This story begins a little over two years ago. Saturday August 13th, 2022, to be exact.
I am in Edinburgh, attending the world-famous Fringe Festival.
The Royal Mile in Edinburgh out of Fringe season
For three-and-a-bit weeks in August, Edinburgh's Fringe Festival brings artists from all over the world to the Scottish capital to perform. From stand-up comedians from Singapore to dance companies from Ukraine, from intimate one-person shows in converted shipping containers to full-cast productions in actual theatres, you can find something to interest you there. And with over 3500 shows taking place during the Festival, choosing what to spend your time on can potentially be a bit of a minefield.
The poster for the 2022 Edinburgh Fringe production of Twinkle, starring Robert Walsh
While planning for the 2022 Fringe, a play caught my eye as I scrolled through the list. A one-man show called Twinkle, about a pantomime dame. It ticked a lot of my boxes (comedy-drama, an LGBTQ+ story, set in the world of the theatre) so it went on my favourites list. As we looked through and refined the choices further, Twinkle remained high on my list. So I found a slot for it and booked a ticket.
And there I was – the afternoon of Saturday August 13th, 2022 – in a theatre space at the Surgeons Hall (along with a fairly sizeable audience) ready for the show.
Some pieces of theatre take time to work their way into your affections; others come in like a wrecking ball. Twinkle was the latter for me. After the show finished, and Robert Walsh's superb performance as the waspish and troubled Harold stayed with me, a thought occurred: "God, I'd love to do a production of this".
The poster for the 2023 Edinburgh Fringe production of Twinkle, starring Dereck Walker
Fast forward to 2023. While we were planning for our trip, I saw Twinkle was having a new production at the Fringe, produced by LAMBCO Productions. In a fit of cheekiness, I messaged the production company to ask who they had dealt with to get the rights for the show (as searches online hadn't brought any answers). As LAMBCO Productions were sending four different shows to the 2023 Fringe (as well as Twinkle, they put on a brilliant musical revue show called Boys In The Buff and a very engaging drama called Love Is Blue- both of which I saw and enjoyed for very different reasons), and this was mere weeks before it was due to begin, I didn't expect an answer until September at the earliest.
I received a response within hours, copying in Philip Meeks (the playwright himself) who was dealing with the rights. I found out from Philip that the playscript was due to be republished by Playdead Press. I resolved to keep an eye on their site for the script to become available and would take it from there.
The cover of Twinkle (Playdead Press)
At the beginning of 2024, I checked the site... and there Twinkle was. The first step was, of course, to get a copy of the script and re-read it to see if it was still something I wanted to do. Time often has a funny way of playing tricks on you and making you think things were great when they weren't (or vice versa). But, having read it again, nothing had changed. I still wanted to do it.
I contacted Philip and asked if the rights were available. They were. The cost of the rights was very reasonable, and- more importantly- affordable. So I applied for the rights to three performances of the show. (Knowing how much work was going to go into the production, it felt like a lot of work for a one-night only show, whilst three felt like a good number to do.)
With the rights in place, I had to find a venue. Just before the world went sideways in 2020, I directed a play for Peculiar Productions and we performed at Llanover Hall Arts Centre in Canton. I remembered the theatre space being a good one and perfect for the set-light staging I had in mind for Twinkle. Were they available? Yes, they were.
So I took the plunge.
My initial plan had been to put Twinkle on in mid-November 2024, to align with the switching on of Cardiff Christmas lights, as the switch-on of Christmas lights is a major plot point of the play (no spoiler). However, Llanover Hall’s availability meant it had to be pushed back around a month later. Which is why the production is taking place on 12th-14th December.
So that’s why the production is happening. In my next post, I’ll explain a little bit more about how the production has been shaped during the rehearsal period.
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