here in full for those of you who are interested. I hope it will prove particularly interesting to any teachers of 8-11 year olds who as yet will probably not have heard of Wacky Soap... though I am told that there will be a mail out to all Jnr Schools in the new academic year.

WACKY SOAP
MY VIEW
‘Educational with FIZZ!!

It may be considered that to probe into issues such as drug and substance abuse with the very young can be detrimental. We found it quite the opposite. The cast was made up of year 3 to 6 children aged between 7 and 11yrs old. 

We began the project by reading the story and discussing what the children thought the message was, from this I was able to gauge the level of understanding that had been reached without any influence from me. The result was fantastic. 

The older children grasped immediately that Wacky Soap was a drug or was a substance like glue or cigarettes as it created a dependency that made you want more and more. 

The younger children however, not being so aware of the details of drugs etc likened it to 'Having too much chocolate or too many crisps or chips would make you fat and un-healthy!’ I went with this one, after all it does have the same message ' too much of a good thing etc.’ and that was the basis on which we worked. 

We also explored, bullying- (The Punks) the conflicts between parents and children (The Commons and The G-gap), the rights and wrongs of over indulging and giving into children for a quiet life (Princess Symbol, washing herself away) being brave enough to admit that you’re wrong- (King Huffs admission) and even whether King Huff should use ‘Dirty money’ to re-build the Bower of Bliss. There were probably loads more if we’d had the time.

The piece gave us so much scope for discussion and improvisation in such a light-hearted way that even when dealing with such serious issues we had an enormous amount of fun, with fantastic songs, a beautifully orchestrated backing tracks CD, a bouncy castle, bubble machines, space hoppers and over-sized nappies for the Common babies and ridiculous hats. We performed the piece ‘Transverse’ as this allowed us to make maximum use of our space and separate the Huff’s ‘Bouncy’ castle from the Bower of Bliss. The riot song was performed directly at the audience so that they became part of the action and could feel the anger of the everyday folk, as was the ‘ Celebration Scrub’ song allowing the audience to experience the magic of bubbles everywhere!

The script is fast, and comical (Although the 'Camay/ Shamay twist may have to be explained in future publications as I seem to be one of the youngest old people to get the joke!!!)
The choral speaking gives a large number of chorus members the chance to speak as well as sing. Choral speaking is well renowned for developing team-building skills; it also helps to build confidence in the younger members of the cast who may not yet be ready for a solo-speaking roles. The storyteller or tellers in our case were a brilliant way of keeping the story flowing and for interpreting the mood of the everyday folk and the royals.

The songs are wonderfully catchy and fun to sing and if like me you have to be ‘Jack of all trades’, it’s so good to have a CD of the songs and a separate backing track to work with.

All in all, Mark Wheeller and James Holmes’ Wacky Soap is a brilliant show for any age group I would recommend it to any junior group looking for something challenging and educational. It has the ‘Wow factor’ not the ‘Yawn factor’ so often associated with educational material. The Audience were calling for more.

Well thanks for that Sally... fantastic!

That's all for now... be writing to you all soon... have a good Summer!

Mark

June News

Dan Nolan - Missing:

There have been some significant developments over the past few days in the Dan Nolan mystery.  A human foot along with a sock and a DC size 9 trainer (the type Dan was wearing when he disappeared) was found in Swanage.  Pauline Nolan made the following comments in an interview with the Southern Evening Echo:

“This is the sixth time we have been through this scenario with bones being found in various places and us having to hold our breath.  It certainly doesn’t get any easier… and telling the children gets harder all the time because you see their little faces drop… but we have learnt to just deal with whatever comes out of it. 

“I feel this is more real than the Warsash scenario.  The DC shoe is making me feel that way.  Both the sock and the shoe appear to be consistent with what Daniel was wearing but we await the tests to establish the identity. I maintain that if this is Daniel – and we don’t make assumptions as far as this family is concerned – then personally I feel it is foul play because the logic doesn’t weigh up at all.”

My thoughts are with the Pauline, Greg, and their children as they have to go through another indefinite wait (3 weeks minimum) for results of DNA tests. 

Meanwhile… Woking Youth Theatre is presenting their version of DAN NOLAN – MISSING at the Rhoda McGaw Theatre, Peacocks Centre, Woking on the 4^th – 7^th June. Box-office number: 01483 721589.  I am planning to go to see the production on the Friday night along with the original cast of OYT’s production. Good luck to them and let’s hope that this showing will again help to communicate the fact that Dan is missing to a wider audience.

Wacky Soap:

I was delighted to be able to attend a production of Wacky Soap at Kingscourt (Junior) School near Fareham.  It was a wonderful evening… the diction of the cast was outstanding.  The fact that they presented the play in Traverse assisted with the lyrics being heard…which meant the audience had more laughs than usual.  A really big well done to all of them, and most particularly to their director Sally Dwyer.

The Gate Escape:

I am working on a number of developments for this play which are proving very successful.  I hope the play will be available at some stage… it has a cracking female lead!

The Pilot tour by The Haymarket Theatre’s Education Department was really successful and will hopefully become a full tour of Hampshire Schools in the autumn.  The success of that will, I hope lead to someone choosing to take it on a tour it nationally.

Other upgrades. 

Once I have finished work on this I am hoping to do some upgrades on two other plays that have as yet not seen the light of day.  ARSON AROUND which was commissioned two years ago and then got tied up in a mini George Michael contractual fiasco has finally been released for me to work on and will hopefully be published once I have had a chance to develop it.  BIRTH MOTHER about unwanted pregnancy in the 60’s and the consequent search for a mother some twenty or thirty years later has attracted the interest of a publisher (or two) and I am looking to develop that significantly.  This will be quite a different –play from any of my others in that it has characters talking to one another (without much narration)… so will seem a far more conventional play than many of my others.

Growin’ Up And I’m Fine.

At the moment this is just an idea… but I have wanted for a while to do a “fan tribute play”.

Music has always been very important to me.  I started as a choirboy… so church music was my entrée… however at 13 I discovered Radio One.  Soon after I discovered David Bowie… in his Ziggy Stardust phase.  When the Spiders (his backing group) broke up I imagined that his lead guitarist, Mick Ronson, would go on to be an even bigger superstar.  It was never to be although he became a very highly respected musician playing with stars such as Bob Dylan and Ian Hunter to name but two.  I want to write a tribute play to Mick Ronson. The provisional title comes from a song that Bowie wrote for Ronson to perform on his first solo album… it is real Bowie gold-dust… but remains little known!  I haven’t even started this play/musical yet… and can only start once the aforementioned upgrading work is completed… but it is firing me up in the way that I become so motivated by the Dan Nolan story.  Doing something that I am truly engaged in normally produces my best work… it is certainly giving me a spurt to complete the above.  I will update with news on this… if there is any.

Workshop Reviews:

I have just received some “glowing” reviews of “Keynote Educational” courses I have been running (in London & Chester) for Drama teachers and thought it would be good to put some of them on my news page… who knows someone out there may wish to book me!!! 

Very, very enjoyable!  As somebody who usually hates practical sessions this was surprisingly less scary than I though it would be!   Lots of fantastic ideas and activities to take back into school.  Thank you!

Reddish Vale Technology College.

Really enthusiastic delivery of ideas in a style I could imitate/recreate in the classroom.  Notes that I can refer to and add to and build into schemes of work.

Stocksbridge High School.

Great, lots of ideas to try out, good fun and the nerves soon went away!  I am not a drama specialist but did not feel out of place at all - everything was explained very well.

Calder High School.

Very good, enjoyed the physical interaction.  Good to set up and do some stuff.  Lots of good ideas to use in the future.

Matthew Moss High School.

A really well focused day in which techniques were very clearly demonstrated.  The practical focus was totally appropriate.  One day all courses will be done this way.

Brookfield Community School.

Keynote have asked me to plan four more workshops in addition to the two I have already advertised on this page   for me to present.

They are:

KS2 Drama: Bringing Fun Back into the Classroom: DRAMA Across The KS2 CurRiculum

Tuesday 18 November, London

Wednesday 19 November, Manchester

This course for all Key Stage 2 teachers.  I will offer ways in which Drama can be used in and out of the classroom as a tool to explore other areas of the curriculum and as an activity in itself.  The accent will be on “fun” in the learning environment… “serious fun”.

The course will be predominantly practical (with no more alliteration!). Although it aims to be fun, and practical, will avoid embarrassment! It will offer teachers a range of skills to use as part of their own programs of work and many ideas that they can use and apply in their own classrooms.  It will offer a simulating and thought-provoking day!

KS3/KS4 Motivating Through Improvisation through Key Stages 3 & 4.

Wednesday 21 January, London

Thursday 22 January, Manchester

The course is designed for Key Stage 3/4 Drama teachers who wish to develop their students’ practical improvisation skills. 

Improvisation is a basic element to much of the Drama work in schools and is a crucial component in all the GCSE examinations.  This will have particular practical application for teachers wanting to plan for the Edexcel Paper 1 Unit 1 examination. 

Improvisation can be used to develop storylines, explore issues/themes and moreover to experience from within those Theatrical “moments” needed to understand how to make improvisation/presentation more effective.  It serves as a unique and effective way of motivating the more reluctant learners.  Simultaneously opportunities can be created for more able students to take on increased responsibilities/opportunities. 

Using a range of ideas (something old, something new, something borrowed… but nothing blue) this course should serve to re-awaken (and reassure) teachers enthusiasm for this basis for Drama work. 

There are no magic answers (and there are pitfalls) but this course will offer a way that has proved successful for one teacher for much of the time.

The previously advertised course is:

Working creatively in Key Stage 4/GCSE Practical Work 

VENUES & DATES: 
YORK: The Hilton Hotel: Monday 30 June 2003
LONDON: The Thistle Kensington Palace Hotel: Tuesday 01 July 2003.

May News

I am delighted to announce the premiere professional production of THE GATE ESCAPE. Commissioned by the Haymarket Theatre in Basingstoke it is now being piloted on a 24 date tour of Hampshire Secondary schools by an excellent team of (professional) actors with the idea being that it will go on a full tour in the Autumn.

I saw the production at the end of its rehearsals and was really impressed. It made me laugh lots... and the participation element looks very exciting.. well done Brendon (the director) it is a fantastically slick production... I can't wait to see the reaction it elicits... I think it will be very positive indeed! Well done too to the team of actors... fantastic!!!

Congratulations also to St Gregory Youth Theatre of Stoke St. Gregory who won the Five Counties Youth Drama Festival at Swindon Arts Centre in April... they were competing against a production of LEGAL WEAPON as well!!! By all accounts it was a fantastic production:

"The setting was imaginative with a large white wooden bridge dominating the back stage, serving as a reminder by the cast that the condition of anorexia is a difficult bridge to cross. This bridge was presided over by the looming figure of a grotesque troll, whose ugly facial make-up and red cloak embodied a physical and symbolic representation of the hell which was driving Catherine's life. Beth Rowley gave a convincing performance as the distressed Catherine, displaying a whole range of emotions from anger, frustration to sheer helplessness while living her life within the tyranny of this disease.

The precision of the acting, variations of the ensemble work and narrative style, together with the sheer emotional understatement of this unfolding drama compelled the audience to a strong emotional response to the overall theme."

Well done to you all... and thanks! I really appreciated the (huge) effort you made to come up from Taunton to see our performance of DAN NOLAN - MISSING at the New Forest Arts Festival... it was great to meet so many of you!

Also... Latimer Community Arts College presented TOO MUCH PUNCH FOR JUDY and got some superb coverage on an associated BBC web site... there were some great comments as follows:

"In every performance we did there was a tear in my eye... even though had heard the play so many times it still affected me. Being a part of this play has really affected me, and has made me think about drink driving and how I would feel if I lost a member of my family to a drink driver."
Daniel Poulson who played Duncan & Nob.

"The impact it has had on us as a cast and the audience is mind blowing. When I found out that it had made boys the same age as us cry, it totally knocked me back. Playing Judy was a real challenge... but a lush one that I will never forget. To know it is a true story makes it even more amazing to work on. "
Nicola Evans who played Judy.

"As soon as I read this play I knew I had to direct it. I have not been moved like this by simply reading a piece before. The characters stand out because they are real and the play is so strong and powerful that the directing was not as challenging as I had expected. What did play on my mind each time I opened the book was that I had a duty to do in delivering the story of these people. I felt it had real responsibility in communicating the story with care and tact and strength. I kept thinking about how much guts it would have taken Judy to tell the story in the first place and that if she can do that I must give my all in recreating it through the play. If just one member of the audience (or cast) takes two seconds to think about the story that they have witnesses, I will be proud of our achievements.
Jo Sheppard, director of the Latimer performances.

I hope something in this newsletter has served to interest you.. and hopefully will whet your appetite to try a Wheellerplay that previously you had not considered!

Have a good May.

April Supplement

I have just had a phone call from Pauline (Nolan) to say that they have heard from the people doing the DNA testing on the bones found on a beach near Hamble which the press suggested were those of Dan. They are not going to get the DNA results they hoped for... the marrow in the bones had turned to ash... suggesting that the bones were older than first thought. There will be a big interview the Southern Evening Echo on 29th April... and presumably something more detailed on the news page of Dan's web site and then on Thursday morning Pauline will be appearing on Breakfast TV... I think BBC... so set your video... apparently May is MISSING month. Pauline was very upbeat about it... they have been highly sceptical about all the gossip that these bones were Dan's all along... this seems to support their scepticism. A test is now being tried which will see if there is any link from the bones to Pauline... however these can only be conclusive in disproving a
link... they will not be able to prove one. It has been a very hard few weeks for the whole family... but the search goes on.

The play has also "gone on"... in a number of ways. Over 600 scripts were sold in the first two months of it's release which is a record for any of my scripts. I hope that people who have bought it are considering performing it sooner rather than later... as we really do need Dan's story to be told far and wide.

Our Youth Theatre (Oaklands) has performed at three festivals and come away with an award at each of them. Alex Chalk was presented with the Best Youth Actor at the Totton Drama Festival, The Oaklands Youth Theatre were given the Adjudicators Award at the Eastleigh Drama Festival for "Candour"... but the adjudicator wanted people to know that this award was also extended to those who allowed their words to be used in the play as well. Finally last Saturday The Youth Theatre won the Youth Award at the New Forest Arts Festival

"An unusual play with all the words coming directly from the people involved. The author has cleverly worked this material into a revealing and moving piece of Theatre. It is hoped it may "jog a memory" or serve to alert young people to the importance of "sticking together" when they are out. A thought provoking play to remind us of the vulnerability of youth."
Peter English (Goda Adjudicator)

And from the Eastleigh Drama Festival Adjudicator who wrote so eloquently... I have had to cut a lot out which is a shame.

"Amongst the strongest contenders in this Festival was an original play DAN NOLAN- MISSING. This was an unusual and deeply affecting contribution to the Festival. The play is skilfully written, and achieves, for an episodic play, astonishing depth and authenticity. The small cast gave credibility to the family as well as the surrounding figures of officialdom, while at the centre of the piece, Dan Nolan flashing like quicksilver through the lives of those that loved him, gave the piece an almost unbearable pathos.

The direction of the play was imaginative and assured. The playing of Pauline (Dan's Mum) stays particularly in the memory, a quiet performance of great dignity. The pre-disappearance Pauline was cheerful, capable, ebullient - contrasting with a Pauline almost silenced by grief. Greg, Dan's father showed his love for his son in the simplest and most simply taken phrases; and, as the tragedy of events became clear, caught the faltering voice that desperately tried to make sense of the grief and loss. Dan's sister Clare's performance was always clear and well pointed. In moments of recall, such as growing close to her brother, or the shared premonition with her mother, there was an inhabiting of intimate emotion which conveyed itself effortlessly to the audience. This quiet understatement of a role was a strong general feature of this production. The real achievement was a portrayal of Dan which was at once an intensely personal figure and yet known to every parent in the audience as their own. Here was a Dan, quick but casual, affectionate but offhand, solidly there yet elusive as quicksilver. As he flashed through the lives of those that loved him, seeming to cram experience into his short span, the audience was drawn inescapably into the grief 
at his loss. This was a fine performance which took us into the heart of the tragedy.

The disappearance of Dan Nolan transcended the bounds of the Drama festival. But in its presentation onstage, through skilled writing, and imaginative production and sensitive acting portrayals of the key figures involved in the tragedy, the production was a telling re-enactment of those events and a memorable contribution to the associated campaign. The play Dan Nolan - Missing was able address a wound still raw and stand as a fitting testament to a young life which showed courage and candour at their highest " 
Charles Evans (Adjudicator)

April News

I am so pleased to start off with a really good piece of news. Eastleigh Borough Council have given Clare Nolan their YOUNG PERSON OF THE YEAR AWARD. This is so richly deserved. When interviewing the Nolan family about the disappearance of Daniel I couldn't help but be struck by the way in which Clare has dealt with it. Not only is she a fantastic support for her parents and three younger brothers but radiates an optimism that all who come into contact with her find a real inspiration. She has helped where possible in the search for Daniel, putting herself forward for interviews etc and always... always has a warm smile for all she meets. The last year must have been very difficult for Clare.. it is her GCSE year... I wish her well with them (poor thing)... and will always remember saying to Rachael Dennett who played Clare in our production of DAN NOLAN - MISSING to remember how much Clare smiles... even when recalling the incidents that have found themselves in the play. Clare remains hopeful and radiates pride when talking about her elder brother. Well done Clare... and well done Eastleigh Borough Council for choosing such a worthy recipient.

Oaklands Youth Theatre have been performing the play at local Festivals and have on both occasions received very positive adjudications. Rachael Dennett was nominated as best youth female performer and Alex Chalk (Greg Nolan/George) won the award for Best Male Performer at the Totton Drama Festival. Alex was nominated as best Youth Performer at the Eastleigh Drama Festival where the we were awarded the Adjudicators Special Award for CANDOUR. We were all very pleased with this as it was not only a testament to our work on the play but recognised (in the words of the adjudicator) those who came forward to give their words to make the play so genuine. 

Unfortunately we were not selected to perform at the NATIONAL STUDENT DRAMA FESTIVAL. We were very disappointed about this missing an opportunity to put Dan's story to a national audience... but were pleased to get a "Commendation" for BRAVERY.

Our Youth Theatre are off to the National Student Drama Festival (9th-16th April) to watch the selected shows and participate in the workshops. I have again been asked to deliver two workshops and will be doing so on Friday and Monday (10am-11:45 subject to possible change I expect)... the title of the workshop for teachers is; Surreal World of narrative Structure and Teaching Drama.

I am also presenting a workshop for Keynote Educational:

VENUES & DATES: 
YORK: The Hilton Hotel: Monday 30 June 2003
LONDON: The Thistle Kensington Palace Hotel: Tuesday 01 July 2003 

Working creatively in Key Stage 4/GCSE Practical Work 
This course is designed for Key Stage 4 Drama teachers who have used, or intend to use Mark Wheeller's plays (Too Much Punch For Judy, Hard to Swallow, Legal Weapon, Graham - Worlds Fastest Blind Runner & Dan Nolan - Missing) as a study text or performance piece for GCSE drama courses/School/ Youth Theatre productions. This is a unique opportunity to see how the creator of these plays would work with them in the context of performance-based exams and the Paper 1 Unit 2 of the Edexcel GCSE. The course will demonstrate a range of practical work to be used with these texts in GCSE Drama in Key Stage 4/Extra Curricular groups. The course aims to inspire teachers to 'have a go' at writing/ developing their own material for use with extra curricular groups. There will also be post course notes which can be used to supplement your existing Key Stage 4/ extra curricular provision of Drama. 

TOO MUCH PUNCH FOR JUDY, WACKY SOAP, LEGAL WEAPON and HARD TO SWALLOW are all being performed by more than one group in the coming months which is really pleasing... good luck to all... I hope you let me know how the performances all go.

It is always nice to meet people who read my news pages. I look forward to it.

Hope you all have a good Easter.

Mark

March News:

If you don't like a bit of self indulgence... then I would read no further.

I thought it may be worthwhile for me?) to do a little analysis to go with the latest Wheellerplays chart.

Too Much Punch For Judy probably rightfully sits at the top of the chart this quarter. This play continues to be popular and "worthy". It has toured professionally in more countries than any other of my plays... and still a new tour of New Zealand is on the horizon. It was for a long while unavailable which allowed Hard To Swallow to gain a massive advantage in sales figures... but since dbda (only a few years ago) took it on it has outsold the original IAS limited edition (in the black cover) and was this quarter the second best selling of my plays. 

Dan Nolan - Missing rises to second place this month... and I am so pleased about that. It is the first play of mine to be taken up by more than one group within a year of it's issue. It is also the fastest play to be published... dbda pulled all the stops out on this and released it only 25 days after I delivered to them the final proofs! This chart does not reflect whatever sales there have been in the first three months of the year as those figures don't come to me until the next chart... so I am hopeful that it will rise to Number 1 next quarter. Added to this our group (Oaklands Youth Theatre) are presenting it to three Festivals and will hopefully pick up one award! 

On Sunday we discover whether we have been selected for the National Student Drama Festival... everything is crossed for this... we said to Dan's family that we would try to make the play go national... the script has achieved that by being published... our production would achieve it by being selected for the NSDF. 

There have been disconcerting developments on Dan's case (see www.dan-nolan.co.uk news page) but the search goes on and by the time this reaches you, our Youth Theatre will have performed the play to Dan's school friends... in his school. 

Like GRAHAM... this has become a really "personal" project... I feel that the whole of Southampton are "with" the Nolan's in their search... I hope that is of some comfort. I would like to personally like to thank the groups in Leicester & Woking for being sufficiently pro-active to have organised a performance in the next few months... thanks a lot and good luck. If you let me know your addresses I will try to get some DAN NOLAN - MISSING posters out to you... or download them from Dan's web site... this is one very practical way anyone in any part of the country can help the Nolan family.

Third is Hard To Swallow. I couldn't believe it when CUP told me they were not going to be publishing this play any more. It was at the time outselling Gregory's Girl (in the same series) so I was told... yet they gave it up together with all the other books in the series. dbda stepped in and the book has gone on to sell more than 10,000 copies... it is frequently performed by schools (though as yet no adult amateur group... why?) and does really well in Festivals. Somehow it has been picked up in New Zealand and Australia and is performed by schools over there... perhaps this is down the the award-wining ITV film "Catherine"... perhaps that is shown over there... who knows. It is also being used by lots of people in the new GCSE exam and I have been pleased to go into schools to do workshops on it when students are studying the play... though one, I discovered later wanted proof that I had actually have written it... I could be a fraud!

Fourth is CHICKEN. Contrary to popular belief this has been for the last few years my most regularly performed play... in the three months around this period it is being performed 240 times!!! StopWatch theatre Company are to be thoroughly congratulated for this... it is an astounding achievement... much down to their hard work and continued commitment. Although it is four years younger than TOO MUCH PUNCH FOR JUDY it is possible that it will catch up with the total number of times that play has been performed (4080 to date) and I reckon that is probably the most performed play in the last ten years. It has also (finally) been "discovered" as a script that schools can put on... it is great to see what I often see as the poor relation coming up on the outside lane and surprising everyone... it always surprises me how lively/funny it is when I come to read it... I had to recently as it is being re-printed by dbda!

Fifth is WACKY SOAP... my Number 1 Musical... not though my most performed Musical... that comes later... but is substantially older. I have found it much harder to "break" the School Production market... but Wacky Soap is showing early signs of doing just that! I wrote it partly because I loved the story and partly because I wanted to do a Musical where the Chorus couldn't complain about having enough to do... and it worked! Others who are "discovering" it are finding it works fantastically and all the signs are that it will go on to become my all time top Musical... 6 more public performances and it will have happened!

Legal Weapon... 6th... I was so pleased when I completed this play... I considered it my first "proper" play as there were bits that I had "made up" in it intermingled with the documentary accounts I had used in some many of my earlier plays... and I felt that the fusion really "worked". The performance of APE THEATRE COMPANY is as I have said many times before unbelievable and took the play to new heights I could never imagine for it! (Thanks - again- Mat and Tony!)

This month LEGAL WEAPON has achieved some superb Drama Festival results in Swindon where Sean Haines won BEST ACTOR and the group from Greendown School won Best Youth Performance. FANTASTIC... well done!

Now... number 7... I have to say this is my first disappointment. I can not understand why this has descended down the chart so quickly. Like DAN NOLAN it is a really personal play... and I am thoroughly committed to it in a very special way. 

The initial performances by Eastleigh Borough Youth Theatre were outstanding... everyone who saw it raved about it... Graham was a fantastic man and his story deserves to be told... there is so much good humour... and so much Drama... I would 've to know if anyone can let me know why they have not considered performing this one... is it to do with the way I have "promoted" it... the subject matter... the fact there are optional songs in it... the fear of staging the races (much easier than car crashes!). I would really like to know... please get in touch if you are able to shed any light!

King Arthur (All Shook Up) is due out VERY soon. This will be lots of fun and will, I hope be popular... partly as I would like to write a series of All Shook Up Musicals... ICARUS is already half completed... but obviously the publishers will need to know this is a success before they go with another... if you are looking for something short (15 minutes) and Josephy... if you know what I mean... give it a go... I think it will be out in the next 8 weeks... and I am very sorry there has been such a delay... the chart position reflects performances done prior to it being published.

9th... SWEET FA...& 13th... NO PLACE FOR A GIRL I wrote this as I couldn't see why NO PLACE FOR A GIRL had been a hit... I rarely write anything with the specific intention of it being a "hit"... but that was my attempt... NO PLACE FOR A GIRL... (which I still maintain to be a fantastic Musical one of my close friends maintains it is the best of my work)... languishes at the very bottom of my chart. How can this be? The music, written by Brian Price is SUPERB! The song PUBERTY BLUES is a classic! How come a much older football play is still performed by lots of Youth Theatres when this... my BEND IT LIKE BECKHAM... is out there... and has so many more opportunities for females. Additionally it was written so that actors who do not need to be able to sing can have the lead parts... something I always thought unfair when I was at school (although | could sing)... in Musicals cast are usually selected on their singing ability... not in NO PLACE FOR A GIRL... this is a Musical with opportunities for actors and singers!

So ... I've gone on about NO PLACE... well what about SWEET FA... I wanted to exploit what I thought was a good idea and do it as a play... surely it would work as a play... well although there are groups who have performed it I don't think people have discovered it... it is not published by dbda and so does not benefit form being with the more popular plays... I suggest you have a look at this one if you like the other, more popular plays!

Tenth... BLACKOUT. Now this is my "personal" Musical. It is the only full length musical where I wrote the music... so it is very special. It was my attempt to try and be Jack Rosenthal (Evacuees) and Lionel Bart (Oliver/Blitz) in one. I have presented this Musical with all three Youth Theatres I have run... and I love it... especially the last song... great on emotion... and I'll dedicate it to my Mum who was herself an evacuee and I guess probably was part of the reason I did it in the first place. Blackout has for the first time in ages moved up the chart due to excellent sales over the last quarter... it still needs to be "discovered" though!

11th... CHUNNEL OF LOVE... probably the least "Mark Wheeller" play ever... there is virtually no narration in it... little in the way of stylisation. It was co-written with a good friend of mine, Graham Cole and he influenced me strongly to do a "proper" play where people talk to each other on stage most of the time. Initially it was incredibly successful. It was selected for the NSDF (where the likes of Too much Punch had only been short listed!) and one of the performers Lizzie Hole was nominated for BEST ACTOR award. No publishers have ever picked this up so it is not really "out there" but appears in the chart largely because of that NSDF appearance which I was SO proud of... an amazing achievement yet to be repeated... maybe this year! The other oddity of this play is that large chunks are in French! I remember the girl who played the French Grandmother had to drop out... someone else took on the role (thanks Claire) and learnt the lines (lots of them) in about 48 hours by wearing headphones and listening to the French teacher saying the lines over and over again... 

12th ABSURD XMAS. My second piece of (co-)writing to score a (seasonal) hit! Thus far it would look as though I failed... though I believe in it sufficiently to propose a revival next Xmas. The songs are FANTASTIC... by James Holmes who also wrote the music to WACKY SOAP and his own TITANIC... which is pretty popular I understand both here and abroad... The funniest thing to happen with this is a group chose to present it as their summer productions. I thought that subversion may catch on... but it has not been repeated... like WACKY SOAP... this is a Musical for Chorus involvement... and some lovely moments with a Pantomime cow!

People often ask me what are my faves... well the three I feel closest to are BLACKOUT, DAN NOLAN - MISSING & GRAHAM - WORLD'S FASTEST BLINDMAN.

The best production of one of my plays I have ever seen: LEGAL WEAPON by Ape Theatre.

Best Amateur production:
Probably Fareham YT productions of HARD TO SWALLOW Eastleigh Borough Youth Theatre GRAHAM - WORLD'S FASTEST BLINDMAN

My best production of one of my own plays:
Epping Youth Theatre TOO MUCH PUNCH FOR JUDY & BLACKOUT Oaklands Youth Theatre HARD TO SWALLOW (1988-89) & DAN NOLAN (2003)

Favourite scene?
Brussels Sprouts in HARD TO SWALLOW!

Favourite song... easy!
EYES OF A CHILD... the last song from BLACKOUT.

Best title:
TOO MUCH PUNCH FOR JUDY... titles are really important... and the design for the IAS book was stunning (John Rowley)...the worst title that doesn't serve the Musical well is NO PLACE FOR A GIRL... perhaps I should run a comp to re-title that one... it really doesn't tell of all the excitement of that play... how about SARAH'S BOOTS? 

Well... that's got that off my chest... hope all this information will help those of you who ask me for this kind of information when you are writing projects.. but I hope this provides you with something.

Have a good March.

February News Extra

I was delighted to see former TOO MUCH PUNCH FOR JUDY (and current Emmerdale) star Tony Audenshaw win... yes win Stars In your Eyes performing with Deena Payne as a famous Country Music duo. They were both fantastic... Tony... if you are reading this... WELL DONE... in the words of Monty Python... "I laughed until I stopped"! 

Also good luck to the various groups performing HARD TO SWALLOW, LEGAL WEAPON, TOO MUCH PUNCH FOR JUDY and DAN NOLAN - MISSING at various Festivals up and down the country. I hope you let me know how you get on so that I am able to report any successes.

February News

Hi... Happy February.

Oaklands Youth Theatre have performed DAN NOLAN - MISSING three further times and have again secured some excellent reviews. 

"Compelling theatre... any anxieties I had were swept away with the sensitive portrayal of most of the characters... all four actors drew on emotions beyond their years. They held their audience captive. I hope plans to show this most moving of plays to a wider audience can be achieved."
Jan Foster. Southern Evening Echo Curtain Call Awards reviewer.

"Emotive... a chronology that dances between past and present... the stage almost bare as if to heighten the real feeling of emptiness that Dan's disappearance creates... family relationships and teenage choices are key aspects of this play... the best conclusion is that Dan returns home to his family but unfortunately, this happy ending is the underlying purpose of the play and not it's current resolution."
Warwick Payne; Hampshire Chronicle.

In March the Youth Theatre take the production to local Festivals and hear how they have fared in the recent National Student Drama Festival adjudication. We are all so hopeful that we will be successful and to put our production of Dan's story on a national platform... but nothing was given away at our adjudication... watch this space!

As for the quest for Dan... there is no firm news... however there are some developments in the campaign... including an opportunity to send a chain e-mail to people in your address book. Please visit Dan's site for further news as to how this can be done. 

It is on the news page at the foot of this link. Remember one thing anyone can do to help, no matter where you are is to find somewhere to display one of the Dan Nolan Missing posters dowloadable from Dan's site. I know his family will be very grateful. thanks

One group in Woking have already enquired about performing rights. I have passed this information on to Dan's family and they are really pleased. I am also able to report that advance orders for the script are "higher than normal"... lets hope the story is finally going to travel across the nation through Theatre performances in schools.

To this end Edexcel (who were approached by me on behalf of a Westgate School in Winchester) have sanctioned use of the play in their Paper 1 Unit 2 even though it has not yet been performed by a professional theatre company. I am delighted by this as it will allow the play to be studied as part of an examination syllabus and thus Dan's story will be communicated further. Thanks Edexcel for your approval!

The play is now out... I had my copy on the 24th Jan and is available from dbda (0870 333 7771) for £5.50. Part of the proceeds of the sales for this book are donated to the FIND DAN NOLAN FUND. Do get a copy... I think it is a really worthwhile text for students to work on.

I have been doing more workshop in schools... delivering workshops to help schools who are studying my texts (Paper 1 Unit 2). on Tuesday I had a great day at Helston School in Cornwall.. thanks for that... the students there were studying HARD TO SWALLOW. next week I am working at Westgate school on DAN NOLAN MISSING.

In March I am delivering three practical workshops for teachers for KEYNOTE EDUCATIONAL. The course is entitled CREATING IMAGINATIVE DEVISED WORK... and explore/show basic skills can be laid down in KS3 for more imaginative devised work in KS4.

The workshops are being held in:
London: 4th March.
Chester: 13th March
Warwick: 27th March
The cost of the course is £165 plus VAT. Further details can be obtained from Keynote on 01625 532974 or via their website.

In April I have once again been asked to deliver two workshops (Human Pyrotechnics and Developing Theatre from Oral Testimony) at the National Student Drama Festival in Scarborough. This is a fantastic week of workshops and productions. Details of the Festival can be found on their website.

I have taken the liberty of copying the current news page from the NSDF site to wet your appetite. Do visit the site... it is well worth a look.. and the tickets are real value for money for school students... we always take about 20!

Workshops and Discussions

Workshops and events at NSDF03 Plans are starting to come together for next April's Festival. The well known independent director Annie Castledine will be one of the festival judges. Other highlights include the first ever visit to the NSDF by the Hampstead Theatre and the return visit of the very popular Frantic Assembly. NSDF03 will also be pleased to welcome back Mike Bradwell and the team from the Bush Theatre. 

If you were one of those who requested more Musical-Theatre workshops then NSDF03 won't disappoint you. The National Youth Music Theatre will be there all week and Tim Firth, writer of 'Our House', the new Madness musical, and Willy Russell playwright, novelist and writer of Blood Brothers will also be dropping by. 

The NSDF will also be welcoming back the playwrights Alan Ayckbourn, Mark Ravenhill and Stephen Jeffreys. David Glass, the world famous mime and movement artist and founder of the David Glass Ensemble also hopes to be there as well as performance poet Ian Macmillan.

Among the special events will be a session called 'What's the point of theatre criticism?' with leading critics Michael Billington, Aleks Sierz, Sam Marlowe and Robert Hewison. 

John Wright will be returning to NSDF03 as will our Master of Ceremonies Mark Bowden. 

BBC Scotland will be running radio drama workshops. 

The Grand Hall will become an evening performance space and we will be looking for stand-up acts, musical acts as well as performance art. Bring it with you to the festival. 

The festival will culminate in 'The Frankenstein Project', a large scale site-specific production that will be conceived, rehearsed and performed by fest-goers. 

This year's festival disco will be DJ'd by the world famous Nabs who describe themselves as: 'writers, thinkers and record delivery men. They do things in vans for John Peel. They're very big in the former Yugoslavia.'

There will of course be all the usual favourites and many other names yet to be revealed. 

That's all for now folks... I hope to meet some of you at the workshops/courses... and thanks for your continuing support/interest.

January News.

Happy New Year to all my readers.

Yesterday I participated (with members of Oaklands Theatre) in a Service of Hope for Daniel Nolan who went missing a year ago this morning (Jan 1/2). It was wonderful to be there to support his family in what they have described as the "worst year of their lives." The Service was very moving but full of optimism about Daniels safe return. In recent weeks there has been some National media coverage which must be heartening for the family. GMTV has led the way with a 4 minute feature. The Sunday Express carried a whole page feature and apparently the News Of The World are planning something hopefully for this week. Pauline Nolan is also appearing on a new programme fronted by Esther Rantzen later this month. 

Reflecting on Dan's disappearance (as I often do) I have been shocked to realise that had the Nolans remained silent following the tragic events this time last year the public consciousness of Dan would have quickly faded. As they say (in the play) "We assumed that all the wheels just click into place and it just gets going... that Daniel's face would be absolutely everywhere, appeals on national TV...... and everyone would be aware. But it's not like that. There's no set formula... it was almost like we were swept under the carpet ... we didn't know how to handle that... ... and we didn't know how to stop it." Pauline & Greg Nolan.

The play (as well as having several important messages re. personal safety) really can contribute to their awareness campaign. It is vital that we keep talking about Dan, and try to get others talking about him too. The play will help in this respect... I am certain of this... and it takes as it's inspiration the determination of his family. "We don't want people to feel like we are feeling... we need to make a difference." Pauline Nolan.

Every time I am put in the position of making a wish in the last few months (I'm surprised by how often it happens!)... my wish is the same... that Daniel be reunited with his family or that something will be unearthed to help solve the tragic mystery surrounding Dan's disappearance. 

Oaklands Youth Theatre are presenting the play DAN NOLAN - MISSING on 24/25th January at Oaklands Theatre in Southampton (02380-739797) and are (on 24th) being adjudicated for the National Student Drama Festival 2003. They are then going on to present the play at various One Act Play Festivals in the South of England.

Dbda (who should be thanked for sending the DAN NOLAN - MISSING poster - an updated version of the one I saw in January -to all schools in UK where we hope it will be subsequently displayed) are releasing the script slightly later than hoped... but still incredibly quickly towards the end of January. It is available on pre-order at the special price of £4.50 (a £1.00 discount). Please take advantage of this offer... it reads well as an account of the families situation even if you have no intention of presenting the play... though I hope it will inspire you to want to present it. dbda can be contacted by telephone on 0870 333 7771 or email: info@dbda.co.uk. Finally you can see details of the current situation re the search for Dan (and get a downloadable poster which you could display) on his web site which is updated regularly on http://www.dan-nolan.co.uk

I hope everyone has a productive and successful year. 

Mark

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