Devoted and Disgruntled II

Thu Dec 7 15:58:59 PST 2006

Yes folks it's back!

Phelim is Devoted and DIsgruntled again. Please let anyone who might  
be interested in this know about it.. We already have about 100  
people booked. Here's the invite i sent out about two weeks ago for  
next years event. Wishing you all well.  ( by the way I always knew  
Harrison was Santa).

Phelim

It leapt on to an empty stage: it wobbled, it looked as if it would  
never take off, and then suddenly, it was flying. Sky-high. A  
Theatrical St Crispins Day

Susannah Clapp, The Independent, about Devoted and Disgruntled I

DEVOTED AND DISGRUNTLED II

What are we going to do about theatre (now)?

Dear All,

I hope you are well. D and D II is coming – it would be great if you  
can make it again. We are aiming for the widest possible  
representation from the world of theatre so please distribute the  
information to practitioners, colleagues and anyone else who you  
think might be interested.

As you know at the beginning of this year Improbable held an event,  
attended by about 200 people from the theatre community. It was  
called Devoted and Disgruntled and was a call for people to work in  
Open Space on how we might make better theatre and make theatre  
better. It was about what we were devoted to and what we were  
disgruntled about. About how we make theatre, produce it, sell it,  
love it, hate it, be it!

For a few days we experienced the great high of working in a  
different way on issues that are important to us. For a few days  
those who were there (and a few who weren’t but felt the ripples)  
experienced the opportunities of this different way of working; a  
sense of community, change and spirit. At the end of those two days  
many were in agreement that it was the beginning of something  
exciting and that the tectonic plates of theatre had perhaps shifted  
a bit.

It’s ten months later and I’m even more devoted and more  
disgruntled! More devoted because I saw what we could achieve in just  
two days more disgruntled because theatre still seems to be in dire  
trouble.

I have been involved with professional theatre and performance since  
I left college in 1985. Since that time I have created and co created  
shows, which have ranged from totally improvised and devised work to  
classical texts for repertory theatres, from puppetry to site  
specific work and from dance theatre to comedy.  I have performed,  
designed, written, devised, taught, improvised and served on the  
Board of the Actor's centre.  Yet in all this time I have often felt  
an outsider in my own profession. There are things I love about  
theatre and things I find very difficult….things which I wish were  
different. I find myself both devoted and disgruntled. Over the years  
I have often found myself gossiping and moaning about how the world I  
work in could be better. Not just about what we put on the stage but  
how we produce, manage and administrate our work. How we create it in  
all aspects and how we treat each other as a creative community.

Are you devoted and disgruntled like me? Do you still feel like an  
outsider in your own profession? Within only the past ten months the  
world has got crazier, the urgency is more extreme and maybe theatre  
has got worse? Are you up for making it better now? I made a  
commitment to continue opening the space for people in theatre so  
that we might continue working on what we are going to do about  
theatre, knowing that somehow we are devoted to this thing but that  
things could be better, and we are going to do something about that.

Its time to shift things up a gear. From now on we will be doing  
Devoted and Disgruntled at least once a year! The next one is on the  
13th and 14th January, at BAC, a venue dedicated to inventing  
theatre’s future, and it is the next chapter in this story. A story  
of change, a story of difference.

Come and join the ride… the rickety plane is leaving… are you on  
board? Are you devoted? Are you disgruntled? A strong point of Open  
Space is it’s ability to unite groups of enormous diversity, to that  
end we are encouraging all participants, if you think this event  
isn’t for you, it probably needs you there.

Phelim

Phelim McDermott,
Co-Artistic Director, Improbable

Please distribute this information as you see fit to practitioners  
and colleagues and anyone else who you think might be interested.

Improbable’s Open Space Event

In collaboration with BAC

DEVOTED AND DISGRUNTLED II
What are we going to do about theatre (now)?

Facilitated by Phelim McDermott

A two-day event, 13th and 14th January 2007, 10am – 7pm

At BAC, Lavender Hill, London, SW11 5TN

Although Open Space may be new to you it has been used all over the  
world with predictable results. It will be an exciting open-ended  
event that enables a self-organising group to use its collective  
imagination to deal with complex issues and it will achieve this in  
an incredibly short space of time. By the end of the event the  
following will have occurred:

€ Every issue of concern to anybody will have been raised, if they  
took responsibility for doing that.
€ All issues will have received full discussion, to the extent  
desired.
€ A full report of issues and discussions will be in the hands of  
all participants.
€ And YOU will have taken part in making it happen.

HOW TO REGISTER:

TICKETS: £15/person.
All proceeds are to cover direct costs of this event including the  
hire of the space, refreshments and equipment hires.

SUBSIDISED TICKETS: We have a number of subsidised places available,  
at a reduced rate of £5. If you feel that your circumstances mean  
that you might qualify for one of these please drop an e-mail to:

whatarewegoingtodoabouttheatre at improbable.co.uk

They will be offered on a first come first served basis.

FIVE FOR THE PRICE OF FOUR GROUP DISCOUNT: Apply as a group of five  
and you can have five tickets for £60.

THE DEADLINE FOR REGISTRATION IS THE 11th December 2006.

PLEASE SEND THE FOLLOWING INFORMATION TO:
Jim Bradshaw
Devoted and Disgruntled
BAC
Lavender Hill
London
SW11 5TN

I am writing to reserve           (PLEASE FILL IN AMOUNT OF PLACES)  
place/s for the Open Space Event on the 13th and 14th January 2006.

I enclose a cheque for £         (PLEASE FILL IN AMOUNT) made payable  
to BAC.

Please write a sentence or two describing what you do in order to  
help us get a sense of who is coming. E.g. “I am a performer, who  
makes my own work, and works with different companies.” “I am a  
deputy stage manager working in a large subsidised theatre.” If you  
are applying as a group to get the group discount please write a  
sentence on each of you.

(Please note: This is to help us assess our success in attracting a  
wide range of people from theatre. There is NO vetting process based  
on experience or status. Tickets are allocated on a first come first  
serve basis).

I am a.....................

NAME:

COMPANY (if relevant):

E-MAIL ADDRESS:

TELEPHONE NUMBER:

ADDRESS:

BAC is an accessible building. Please let us know on application if  
you have any needs we should be aware of to enable you to attend. We  
are currently looking into possible childcare, let us know if this  
would help you.

------------------------------------------------------------------------ 
---------------------------------------------------------

Tickets will be offered on a first come first served basis so please  
book early to ensure your place. We regret that we will be unable to  
offer a refund if you are unable to attend. If the event becomes  
fully booked we will inform you as soon as possible and return your  
cheque to you.

Need any more info?
Contact Improbable, 020 7240 4556
whatarewegoingtodoabouttheatre at improbable.co.uk

www.improbable.co.uk

------------------------------------------------------------------------ 
---------------------------------------------------------

Information Exchange

New Work Network (www.newworknetwork.org.uk) is hosting an  
information exchange at Devoted and Disgruntled. They are inviting  
people who are coming to the event and people who can’t come to send/ 
or bring information to exchange on funding and development  
opportunities, artist-led events, networks, platforms and venue  
information that would be of interest to those attending the day.

Please either bring information along, or send any information by  
11th December 2006 to: Devoted and Disgruntled NWN info exchange, c/ 
o, Richard Dufty, Senior Producer, BAC, Lavender Hill, London SW11 5TN

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