Gone in Sixty Seconds 2007 – An experience report.
I didn’t quite know what to expect when I travelled to Harrogate to see Gone in Sixty Seconds 2007. Obviously my Mum was really proud because one of my plays was being shown and had been telling everyone she knew.
The fact that the play was only one minute long and that I had to pay to see it never passed her lips of course. I shall stop rampantly publicising myself now because there were three other E2 plays on show, and I have to represent the Everythingian front as a whole.
The production rather cleverly set the scene for the entire evening by starting the first performance in the bar beforehand. A poster on the way in announced that a play was going to happen, of course this made everyone wonder who the actors were, until some overly dramatic and thespian “bar-goers” started trying to guess where the real actors were hiding, thus revealing themselves to be the actors in question.
Avant garde? Postmodern? Interactive? Confusing? Yep, I was probably in the right place!
All the E2 plays came really late in the performance (because, you know, they want to finish strong). So I was getting more and more excited all the time and wondering if mine was ever going to come up, (internal monologue: “surely someone had made a mistake, my play couldn’t have been chosen, it’s an error, I’ve been screwed by bureaucracy yet again.”).
**mild spoilers**
In no particular order, Earthling (52 mins in to the performance) by Strawberryfrog was well received, mostly because the actors really got into the alien roles and did some crazy walking and funny voices. I think it was acted in the spirit that was intended and got quite a few laughs.
Role switch (33 mins) by footprints was quite interesting, it initially made everyone feel a little uncomfortable, but then the audience started having a shouting competition, (everyone in the audience knew someone involved in the play so the play was effectively: “HELLO SARA” etc.)
(I was going to invent something myself because I was in the enviable position of knowing what was going to happen. I came up with something about breaking the fourth wall too many times and causing an inter-dimensional rip. However I thought that if I prepared something it would break the spontaneity, and therefore the purpose, of the play.)
Intervention (49 mins) by UncleM was fortunate to be acted by the most outwardly enthusiastic actors there, they managed to bring out the humour in the situation really well and I think the characters really worked on stage.
And last but not least (ok, I’ll start the shameless self-promotion again) was Your Call May be Recorded for Training Purposes (60 mins) by … ME!
It was so exciting to see my work on stage. The guy fluffed a few of the words and they spelt my name wrong but I think it touched a nerve with the audience who seemed to like it a lot. I must have looked stupidly happy when I was leaving because the guy behind me (who probably saw me mouthing along) congratulated me. I ended up back stage (the glamour) and thanked the actors for performing my play and it felt like the whole evening rounded off properly.
Other memorable plays involved discussions between bags at a baggage carrousel in an airport (there were lodes of plays set in an airport for some reason) There was a great one about global warming, an alien joke that somehow seemed familiar, and an addictively persistent goodbye song (which should never be used in an advert!)and a brilliant one called "run" about cricket.
**end spoilers**
All in all I’m really happy, it was a good night and another reason to be pleased that I started writing for Everything2, and so I would like to thank TenMinuteJoe for running the quest: Cheers! Everyone else who submitted anything: Cheers! And E2 just for being here: Cheers!
Keep your fingers crossed for the Brooklyn announcement everyone!
Oh no! Now everyone can see how bad my memory is!