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

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 (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

info@romanytheatrecompany.com

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 8^th 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

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/

‘ATCHING TAN: A Gypsy Wife, is one of the picks of the week in both the Observer On Sunday and The Sunday Telegraph’

ATCHING TAN: A Gypsy Wife is on BBC Radio 4 on Thursday 26th July at 2.15pm. The play will also be the BBC download of the week. Colorful and authentic drama set around the goings-on of Long Summer Traveller Site. When young couple Charity and Sol arrive on the site, their new neighbours Lovvie and Nelius are forced to make some difficult decisions when they discover Sol’s dark secret. Starring Candis Nergarrd and written by Traveller Dan Allum. In 2011, Dan Allum’s first Radio 4 play Atching Tan was shortlisted for the BBC Imison Award for Best Play by a New Writer and Candis Nergaard was shortlisted for Best Actress for the BBC Audio Drama Award.

A Gypsy Wife features 3 regular Romany Theatre Company performers – Candis Nergaard, Damian Le Bas and Patricia Keegan alongside new Traveller actress, Sian Willett. The 5th member of the cast is Danny Dalton currently appearing in the National Theatre’s production of War Horse.

A Gypsy Wife BBC link:
https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b01l1dkp

Romany Theatre Company’s Atching Tan Radio Drama was recognised at the first ever BBC Audio Drama Awards held on 29th January 2012. The BBC’s first ever Audio Drama Awards were held at a special ceremony hosted by actor David Tennant in the Radio Theatre at BBC Broadcasting House, London. Dan Allum, writer of Atching Tan was nominated for the Imison Award for Best Radio Drama Script and Candice Nergaard who played Luvvie in the play was nominated for Best Actess in an Audio Drama.
The winners of the awards for Best Acress award and Imison award for Best Radio Drama Script are as follows:-
• Best Actress in an Audio Drama: Rosie Cavaliero, Lost Property: A Telegram From The Queen by Katie Hims
Producer: Jessica Dromgoole, BBC Radio Drama for Radio 4
• Best Actress in an Audio Drama – RUNNERS UP:
– June Whitfield, A Monstrous Vitality by Andy Merriman
Producer: David Hunter, BBC Radio Drama for Radio 4
– Candis Nergaard, Atching Tan by Dan Allum
Producer: Charlotte Riches, BBC Audio Drama North for Radio 4
The winner of the Imison Award for Best Radio Drama Script broadcast in 2010 by a new writer is: Amazing Grace by Michelle Lipton
Award presented by: David Edgar
Judges: Society of Author’s Broadcasting Committee: Alison Joseph, Mike Bartlett, Lucy Caldwell, Nazrin Choudhury, Christopher William Hill, Karen Liebreich, Sue Limb, Karl Sabbagh, Colin Teevan and John Taylor)
Imison Award for Best Radio Drama Script – RUNNERS UP:
– Atching Tan by Dan Allum
– The Pursuit by Matt Hartley
– The Barber and the Ark by Marcia Layne
To see the full list of awards, winners and runners up go to https://www.bbc.co.uk/mediacentre/latestnews/2012/290112-bbc-audio-drama-awards.html
Congratulations to both Dan and Candice for their nomination.

On Tuesday 23 November, BBC Radio 4’s afternoon play will be RTC’s Atching Tan. This isn’t quite the Atching Tan that you’re used to, though. This is the back story to Neilus and Lovvie’s marriage. This is how they met, and how Lovvie had to decide whether or not a traditional Traveller marriage and life was for her. Read the rest of this entry »