Doctor Faustus is now available to buy on DVD. Cost: £14.75 inc P&P. Free A3 poster (while stocks last) and instructions on how to download the education resource pack which accompanied the production.
Click here to purchase via PayPal.
Monday, 8 November 2010
Wednesday, 3 November 2010
Dr. Faustus in the Modern World
In January-February 2010, 3860 people came to Stratford Circus to see Present Moment’s production of Christopher Marlowe’s Doctor Faustus.
Here, in conjunction with Stratford Circus and Circus Media, we present art inspired by the story of Doctor Faustus, created by young people from the outer East London boroughs.
THE PRICE THAT MUST BE PAID: A DEVISED THEATRE PROJECT
Project Director:
Jules Tipton
Directors:
Chris Buckingham
Adrian Figueroa
Ria Knowles
Oscar Ward
On 16 January 2010, a group of young people came from all over Newham, Redbridge, Barking & Dagenham, Havering and Waltham Forest. Most of them had never met each other before. They worked as a whole group, learning specialist theatre skills, in a series of voice and movement workshops led by theatre professionals. That evening, they watched the Present Moment production of Doctor Faustus.
The following Friday they met again. They devised and rehearsed all weekend and every night until the showcase performance of their work on 27 January at Stratford Circus. Each piece is was inspired, in some way, by the themes of the play and the style of the Present Moment production.
One of the pieces from, "The Price That Must Be Paid", can be viewed below.
TEMPTATION & DESIRE: A PLAYWRITING PROJECT
Project Director:
Shannen Owen
Playwright Mentors:
Kat Joyce
Nicholas McInerney
Charlotte Thomson
Sheila White
In November & December 2009, over 40 young people between the ages of 14 & 18, from Waltham Forest, Redbridge, Newham, Havering and Barking and Dagenham began writing their own ten minute play based on themes of Doctor Faustus. They received a variety of workshops with professional playwrights and actors to support the process.
8 plays by 10 young people were cast and rehearsed with Present Moment’s company of actors. Directed by the professional playwrights, by Joss Bennathan (Present Moment’s Artistic Director) and by Jules Tipton (Associate Director), the plays moved from page to stage. The plays were also published.
One of the pieces from, "Temptation and Desire," can be viewed below.
THE PRICE OF MY SOUL: SNAP SHOT SHORT FILMS
Circus Media Manager:
Sammy Gildroy
Project Manager:
Tom Stoddart
Project Manager:
Annette Telesford
Project Officer:
Donna Bamford
Workshop Leader:
Alice Knight
Mentored by media professionals, young people not in education, employment or training, were the creative driving force for this project, which took place in January 2010. The film has been screened at Stratford Circus and as part of the Film East Festival.
THE MODERN SEVEN DEADLY SINS: A VISUAL ARTS INSTALLATION PROJECT
Project Director:
Eliza Williams
Artist In Residence:
Cristina Ottonello
A large scale mobile, shown below, was on exhibition at Stratford Circus throughout the run of the production.
Doctor Faustus In The Modern World was supported by:
Newham Youth Opportunities
Saturday, 9 January 2010
Stumbling through
When I’m in rehearsal, everything else gets put on hold. This is my explanation for the lack of blog action. Houses remain untidied. Food becomes a series of takeaways, sandwiches and whatever is in the freezer. Family and friends are neglected I’ve got a cast of 17 and a creative team of 10 – do I need more social interaction?! No.
We finished in the rehearsal studios yesterday. (What a pleasure it has been to rehearse at the Jerwood Space). The creative and technical side of the operation have moved to Stratford Circus to do creative and technical things. I’m not called until tomorrow morning. We start technical rehearsals with the cast tomorrow afternoon.
There is not a lot a director can do at the get in, apart from fret and interfere and irritate the creative and technical team. So I have a day off –that is, if finishing the programme and writing interim reports for funders and chasing up people who haven’t RSVP-ed to press night invitations counts as a day off.
We are in good shape. We’re ready to move to the next stage. (Excuse the pun). It’s exciting.
One of the reasons we’re in good shape is that we’ve now run the show 4 times. The first stumble through was just before our Christmas break. The first stumble through is always just about getting through it. Anything else is a bonus. Nerve wracking but incredibly useful for everyone. The ensemble discovered just how much work they have to do and how precisely their scene shifting needs to be choreographed, as the world mutates around Faustus. Mephistopheles and Faustus got a sense of the arc of their journeys. I got to see what worked and what didn’t.
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