“I love her in this role – the heat and passion are easy, but [Candis] Nergaard lights up the uncertain corners of Carmen’s personality.”
“A vital element is Allum’s magnificent original music, arranged by James Fortune. The bravado of a Flamenco guitar is balanced by songs, some sung in Romany, as sweet as they are sad.”
Moira Petty – The Stage
New tour coming soon…
Romany Theatre Company Presents 3 exciting Drama Events:-
1: Romany Theatre Company’s director, Dan Allum, has adapted the Prosper Mérimée novel, Carmen, into a 5 part series that is currently running daily at 10.45am during the Woman’s Hour slot on R4. See Radio Times link below.
2: Romany Theatre Company are performing a section from the above play at the Royal Opera House on the 12th Jan – link below.
3: Romany Theatre Company will be taking their new play OUR BIG LAND on a national tour in Feb/March – see Oval House Theatre link below. OUR BIG LAND opens at the New Wolsey Studio on 13th Feb – please see our website: www.romanytheatrecompany.com for full tour details.
CARMEN DRAMA SERIES ON RADIO 4’s WOMAN’S HOUR (6th – 10th Jan at 10.45am)
https://www.radiotimes.com/programme/crg85q/carmen
CARMEN AT THE ROYAL OPERA HOUSE
https://www.roh.org.uk/learning/families/welcome-performances
OUR BIG LAND
https://www.ovalhouse.com/whatson/detail/our-bland
OUR BIG LAND is a provocatively dark atmospheric piece of theatre with the culture clash between Romany and non Romany communities at its core. The style has a poetic beauty mixed with gritty realism, while the songs and movement transport us to a world rarely seen on stage before. The themes of family bonds, cultural loyalty and love crossing culture boundaries are to be found at its centre, while echoes of yearning for freedom, choice and lost love resonate throughout.
Click here for the 2014 tour dates
…In January 2013 the “scratch” performance of RTC¹s new play OUR BIG LAND was performed at
the New Wolsey Studio in Ipswich and The Bush Theatre in London.
OUR BIG LAND is a play with songs about the history of Romany Gypsies told
through one woman’s very personal story. It¹s lively, moving and
explosive…
Over the last year Our Big Land has been developed into a full length play and will be performed at New Wolsey Studio, The Oval House, Norwich Arts Centre and The Hat Factory – Check the link at the top for more information.
Romany Theatre Company sends out Christmas best wishes and good luck in the 2013.
Why not join us on 12 January 2013 at either the matinee or evening performance of Our Big Land at the New Wolsey Studios in Ipswich. Tickets are just £5 – more information about the productions is in our last blog. Tickets are available from : The Wolsey Theatre, Ipswich t:Box Office +44 (0) 1473 295 900 or e: tickets@wolseytheatre.co.uk
Kushti Bok
Romany Theatre Company (RTC) will be giving two “scratch” performances of OUR BIG LAND at the Wolsey Studio in Ipswich on Saturday 12th January. Please see poster above. The play is about the history of Romany Gypsies, told through one woman’s very personal story and features drama, music and dance.
On the lead up to Holocaust Memorial Day (27th January) the play is especially poignant. It is also an ideal introduction for students, Travellers or any other interested parties, to RTC’s work around Romany/Gypsy/Traveller issues.
If you would like more information please do get in touch.
Dan Allum
Director of The Romany Theatre Company
01223 303939
07776146360
Last week, I was at Making Tracks in Ipswich helping out with a Poster Design Workshop with twelve 8 to 14 year olds. Their remit was to design a poster that included the key elements of our reading that we are putting on at The Hat Factory Luton on 8th November. The elements to be included were a Yellow Dress (obviously as this the name of the production), a haunted tree, a fire, an old fashioned gypsy wagon and World War 2. There were some brilliant ideas which they came up with that will be incorporated into the final design by our graphic designer. A big thank you to all who took part in the workshop at Making Tracks on Chantry in Ipswich, your help has been invaluable.
If you want to see what the final design is come along to our reading of Yellow Dress at The Hat Factory in Luton on Thursday 8th November at 7.30pm, there are a still a few tickets left.
https://www.lutonculture.com/whats-on/whats-on/2012/11/08/yellow-dress
THE ROMANY THEATRE COMPANY (RTC)
…presents a rehearsed reading of
‘YELLOW DRESS’
At The Hat Factory (65-67 Bute Street, Luton, LU1 2EY) on Thursday November 8th 2012
At 7.30pm
BOX OFFICE: 01582 547474 or 01582 878100
https://www.lutonculture.com/whats-on/
This work in progress is a culmination of almost a years work by 20 Romany and non Romany Gypsy participants, some of whom began by writing a mixture of poems, scenes and short stories around a Gypsy theme. Dan Allum, our Artistic Director (see below) then dramatised these into a script, which formed the basis of two public readings at the Mercury Studio in Colchester and the Wolsey Studio in Ipswich in April this year. The script was then developed further and given the central storyline of a Gypsy woman’s experience during the Second World War and was made into a BBC radio drama. Over the summer and autumn, in true Gypsy fashion, the script has gone on a further journey, which will conclude with workshops held at the Royal Court Theatre and rehearsals at the Tricycle Theatre before the 45-minute musical drama will be performed by a mixture of Gypsy and non-Gypsy performers.
“Beautiful writing, well read – I’m encouraged to find and read more Romany Poetry…”
Mercury Theatre Colchester
“It’s not only fascinating to be introduced to this work, it’s incredibly rewarding”
New Wolsey Theatre Ipswich
Romany Theatre Company’s Dan Allum will be appearing at Museum of East Anglian Life alongside other Romany writers and poets on Sunday 13th October – see flier
WORDS OF THE WHEEL
Atching Tan: A Gypsy Wife is currently the drama of the week download and can be accessed at https://www.bbc.co.uk/podcasts/series/ptw.
The BBC blog is: https://www.bbc.co.uk/blogs/writersroom/posts/Atching-Tan-A-Gypsy-Wife
There is also a promo on the BBC Writersroom homepage & it’s been tweeted about at: https://www.bbc.co.uk/writersroom/
