by Mat Burtcher | Feb 17, 2011 | News
In exciting international news, we have a real treat coming up from our more Westward followers as Nik Wakefield leads a brand new HAC project at the Aberystwyth Arts Centre. Valley of the Water Dog: Above The Stone tells the story of a young couple who leave the big smoke behind for a taste of wilderness, and the changes in the seasons and their senses as they adapt. It features poetry, movement, music, video, light and sound, and is inspired by such various ideas as the writings of William Carlos Williams, Robert Frost, Sam Shepard, Patti Smith and Tom Waits. It’s one night only, so if you happen to be in Wales that day, grab a ticket. If you’re not in Wales, book a train, then book a ticket. See you there. Valley of the Water Dog: Above The Stone Thursday March 3/ Iau 3 Mawrth 7.45pm £6 (£4) 01970 623232 www.aber.ac.uk/artscentre .. and if that’s not enough for you, here’s a lovely piece from the Standard to keep you all excited about the Coming Up! Festival which our Tim’s been working his little socks off for: “From Monday until March 4, 8,000 Londoners will be able to take part in a series of free shows from the surreal to the sublime – think wrestling, a silent opera, a folk-hip-hop collaboration and a theatrical cooking banquet – in Debut, a venue under the arches of London Bridge. Six creative producers – Londoners aged under 30 shortlisted from a selection of 200 – have been given the opportunity to divide up the cash and put their ideas into play…”...
by Mat Burtcher | Feb 9, 2011 | News
My fingers are cramping under the weight of all this news I’m about to post. Firstly, we imagine you will have noticed the launch of a little channel called Sky Atlantic last week. Not only did Sky and HBO recruit the legendary Dustin Hoffman to front the ad campaign, they also called in the services of the Heritage Arts Company to help kick off their launch party with a prohibition-themed bang. We’re sure the presence of Steve Buscemi, Stephen Graham and others helped attract some attention too, but a big thank you goes out to everyone involved in the event, the Hospital Club and all our performers. Secondly, nearly every moment of the IdeasTap / OldVicNewVoices Coming Up Festival, the Creative Directors of which Tim has been chairing, has sold out. Now, there still might be a few ways to get hold of tickets, so keep your eyes on the official website if you want to come along; it’s going to be brilliant. Third, the Radio SHAC continues its bimble through the nether-regions of time and place. Look out for the final five episodes of the first series between now and the end of March. Catch up with the first episode here. And finally, today we announced the official theme of Standon Calling 2011 as Gods & Monsters. Get tickets, get there, and come get epic with us. The Obleron awaits. Phew. Where do we find the time? Talk to us on twitter & facebook if you want to know more. See you...
by Tim Wilson | Feb 1, 2011 | News
We’ve opened booking for our Old Vic and IdeasTap project – the Coming Up Festival! Heritage Arts Company have been managing the progress of the festival and chairing the Creative Directors. The Collective are a group of creative producers with a brilliantly wide range of disciplines, all under 30 and all on the cusp of becoming real players in some very difficult professions. This programme of events will tell you how broad their interests and skills are, and also it will tell you a lot about the generosity of the various supporters of the project. Creative industries face an uncertain future, and the opportunity provided by this project, both this year and hopefully in the future, demonstrates how hard the Heritage Arts Company has been working to provide a professional creative community for tomorrow. We begin with Jamie Lewis Hadley’s wrestling extravaganza, quickly followed by Cherry Franklin, whose Old Roots/New Routes project brings together some fantastic music and spoken word acts. Daisy Evans’ Dido & Aeneas is a groundbreaking personalisation of the opera experience, and Nina Smith closes off the first week with her sumptuous and devilish Caravaggio-inspired banquet, Eat Your Heart Out. And while Spike Laurie has commissioned a new play to form a part of his multi-platform ‘Civil Unrest’, Preethi Mavahalli is curating a fortnight of films that you won’t catch anywhere else. Associated producers Rachel Tyson and Alex LeRoux are bringing even more life to the venue with the Coalition double-bill of new writing and the club night Electric Tunnels. Coming Up is a launchpad for these six Creative Directors – you’ll be seeing more...
by Mat Burtcher | Jan 11, 2011 | News
Listened to it yet? We’re on the edge of our seats for Episode 2, but we’re going to have a slightly different release pattern than we planned, in order to incorporate a collaboration with our friends at IdeasTap. The Radio S-HAC can pick-up and re-broadcast any phrase of floating storytelling from across time: to reflect these, we want you to send us some ideas, songs, stories and plays that you’d like to see the S-HAC and its staff stumble across. Head on over to the current Heritage Arts IdeasTap Brief, which explains the kind of submissions we’re looking for and how you can get them to us. We’ve got four more episodes to come: Ruins, Rebellion, Machines and Bread. Get writing, and come be a part of the HAC. Mat...
by Mat Burtcher | Dec 20, 2010 | News
Cold, isn’t it? It may seem like we’re indulging in a little hibernation since our events at Harrods, The Savoy and the BAC earlier this Autumn (not to mention a certain Clandestine Film event you may have spotted us at). But in fact we’ve been busy for the last two months – and will be busier still in the next two months – working for the Old Vic. Tim’s the Chairman for the Coming Up Festival, which is a collaboration between IdeasTap and the Old Vic New Voices programme – which Dave worked for as a Director, with me as trusty Assistant Director, at the 24 Hour Plays. Tim’s been responsible for coordinating the six Creative Directors into a Collective, and ensuring that the Collective deliver a festival that stands toe-to-toe with Banksy and Punchdrunk in that most exciting of venues, the Old Vic Tunnels. HAC are the contracted Company Managers for the Festival, which runs from Feb 14 for two weeks. Tickets will be available on IdeasTap in January – so sign yourselves up to that great website and let them know you’re coming along. And we’ll all see you there. Enjoy the snow!...
by Tim Wilson | Sep 16, 2010 | News
The day has come for us to set sail. We have stowed the rice and rum and we are ready to embark on a journey. We need whisperers in the crow’s nest and fibbers at the helm. The Radio SHAC Van is now heading off to begin its mission of collecting and cross referencing the little legends of your worlds. Take fifteen minutes to listen to the first few miles – there’ll be many more. A certain Dr Abagnale thinks his mission is complete; in fact, it’s only just begun. We hope you’ll enjoy the journey. Mat has been working fantastically hard doing the editing and we plan to keep him that way. The Radio SHAC has committed to broadcasts regularly between now and next summer, when the mission takes on a new and exciting form… We’ll keep you informed on that, but for now – tell your friends, join our groups, and listen up. We’ll be announcing the themes for the coming broadcasts (this month: Home) and we want submissions from writers, singers, journalists, actors – young and old. – Tim Click through to the Radio SHAC...
