1... 2 ... 3 ... 4 ... 5! FIVE STARS!

by: alex

"'That was the last day I lived in my body', she eerily recals. The focus is on the complex issue of child abuse, as 'lil'bit', bow and adule, takes the audience on a tripe down memory lane. Set in America suring the sixties, 'Lil'bit' is trying to escape her daily troubles and find a source of comfort with her 'sweet talking' Uncle Peck. It allows the audience a rare insight into the troubled mind of a child, and an adults, unfolding into a cmplex, yet tragic, 'love' story. The small cast present a breath taking performance captivating the audience through out. Filled with heartfelt emotion and tragedy, this show cannot be missed! TW raiting, 5/5"


a very pleased tyler

Thought I might post some photos and gush about edinburgh durring the festival.

I have never been here when the festival season is not going on, but I have to say right now the city is electric. We have to walk about 10 minutes into the center of the festival. The royal mile is pedestrianized and is flanked with these incredible arches, and about a dozen large pillars, specially there for the various shows to plaster with posters. There are about 4 small stages that have the crapy acts on them all day (and night it seems) and buskers all down the road. When you are approaching it there is this anticipation and people and buses and taxi's rushing past you, and then a wall of bag pipes, and people yelling for you to see there show, and dancers, and clowns and people and sound just hits you... & you are in the middle of it all. Passing out flyers is hard for our show. There are other shows with silly subjects or really experimental ideas and they are in costume, or acting out incredbly eye catching scenarious. Our subject matter is much less condusive to this. Tyler had the tasteless and ugly idea that we could pass out candy to little children. Repulsive, but a little humours to the cast. Then there was the robot. ... yeah, a robot made out of out posters. Instead, we are just putting them up, and passing them out. We have tee-shirts. Out poster jump out though. We have had two great publicity things though. One of the major papers here was just taking photographs, much like the one above for in there paper, and BAM, right there in the middle were our posters, and they just jumped from the page. Also, today Emma, one of the cast members was passing out fliers and a tv crew from flash news i think asked her to continue passing them out for there cameras. They started on this really tight shot of just the flier and then they filmed her giving them away. So, on the news for the next fiew days, in the stock footage for any Festival coverage will be Emma, in a bright yellow shirt passing out and talking about our show.


Here is emma, in the shirt at the smirnof underbelly. It is a very neat little venue there are like 7 stages there all of them with different belly names. The Jelly Belly, the Big Belly, the Belly button, the pot belly, the baby belly ... there may be more, but it is quaint. I have more photos, I will just throw them on here. Tell us if you want to see photos of anything specific, we can get them...



the house of cards that aaron built... this is what our fliers look like when we have been passing them out for hours and are running away from the royal mile, eating burgers...


this is a very old woman stripping last night, it needs some explaining. Maybe tyler can do that later. Lets just say it is the Cabaret, of Oxford students, doing crazy and silly things... a little scantaly clad.



and happy 21 birthday to one of our cast members. A lovely english breakfast of crepes strawberrys, nutella and clotted cream.

shows out, talk to you all later friends

a

Edinburgh, Weighing in on the Oxford / Cambridge debate, & relearning "English"

first bit by tyler then photo updates by alex
(we love tea ... not big brother, sorta. Actually, we will come clean on big brother later)

We had our tech rehearsal at 5am this morning, and I only got two hours of sleep as Liz and I were reblocking our somewhat limp last scene. It was greatly lacking the intensity that it needed, but we were able to figure something out. Then at tech today, while nothing was really happening (the techies were fuzting with lights or something), we kindof just started moving things around, which James picked up on and came down to ask us what we were doing and he picked up on it quick, and it kindof seemed like a sortof collaborative effort, in a way...
...i love it when things work out.

as it is, i am a bit tired so i think i am going to head out. our dress rehearsal is thursay and we open friday. pray for some good reviews.

cheers,
tyler


hello all.

First let me say that i really enjoyed England. It was really lovely, the people are very polite and quiet. But they are a little uptight. It is not that noticable untill you are just emerged in the cluture for as long as we were there. It may be Oxford though. It is very 'posh' very proper and educated, which is lovely, but also not very approachable or sociable... or interested in thrift stores or a life style that costs less than 50 quid a day.

There is a drastic difference in Edinburgh. TYler and I enjoy Oxford more than Cambridge. Yes, we were only in Cambridge for a day, but it is smaller and at the same time less metropolitan. One thing that you have going for you in Oxford in blending in. If you dont want to be a part of the hustle and the studiosity, in oxford you can just slip away and maybe find a quite place. Cambridge didnt seem like that. It was very concentrated. Although I will agree that the backs, as they call them are very very beautiful. I didnt know this before, but the back of all of the universitys in Cambridge face the Thames river. The river winds through oxford, which kind of lets every one enjoy it. In cambridge it is really beautiful in the colleges, but the main city as a whole is not as attractive as oxford, at least that is my opinion. BUT, hands down... Edinburgh kicks both of their bins (English for trash can).


this one is cornmarket in oxford. Really the 'hub' of the city, other than high street. It is a little scummy at night, full of all of the underage townies and chavs that the clubs and bars wont let in. They are really loud and anoying. But it is lovely and very full of buskers (music people on the side of the walk path playing for change) and many nationalitys and street vendors.


This is the river Thames running behind the last flat we stayed in in oxford. It doesnt run though the very center of town, but it is so close. we never went punting (again) but, we figure we will be back, so we will put it off again.


this is old tom. tyler thinks there is too ominous, but christ college is beautiful. And old tom is beautiful as well.

the following are all in Oxford still at this place called Freud (or frevd, as it says on the sign). It used to be a church. which is odd, it is now a bar with jazz. I dont know about the place, but it has a creepy ambiance. There is just something interesting about listing to jazz, drinking a jack and ginger and looking up and seeing jesus in a faded fresco...







this is Little Clarendon. It is my favorite street in oxford. We are spending some quality time with another american in oxford and looking at the wonderful lights. LC connects Giles, which is the home of othe Inklings pubs... and Jerico, which is a really lovely part of Oxford. (where Freud is located)





Think your computer can handle more photos? I hope so.. because i have more more more.... hazah!

this is 'the other place' or 'planes polytech'... cambridge...

we learned snooker though. It is great fun but the table is a freaking king size bed. (these are small because i am having mercy on your computer)





after all of the furstrating flilght crud that tyler talked about yesterday, we finially got on the plane. Dont we look happy.




but there was a BEAUTIFUL sunset for us to watch. My favorite part of flying. And the clouds looked like snow.


then a happy team affived in edinburgh.

and it is old, and creepy, and beautiful... and sureal. And relaxed. People are very happy here, there are so many festvals and the city just feels electric!




three more for the road... of 5 am this morning... out first visit to the venue!


ty and liz, checking lighting with the crew


a very sleepy cast... in our adorable seating.

one more for the road, of tyler and I this morning at... gosh, 5? (with my mt hood photo sitting on my mirror for when I am homesick). Things are getting so very exciting. Edinburghs lovelyness is not well represented in those photos, so i will take more when i go flyering tommorow in my brigt yellow shirt. :) The streets are packed with posters for shows and the venues are crazy with techies and actors running all over. It is very exciting. Love you all and talk to you very soon!

ta,
alex

safe in edinburgh, yet...

The past week has been a trying week. I don't have time to explain it all, I am expected back at the flat for dinner, but I will try to explain some.

Yesterday, after an incredible day spent in Cambrige with Liz's family, Alex arrived at Stanstead airport and were devastated when we found out how much our extra bag cost. We chose to go with Stanstead because we were able to find two tickets for the price that we were going to pay Virgin trains for one. 181 pounds for two train tickets, 90 pounds for two plain tickets. I won't go into how difficult it has been to try and cancel our train tickets, a process that the receptionist assured me was just a phone call away...when in fact it is a letter and 20 business days away. We got to Stanstead (two hours out of Oxford, which was why Liz took us in: a half hour away from Cambrige), and found that we were only allowed 20kg each for our checked baggage. The extra bag ended up costing us 120 pounds; after I paid for it I walked away from the desk in a rage; I felt like I was being punished; I wanted to cry, but I was too cross. On the plane they charged us for the complimentary penuts and lemonade; I took the head hankie that was velcrowed to the top of my seat on my way out. I don't know what I'll do with it, I don't think I was justified, but I did it anyway.

When we arrived in the flat, it was beautiful, but not everybody had arrived. There was one big room, two mid-size rooms, and one single room. As it was set up, there were two people in each room, but the single was a bit cramped. To make a long (2 hour) discussion short, the two girls in the single room were cramped, but one of them did not want to share a room with three people in the big room, Aaron (whom I am having trouble looking at right now) was full of ideas but when it came to him sharing or moving his stuff, he was immediately reticent. The way it has ended up, is that Alex and I are now sharing the single room. No one has moved except the people who were originally in the single room. Nothing has changed except those who were willing to get the shit end of the stick... ... ...it was very sad to see such stubborness, and unwillingness to sacrifice. I am very angry still and very hurt, Alex more than me. After we got settled in, she just laid on my chest and cried for a while. I just lay in wonder at people and the world and hurt...

The day started so well...I climbed to the top of Aurthur's Seat to clear my head and be thankful to God for providing such an incredible oportunity. I am still thankful for this, but sad as well.

We are safe in Edinburgh, we have a tech rehearsal at 5am tomorrow. I must go.

Cheers,
Tyler

P.S. Mom, I have not talked to Aaron about the utility bill yet. I still want to sink my fist into his face too much to have that discussion as of yet; I need to wait to cool down. About the bag: I mailed it from the post office in Bristol, I will email them or call or something...I hope it hasn't gotten lost. I love you all.

On route...

waiting here in Cambrige to go to Stanstead airport tonight. Talked about cricket over bacon and eggs. Will write more when we get to Edinburgh.

Cheers,
Tyler