Txt Stage

There is nothing left of this production. Its gone, erased from memory from most of those that attended, are memories jolted with the video above?

The Noise Next Door performed in Txt Stage (2010).

They travelled from Brighton to Winchester and put together a session that experimented with audience text messaging (SMS) which they incorporated into their performance. My fondest memory? The laughs echoing around the performance space.

It was Chris's brain child as a finalle for his MA in Cultural & Arts Management at University of Winchester.

Bemoko Consulting Ltd, from Basingstoke managed the capture of the text messages & the projection onto a large white backdrop on stage for The Noise Next Door actors to utilise in their live performance.

The event got lots of publicity in the local press...

Chris was also interviewed by Jon Cuthill on BBC Radio Solent leading up to the event.

But there was an issue with this interview, on the morning of the interview Chris was also teaching students visiting the UK to learn English.

Armed with a radio and a dash of insight, he turned the session into a listening & comprehension lesson.

The Event  

The tickets handed out to the audience as they arrived provided some prompts:

Setting it up & getting people involved to help cover roles like stage manager were essential.

This is Chris recruiting people at a presentation he gave in The Stripe building, University of Winchester.

Key facts:

Performance date: 4th March 2010

Audience: ~ 50

Ticket price: £5.00 (with 80p booking fee if booked online)

Venue: Performance Gym, The University of Winchester

Time: 19:00 - 20:30

Troupe: The Noise Next Door, Brighton (five actors)

Technological back office: bemoko, Basingstoke (two technicians)

Production: minivation, Winchester (Chris Buckingham)

Stage management: Lucy Stevens

Front of house: Naomi Raymond

Stage technician: David Buss

Texts received on the night: > 100

We (minivation) had plans to take this further & use Txt Stage with school children & vulnerable groups where annonymity might have helped them address issues that they might have otherwise avoided engaging with.

Alas, work comittments & life in general had other plans for Chris and the minivation team.