WELCOME We are delighted to be working with In 2013 Nottingham Playhouse Our Participation team recently award-winning writer Michael Theatre Company productions toured celebrated 40 years of creating plays Pinchbeck ( The White Album and to 27 major towns and cities across the and workshops for children, having The Ashes ) in this truly exceptional United Kingdom. Over more than 50 developed a strong local, national and piece that has seen Nottingham years, the Playhouse stage has played international reputation for quality Playhouse partner with ODA Theatre host to many outstanding performers and innovation. (Prishtina, Kosovo) and Sarajevo War and helped create generations of Theatre SARTR . This international dedicated theatre-goers. Recent Highlights this autumn include partnership, along with a cast and successes have included the European J.B. Priestley’s Time and the creative team from Bosnia and premiere of The Kite Runner , a Conways , directed by newly- Herzegovina, Kosovo, Holland, Italy, co-production with Liverpool appointed Associate Director Germany and the United Kingdom, has Everyman and Playhouse Theatre Fiona Buffini, the world premiere of truly captured the spirit of the second which broke all box office records, The Propaganda Swing by Peter Arnott city-wide European Arts and Theatre Lost Plays Revue which marked the in co-production with Belgrade Festival, neat14 . This innovative piece official naming of the Neville Studio in Theatre, Coventry and Tom Stoppard’s will take you through the stories of celebration of former Artistic Director, classic Arcadia. Torvill and Dean’s gold-medal winning John Neville, and our co-production of routine, the music that inspired it and Steven Berkoff’s Oedipus , also with To find out more please see the explosive events that triggered Liverpool Everyman and Playhouse www.nottinghamplayhouse.co.uk or WWI and we’re certain it will leave you Theatre, travelling to the Spoleto call our Box Office on 0115 941 9419. enlightened and entertained. Festival in Charleston. In early 2014 we co-produced The Threepenny In Nottingham we welcome on average Opera with Birmingham Repertory 110,000 customers through our doors Theatre, Graeae Theatre Company, each year and create productions large New Wolsey Theatre Ipswich and West and small: timeless classics, enthralling Yorkshire Playhouse. This spring, we family shows and adventurous new welcome artists from across Europe as commissions, often touring work part of neat14 . Giles Croft Stephanie Sirr nationally and internationally. Artistic Director Chief Executive YOUR AUTUMN SEASON AT NOTTINGHAM PLAYHOUSE THE KITE RUNNER PROPAGANDA 29 AUG - 6 SEPT SWING Adapted by Matthew Spangler, 3 - 18 OCT based on the novel by Khaled Hosseini By Peter Arnott Y A D T R E B O R : TIME AND O T ARCADIA O H P . R E THE CONWAYS N N 31 OCT - 15 NOV U R E T I K 12 - 27 SEPT By Tom Stoppard E H T By J. B. Priestley BOX OFFICE 0115 941 9419 NOTTINGHAMPLAYHOUSE.CO.UK Photography: Julien Hughes A NOTE FROM THE DIRECTOR Bolero is a journey. I’ve been on We’ve rehearsed in Nottingham, I play the part of a conductor, this journey since I watched Sarajevo and Prishtina. We’ve met interpreting Bolero , keeping time. Torvill and Dean dance to Bolero in airports and online. We’ve You play the part of the audience. on the television on 14 February learned how to ice skate and how At the Opera in 1928. At the 1984. Now we’re taking you on to notate music. We’ve learned how Olympics in 1984. Tonight you’ll this journey from Nottingham to to say ‘6.0’ in Bosnian and ‘Stop’ in visit Ravel’s house, his grave and Paris to Sarajevo. From 1914 to all the languages of the UN. It’s a L’Opera Garnier where the ballet 2014, from the Opera to the biography of Bolero that follows was premiered. You’ll visit the Zetra Winter Olympics, from the First Ravel’s score note by note, bar by Stadium where Torvill and Dean World War to the Bosnian War. It bar, page by page, to the places and danced, the Olympic Mountains started with a seed. A seed that people who have been touched by and the Assassination Museum in grew into a story. There are six the music. It’s a piece of theatre Sarajevo. You’ll follow the bullet performers from across Europe inspired by the rhythm of Bolero , that triggered the First World War telling this story in different just as Ravel was inspired by the through 100 years of history. You’ll languages and in different time rhythm of gunfire in the First follow the baton of the conductor zones in search of a piece of music World War to write it. Everything as he taps his music stand and tells that is in Nottingham’s DNA. But is connected to the music and we the orchestra to stick to the tempo. it doesn’t end there. We want to ravel and unravel these threads of You’ll help us tell a story. A story tell you the story of what narrative that weave together like that grew from a seed. We hope you happened after Torvill and Dean lines left on the ice by skates after a enjoy your journey. A journey in left the ice. How seats were turned dance routine. search of Bolero . into coffins and the stadium was used as a morgue. How a requiem Michael Pinchbeck was conducted in the ruins. Director www.michaelpinchbeck.co.uk Blog: www.makingbolero.wordpress.com | Facebook: mpinchbeck | Twitter: mdpinchbeck #makingbolero A NOTE FROM COMMUNITY CAST FUNDING THE PRODUCER When we first perfom Bolero at Supported by the National Nottingham Playhouse on 31 Lottery through Arts Council The making of Bolero began in May and 1 June 2014, the England and the British Council, 2011 when Theatre Writing following people are going to be Bolero is a co-production Partnership awarded Michael involved in the community cast: between Nottingham Playhouse, Pinchbeck one of seven Making ODA Theatre (Prishtina) and Tracks bursaries so that he could Nasua Lyamah-Arbouin (UK), Sarajevo War Theatre. Developed make two journeys; one to Paris Jack A. G. Britton (UK), Josh at Dance4, National Ice Centre and one to Sarajevo. The aim of Curran (UK), Chloe Doherty and Primary with support from Making Tracks was to create an (UK), Malgorzata Grabowska Loughborough University and opportunity for artists to (Poland), Chris Greenhall (UK), the University of Lincoln, explore and determine the Leo Lanzoni (UK), Giada Maran Bolero began life as part of artistic terms of a new (Italy), Gwendolen Nelson (UK), Making Tracks. commissioned work. I have had Louise Pearson (UK), Sarah the opportunity to see the Helen Pretty (UK), Alice Ratcliffe original journey continue (UK), Beth Robinson (UK), geographically and artistically. Mariel Rodart (Mexico), Laura I have observed a coming Roe (UK), Alice Samuels (UK), together of many artists who Maria Savva (UK), John Skerritt have brought generosity and (UK), Katie Amanda Smith (UK), faith to the process. Far from Suleman Salim (UK) and Cora reaching its end, the journey of Vanaman (UK). Bolero now takes a new direction as it reaches audiences in Europe and beyond. Kate Chapman Producer By Michael Pinchbeck Taken from an interview with To help create this piece, of the same name and went onto Derek Graham at Nottingham you’ve undertaken extensive conduct Mozart’s Requiem in the Playhouse for their Backstage research and travel, and bombed-out City Hall in Sarajevo. Pass Members’ newsletter. worked closely with theatre City Hall is where Archduke Franz makers from Kosovo, Germany Ferdinand was visiting when he You’ve spoken about “letting and Bosnia & Herzegovina. was assassinated. He was only shot the music tell the story” and How has that affected the because the driver took a wrong “sticking to the tempo”: what show’s development? turn. Finally we have a character does that mean in terms of the who is a theatre director from production? It has made it richer and more Sarajevo, who tried to enter the complex but in some ways city during the siege. He went on I have been listening to Bolero to becomes more like conducting an to direct a show about Bolero . We understand the rhythm. Ravel said orchestra of different voices, tell all of these stories in our show conductors should ‘stick to the different languages and different and all of them are related in some tempo’ and we are trying to do the backgrounds. There are stories way to the music, either through a same. We do this by making the only some people can tell of living narrative connection, a visual rhythm of the text mirror the through a siege or crawling across image or through the rhythm of rhythm of the music or by letting a runway during a war and what the delivery. our footsteps and movements this project has done has opened happen in the same tempo. up a space for us to share these After two years of writing, We make noises with pencils stories and also to experiment what form does the final and batons and a typewriter that with performing each other’s production take? flirt with the rhythm of Bolero . stories. My job has been to Everything we are doing onstage conduct the process. It is a devised biography of is related to Bolero in some way Bolero . So we do read out a text and has come from my research The show throws up some which has been written down but into the music and the actors’ almost uncanny connections actually some of this is verbatim, experience of performing to it.