Projects

As It Goes (Formerly known as Estate to Stage Young Playwrights)

Details

Immediate Theatre has been commissioned by Artangel to work in partnership with the Young Vic Theatre to discover and mentor four new young playwrights who will develop 15 minute plays to be performed as rehearsed readings with the Young Vic Theatre in October 2010. Based in London, Artangel commissions and produces exceptional projects by outstanding contemporary artists.

The Arbor tells the powerful true story of Bradford playwright Andrea Dunbar (The Arbor and Rita, Sue and Bob Too) and her daughter Lorraine, directed by artist and award-winning director Clio Barnard.

Andrea Dunbar died tragically at the age of 29 in 1990, leaving her ten year old daughter, Lorraine with bitter childhood memories.  The Arbor catches up with Lorraine in the present day, also aged 29, as she is re-introduced to her mother’s plays and letters. The film follows Lorraine’s personal journey as she reflects on her own life and begins to understand the struggles her mother faced. Through interviews with other members of the Dunbar family, we see contrasting views of Andrea. The interviews were edited to form an audio ‘screenplay,’ which forms the basis of the film as actors lip-synch to the voices of the interviewees.

 In response to the film, Artangel is working with Immediate Theatre and the Young Vic, nurturing four new young playwrights from East London through a series of workshops to develop short plays that will be read at the Young Vic Theatre by professional actors, as part of a programme of readings of Andrea Dunbar’s plays.  The young playwrights are being mentored by Lorne Campbell (Greyscale, Traverse), Gbolahan Obisesan (Royal Court, National Theatre, Young Vic), Jo Carter (Artistic Director, Immediate Theatre), Rob Watt (Soho Theatre, Stratford Circus, Royal Court) and Penny Cliff (Soho Theatre, Cardboard Citizens, Clean Break). On the final day of readings, a panel discussion will take place with Max Stafford Clark, Clio Barnard, Jo Carter and actors from The Arbor.

 To raise awareness of the issues raised in the film, Artangel is screening The Arbor for invited Members of the House of Lords in partnership with the pioneering and influential organisation Kids Company in October.  The special screening aims to highlight the urgency of the film’s themes to the Parliamentary establishment, individuals with constitutional power to debate and veto government legislation. 

 Clio Barnard won The Best New Documentary Film Maker at the Tribecca Film Festival for The Arbor in April 2010. 

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