March 2nd 2022
Writing and producing a musical almost single-handedly is something I liken to climbing Mount Everest. First and foremost I am a composer but in order to get my work heard I have to produce it myself. And that is HARD!
Writing a show comes relatively naturally to me and it is something I love to do. Producing a show involves so much, so this page will document my journey to Edinburgh Fringe 2022...
March 2nd 2022 my daughter Shia was born. I knew she was on her way before commiting to an Edinburgh Fringe production.... BUT Covid wiped out two years of our lives and I was scared if I didn't do the Fringe in 2022 I might never do it again...
So baby in arm I was working on the arrangements for the backing tracks.
Behind the scenes
April 2022
During April Jan and Joel have worked on creating guide vocals for all of the songs in the show. We have to record all of the songs and we provide those tracks as well as the sheet music to our cast.
Casting - March and April
During March and April we held online and in person auditions to find our cast. As I write this we are days away from our first rehearsal.
REHEARSAL 1 - 10th April '22
Rehearsal one was an absolute JOY! To get in the room and sing the songs we have worked so hard on was the lift needed to get this show to Edinburgh!
We are on our way.
REHEARSAL 2 - 17th April '22
Rehearsal two was all about pushing on and getting a broad outline of the show. Next rehearsal we should have completed the outline of the show.
Fringe listing and google
The highlight of this week (if not year) is that we have successfully been registered and listed for the Edinburgh Fringe. You can see we rated our show as 12+ but this was a final proof for us to check and we changed it to 8+.
Although rather dry and boring, our website is now listed on Google so hopefully a few people may stumble across this show. And maybe two and a half people will come and see the show in Edinburgh.
Please God of the arts let two and a half people buy tickets and see our show :-)
Filming A trailer
1st of May. It's a new month and I really feel the time is ticking. Rehearsal three was about getting a trailer ready for the ticket release day which is the 5th of May. NOT LONG NOW!!!! Please enjoy the trailer for Alan Turing - A Musical Biography.
first full run
May 8th 2022 we finally got to hear our show sung through in FULL! Joe and Zara were the first performers to sing through the show in its entirety.
Starting to add Direction
May 15th we started to add some directions to the performance.
Continuing to block
May 22nd pushing on with adding movement to the show. We should finish next weekend all being well.
Designing fliers and posters
As the end of May approaches our venue ask us for our flier designs.
front
Back
Sound design
We have started working on our sound design and hopefully some simple lighting will also be programmed in to this years show. It is my first time working with this programme called Qlab. It is used a lot in theatres to run the show.
Blocking the show
May 29th we completed the movement aspect of the show. Now it is time to rehearse a LOT and to refine the show.
Advanced ticket sales
Advance ticket sales have been encouraging for the Edfringe. Many tickets will be sold on the day or the day before but it is very reassuring that people are booking to see our show already in early June.
The printed programme is not due for release until July 7th.
In the mean time I am plugging away very hard on social media.
Continued Rehearsals
Powerful moments are starting to emerge in the show. This is part of a song about Alan Turing being found guilty of gross indecency.
Re-audition
In June we were sad to lose a cast member. We had to re-list the role of Andrea and we are excited to have filled the role with Shania-Grace Thompson. The show is double cast to help cover these types of eventualities. When you work this hard on a show you need to ensure that the show can go on no matter what.
First social
In June we had our first social. Sadly Joe (Alan) couldn't be there but it was great to chat socially. We don't know each other outside of this environment and rehearsals can feel pressured. You always wish you had more time. So to sit and enjoy a meal and some wine was PERFECT!
Lighting
July 5th and 1 month until the show. Daryl, an experienced theatre technician, very kindly gave me a bit of his time to help me to understand the lighting system my venue will be using. He sent me some YouTube tutorials which are now on my LONNNNNNGGGGG to do list from bringing this show to the world August 6th 2022! One month today!
Mastering
July 12th and only a handful of days before our warm-up show I am mastering the tracks. Only tweaking volume for any people in the business this is not "proper" mastering. I am just making sure the show is of a consistent volume.