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Eating Ice Cream with Your Eyes Closed - Project Artistic Director's Diary
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Entry 1 - June 30, 2004
Finished the first day at Eating Ice Cream and it was great. The read through was really good. Aaron Pederson gave a great first read. It was good to see Lucas and Hayden again...they really know this show. I reckon the workshop in Albury/Wodonga was great for those two actors to get inside the characters. Laughed myself silly.
After some issues with the set...it seems to have worked itself out...the set is simple and functional leaving enough room for the actors to dominate the space. The Queensland Theatre Company were really welcoming and acknowledged HotHouse Theatre and our co-production arrangement as an important part of the life of the show. I think the script says so much about young people and identity and hope we get lots of young people along, especially given that it's set in a fictional regional town. I reckon we all have issues of identity and wanting to escape but regional young people really have to face the pack mentality fit in or leave.
Looking forward to seeing what comes out of the next few weeks of rehearsal.
Entry 2 - August 10, 2004
Just read the first review of Eating Ice Cream from it’s Brisbane season. It’s a really great review. I was there for the Opening Night and the audience had a real buzz. I went with some friends from Brisbane who I’d describe as hardened theatre goers and they were ringing me up each day for three days to tell me how great they thought it was. And it is. The writing is really captivating. I made a speech as part of the Opening Night formalities and talked about how the script was read and workshopped in Albury/Wodonga and how important it is in this huge country to find the diversity of our voice. In light of some of the discussions about the Free Trade Agreement with the USA, it’s great to see our plays hitting their mark with an audience. A great night in the theatre. The cast are looking forward to coming to Albury/Wodonga. Better book your tickets soon….I reckon it’s going to sell out in Brisbane.
Entry 3 - August 30, 2004
First day of the bump in at the Butter Factory. All going well after a great season end in Brisbane….the weather was amazing and the sold out audiences loved it. I was talking to the general manager of the Queensland Theatre Company and she was saying that she was amazed at the level of school audience attendance. It was great to see so many young and older people in the audience laughing at the same things. So after a quick bump out of the set in Brisbane and an even faster drive down the coast the set will arrive mid afternoon in Albury/Wodonga. The scaffolding is going up in the theatre at the moment and most of the lights have been pre-rigged. The creative team arrived last night and the cast are arriving on Tuesday (they decided to drive from Melbourne because of a fear of flying in small aircraft….I’m glad actually as the flight in last night was a bit rough). So we’re almost there…….ticket sales are up to 65% which is a great effort. The TV and radio ads are doing their job. Can’t wait to see the show here.
Wesley Enoch
HotHouse Theatre Project Artistic Director
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