Article for 2014 Jul 06

2014

2014 Jul

Jul 06 Sun

Below is a table listing every one of the twenty plays I’ve been involved in with Jigsaw Music Theatre (acting 2004-2012, assisting-directing 2012-2014) or its sister group Quartz Youth Theatre (acting 2013-2014). Not particularly rivetting reading, but it may of reference value. I apologise for my lack of precision (or any lack of accuracy) with some of the dates. Songs I lyricised are in this shade of blue.

#	Play		Performed
1	Big Nose		2005 Spring
I was a human cannonball in this play about a lonely circus clown.
2	Charlie Prince: Rock Idol of the Town		2006 Spring
An adaptation of Oscar Wilde’s short story “The Happy Prince”
3	The Twelve Days of Christmas		2006 Dec
I think it was about pagan winter festivities, though I played a professor.
4	Call to Merlin		2007 May 10-11
Looking at how Arthurian legend relates to the present day
5	The Invisible Girl		2008 Jan 16-17
A story about the elusive peace-maker between two hostile towns
6	Chester Mystery Plays 2008		2008 Jun 26 - Jul 19
Quinquennial biblical re-tellings with a community cast (I turned down being in the 2013 cycle)
7	1001 Nights		2009 Apr 01-02
I played Sinbad the Sailor and a guilt-stricken tailor.
8	The Canterbury Tales		2010 Feb 23-25
I lyricised “Chanticleer’s Song” for the Nun’s Priest’s Tale.
9	CMP Reprise: Noah’s Flood		2010 Jun 18-20
A repeat of a play from the 2008 cycle
10	The Crash of the Rhinos		2010 Jul 01-02, 04
An original tale celebrating an exhibition of rhinocerical sculptures
11	The Court of King Ludvig		2011 Feb 08-09
I lyricised “The Musicians’ Tango (The Rat Song)” for this original comedy.
12	The Insect Circus		2011 Jun 18-19
I played a sadistic wasp-tamer.
13	More Than Salt		2011 Aug 04
Jigsaw were invited down to Porthleven to devise this fairy-tale with ISTA.
14	The Snow Queen		2011 Dec 08-09
A Hans Christian Anderson adaptation performed on Eastgate Street (Chester), in literal snow!
15	Unsinkable		2012 May 28-31
A collaboration with Theatre in the Quarter and the Hammond School, on the Titanic
16	CMP Reprise: Noah’s Flood		2012 Jun
Another repeat from 2008, though I was promoted to playing Cam, son of Noah

17	Ghosts of the City	2013 Feb 07-08
This collection of local lore was my first production as assistant director; I also lyricised “Ace of Hearts” and designed the poster and programme.
18	The Firebird	2014 Mar 04-05
A Russian folk-tale for which I was assistant-director, designed the poster and programme, and lyricised “The Golden Garden”, “She Enters Her Wonderful Garden”, “Heaven For Me”, and “Turn His Death Around”.
19	Masque	2014 Apr 08-09, 11-12
Not Jigsaw, but its newly-formed sister Quartz Youth Theatre, with a piece on the English Civil War that I performed in and did the poster and programme for
20	The Emperor’s New Clothes	2014 Jul 03, 05
Entirely in song, and 49% lyricised by me (including such scenes as “Enter the Emperor”, “You’ll Have What You Deserve”, “The Tricksters’ Escape”, and “Procession and Outcome”). I also assisted-directed, and designed the poster and programme.

Fun fact: Jigsaw does not have its own website (neither does Quartz for that matter); googling “Jigsaw Music Theatre” (with quotes) yields 66 web results, of which I’m responsible for three, 268 image results, of which I’m responsible for 33, and five video results, of which I’m responsible for five. See the website of TiQ, the umbrella-group for Jigsaw and Quartz, and that of the Chester Chronicle for official updates.

Years after I stopped writing the Childhood Blog, I made a more comprehensive catalogue of my TiQ endeavours.