Jenny Bennet Class Rainbow ti vi reet Na t St The Flin th ty By Tim Fir The Electric Theatre, Guildford 23rd to 26th November 2022
School nativity plays Where It All Beg are as much a part of s- an Christmas as Santa Claus, carol d decorating the tree . Families watch mist shepherds in tea towe y-eyed as l headdresses and an gels with tinsel wings lines and sing adorab recite their ly... if not always qu ite in tune or the co rrect words. The traditional nativity play tells the story of the birth of Jesus in a stable. These days it often gets a modern twist with ex tra characters that could be anything from alien s to a talking caterp illar. Nativity plays in the UK are now very muc h associated with children. But fo r centuries that was not the case. The first one is said to have been perfor med almost 800 years ago in a ca ve in Italy by monks led by St Francis of Assisi. In the UK , dramatisatio ns of the nativity were include d in mystery play cy cles but became less widesp read in the 17th cent ury because the Puritans disapproved of them. School nativity plays were happening by th e 1930s and 40s and popularity surged fr their om the 1970s onward s. Almost everyone w ho grew up in the Un ited Kingdom will ha ve experienced the mixed blessings of the Nativity Play . It’s a right of passag e for most children and probab ly the very first “trea ding of the boards” that people endure! Always cute to watch and often, inadvertently, hilariou s the nativity play detailing the st ory of the birth of Je sus is a tradition that most of us know, whether we ar e religious or not. singing, mince pies an
writer and songwrit A playwright, screen Tim began at King’s whose writing career Fir th College Cambridge where he set up a ith Sam Mendes and theatre company w g Cambridge, he was medy team. On leavin hts co wrote for the Footlig io at ckbourn for the stud rite a play by Alan Ay commissioned to w t play A Man Of arborough. His one-ac n Joseph Theatre, Sc the Stephe length play from mmissioning of a fulless and led to the co s been seen Letters was a succ to the West End, ha d, which transferred Islan Ayckbourn, Neville's oduction since almost continuous pr und the world and in in translation all ro its premiere. m, broke the all is successful 2003 fil Girls, adapted from h d also His play Calendar on tour in 2008/09 an cord for a play whilst e re iere time British box offic 13 marked the prem est End residency. 20 during its W ok, lyrics continued to sell out r which he wrote bo l, This Is My Family fo usica of Firth's first solo m Girls, directed by ucible Theatre. The premiered at the Cr nix Theatre, and music, which opened at the Phoe n with Gary Barlow te g Tim Firth, and co-writ l The Band, featurin 17, Firth’s new musica ptember 20 a House, London in 2017. In Se e Manchester Oper , was premiered at th at the music of Take Th Theatre Royal t End season at the tional tour and a Wes followed by a na Haymarket in 2018. 99. It edy film on ITV in 19 n as a Christmas com ity bega The Flint Street Nativ e stage. The m to adapt it for th house that asked Ti ay Tim was the Liverpool Pl s from members of llected over ten year events, co story is based on real ary School is rs. Flint Street Prim ds who were teache ien his Firth's family and fr Firth attended and imary School, where Heath Pr modelled on Stockton mother taught.
Come Christmas there are e Tea To wel always those cynics who de cry infant nativities as pointless charades.. What lessons, they ask, are to be learned in the modern age from a tableaux of kids try ing to work out what a 'vir gin's womb' is and how not to 'abhor' it. The answer is 'nu merous and trenchant' lesson s for all concerned; not in the tale itself but rather in the telling. For teachers, the casting of a nativity is a lesson in soc ial engineering and appeasement. MARY - giv e it to the girl whose paren ts are the most trouble. JOSEPH - the docile bay who is happy being led round like a Victorian orphan but would protest at being the donkey. DONK EY - give it to the kid who doesn't mind being a donkey. GABRIEL - give it to the gir l who could've been Mary but whose parents were les s trouble. SHEPHERDS - an y child who won't go on without their best friend. W ISE MEN - any child who wo n't go on without their best friend but can be truste d to carry out a simple mo tor function. STAR OF BETHLEHEM - save this for the child who is odds-on to back out at the last minute. No-one misses the star. NARRATORS - these are your Corinthian pillars . During my research for Th e Flint Street Nativity, tea chers divulged occasions of mums asking staff to share out the Mary role, suggesti ng they alternate Marys between performances. Ha ving adults play children in a comedy built around the direct results of such menta lities was my attempt to po rtray how the membrane separating the world of ad ults from that of children is never thinner that durin ga nativity. On stage, children act like adults whilst in the audience adults seethe wit h infantile jealousies. The stinging lesson learne d first-hand by children pre pares them for one of the er have to face in adulthood : the part you end up in life with may not be the part yo u feel you deserve. When I was four I was taken to the nativity at my future infan t school. Could I tell you no w one thing about Mary or toughest issues they will ev cont.
ber the donkey turning to No chance. Do I still remem Joseph> RE"? Killer OODY HELL, IT’S HOT IN HE ng from inside his head:" BL through and shouti olitical summit. the show/board meeting/p right time and you will steal line at the ck to that by fear of failure, I look ba later, dragged earthwards Thirty-odd years single-mindedness. of free-wheeling, ruthless, and the lesson it taught me nativity not all on infant nativity, they're just of lessons to be learnt in an There are plenty Tim Firth out love and peace. stage. And they're not all ab Creating A Dual Anyone involved in th e Sized World world of amateur th eatre will be only to o well aware of the designing, building, se wing and crafting an array of buildings, clothing and props. Each element contrib utes to building the finished picture that you see before you on stage. In the case of The Flint Street Nativ perhaps a unique ch ity, there is allenge; almost each element has needed to be made twice an to the correct scale d . Not just one teache rs chair, but an over sized one at that, classroom tables in scaled up ‘adult-child ’ size, notice boards and pictures scaled and down. At Guildbu up rys we are truly fort unate to have a supe rb team of craftspeople working tirelessly backstage to realise the direct ors vision and for that we are both truly blessed and forever thankful. unseen army busily
own Mary - La im Br uren Philli er - T ep pou Innke Star of Bethleh em - Ian McShee Wise Gold H arriet Powe ll rd Gabi K Gabriel - n onatha ense - J ankinc Wise Fr nt Consta Angel - Herod/Jos e ph - Eddie Narrator - Neil Jame s ing Shephe nant tha Rem - Saman Claire H owes Woolrich Ass - Gra ussell ham R -Price
-G Director illy Fick Musical Direct or & Original heryl Malam age Manager - C St Sound - S imon Pric e & Will Ho ar ing y ile obin Ba nist - R Pia and Ian ll-Price usse aham R ign - Gr Nichols s Set De Set Constructio n- Music - Gabi K Lighting Graham Russell- - Kevin M Price, Michael B urne, y rt, Rosemar therine Sma ls, Ca Diane Nicho der Costumes rbara Tresid emelryk, Ba am H Chapman, P r Prope alam Mike Dean m areha Tina W ties - Prompt - Ca therine Sma rt eham areham, Paul War ie Walker, Tina W ASM’s - Soph Publicity & Marketing - Gilly Fick Programme - Cheryl Malam sign - Phill Griffith Photography & Graphic De an Constant th Digital Design - Jona Production Man ag er - Michael Bur ne
As a director it’s always the play that drives everything. On initial reading, it lights a spark, and that spark becomes a burning fire - this certainly has turned into a passionate love affair on so many levels. What’s not to love about being given free rein to act like a child and to remember what it was like? But there’s so much more to this play than meets the eye and it drew me in to the intensely poignant stories of the children. Like many of us, Tim Firth’s first stage experience came in the school nativity play. He was denied the role of Joseph and as a result missed out on the opportunity to hold the hand of the girl playing Mary, who fancied his best friend. Shortly afterwards as an act of retribution, he wrote his first play, casting himself as a prince, Mary as the princess and his friend as the back end of a dragon. His experience clearly stayed with him! Although the original script sets the play in Liverpool, Firth specifies in his author’s notes that the school should be ‘thoroughly owned by the area in which it is performed’. To this end there are a number of local references and settings which we have had endless fun tweaking, to create our very own Flint Street Primary School. There’s so much to be grateful for in Guildburys as a director. The whole team deserve gold stars and they have worked tirelessly. The challenge of creating 2 worlds – one child sized, and one adult - has been beautifully realised. The costumes have been lovingly created by hand, the props have been crafted, the musical direction has been a joy, enabling my talented and dedicated cast to shine as brightly as the star of Bethlehem. We hope you enjoy your visit. The children and staff at Flint Street Primary School have worked very hard. The PTA thank you for supporting us. Gilly Fick
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