Updates!

Oh, this is sooooo exciting, folks!  I have secured the theatre for the world première of my play and, today, I went to view the space at the local Friends Meeting House with Chris.  

It all felt a bit surreal at one point, which reminded me of a conversation I had with a lady sitting on my left last Thursday, at the MK Open University theatre, while waiting for a fantastic version of Macbeth to start.  Talking about taking the leap [working toward staging our own work], she commented with "Wow, I'd never be able to do that!", to which I replied "I actually don't know what came to me!"  At that moment, though, and for the first time in my life, I felt as if I was exactly where I was always meant to be!

Today I felt exactly the same while being shown around the Friends Meeting House, a magical feeling indeed!

While Chris Amos puts a few words together about himself, I just want to share with You a bit of history about the place where we'll be running audition workshops next spring and where the play will take its form: the Friends Meeting House in Leighton Buzzard.

"The Quaker movement was formed in the 17th Century. Followers called themselves "Friends in Truth" and at the end of the 18th Century the term "Religious Society of Friends" was formally adopted.

The Friends Meeting House in Leighton Buzzard was built in 1787 by John Grant, who ran a grocery shop in the town. It was extended in 1812. The plain interior expressed the simplicity demanded of Friends at the time. The high windows and lack of distracting ornament were to help Friends detach from the world during worship.

Until 1924 it was practice to record as ministers those men and women who were considered to be deeply spiritual and able to speak persuasively. Recorded minsters sat on raised benches at one end of the room whilst the elders of the meeting occupied benches in front of the ministers, their role being to ensure that meetings were properly held. There is no hierarchy in meeting today and worshippers sit where they please in a circle of chairs in the centre of the room. It has become customary for a table to be placed at the centre of the circle, sometimes with flowers and often with books and literature for guidance.

At the opposite end to the minister's gallery is a 19th Century room divide dating from a time when separate business meetings for men and women     were held.The divided consists of wooden shutters that can be opened for large meetings, and for weddings and funerals.

The meeting house was renovated in 1953. At this time, the gravestones were moved from the graves to the sides of the burial ground and a lawn was laid over the burial area. In keeping with Quaker practice, the gravestones are of the same size and materials, and have the same form of words. They were placed in the same manner in the burial ground to avoid distinction between rich and poor."

We'll receive soon a map of the back grounds to see exactly where burials were moved so that, when we'll use the outdoors facilities, we'll make sure no one is disturbed!

Another exciting feeling I had while viewing the premises is that we have a lovely central place where to build a new group of friends coming from different backgrounds, living in the same community and with something great in common:acting!