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Post by Melanie Rashbrooke on Jan 14, 2009 13:49:46 GMT
Issue number: 91
Issue: Why is verbatim theatre so often lacking theatricality?
Convener(s): Stella Duffy
Participants: Shanti Freed, Rebecca Maltby, Rebecca Manson-Jones, Mark, Sara Bynoe, Jonathan Petherbrdige, Heather Taylor, Alisan Mead, Nick Phillips, Mandy Fenton, Gary, Julie, Lisa Hammond
Summary of discussion, conclusions and/or recommendations: I’m really not sure how to write this up, as what I personally mostly heard was a list of shows people loved/were moved by/were touched by that were in some way perceived to be verbatim. This felt very unusual for a D&D discussion. It was less about feeling/views and much more about WITNESSING the witnessing of verbatim.
Some questions/statements : Why is it ok for a real character (in a verbatim piece) to be an ignorant f**ker and not ok in a scripted piece? Is the verbatim writer a writer or an editor or a composer or a choreographer or an auteur? ‘Based on a true story’ gives legitimacy. People are afraid of ‘political theatre’ – verbatim gives freedom to make political work? Verbatim happens now, often with more immediacy. Called to witness. Honouring the material (sometimes over-honouring it, over-honouring the person who gives/tells.) Sometimes we’re more moved by fiction. It’s not enough just to be true, there is a need for THEATRE as well.
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Post by rebeccamaltby on Jan 15, 2009 0:53:31 GMT
I mostly was not moved/touched by the verbatim shows I've seen. I find they are often dull. When based on transcripts, even when edited, the plays often lack an arc or varying dynamics that, arguably, a good story needs to keep it engaging. Just stating the facts is not enough to keep it interesting, and should not serve as a reason to perform the piece.
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Post by jonathanpeth on Jan 16, 2009 8:11:42 GMT
The other thing we found was the number of variants that fall under the umbrella of Verbatim. From "I've got an ear piece and I'm going to use it" through to "inspired by and including a few lines from some interviews we conducted".
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Post by rebeccamaltby on Jan 16, 2009 18:14:24 GMT
"inspired by and including a few lines from some interviews ..." - which of course is what people have been inspired by for years - historical dramas etc - but suddenly the buzz word 'verbatim' gets attached and suddenly it's funky and new and appealing (not to me).
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Post by jonathanpeth on Jan 16, 2009 19:51:27 GMT
I don't know - some seems mummified, other stuff I've found powerful and moving. But the word covers too many variants. Can we come up with some more precise terms, or some sort of verbatim-ometer. 10 points for huge chunks of unmediated speech, and 1 point for the occasional sentence.
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