The Soul Exchange - Thoughts, Debate, What Next?
The Soul Exchange has had great responses in the press - and a lively presence on twitter and the like. What did you think? What were the strengths and weaknesses? Favourite moments? Times of confusion? Here are some questions that I'm thinking about since the show, but feel free to add and answer your own:
- The idea of theatre in a taxi really seemed to catch people's imaginations. The big focus during the ride was on an audio play about a man in a taxi searching for his father. How important was the taxi to the success of this? Could we have had the same experience using our imaginations in a theatre?
- Did the experience work fully for people who don't know the history of Butetown, or were there a lot of moments for people 'in the know'?
- Did the mix of community performers in the Wales Millennium Centre and Coal Exchange Sections with the professional performers work?
- What next? Should the focus be on digging deeper into Butetown and working more with this community and local artists, or should NTW focus on doing similar work with other communities. (I should say here that we will definitely do follow up projects in Butetown, but I'm still interested in people's opinions on whether the focus should be 'deeper' or 'wider')
- Any show picks some stories to focus on. Did the story of Old Tiger reflect Butetown? Were other stories missed? Does it matter whether a piece represents everyone, or should the focus just be on telling a good story?
I'm Looking forward to hearing your thoughts and reflections.
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Replies to This Discussion
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Permalink Reply by Dr Sarah Morse on
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You may be interested in my review/analysis of the Soul Exchange: http://waleshome.org/2011/02/18560/ I thought the production was nuanced and very engaging -look forward to seeing similar productions in the future!
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Permalink Reply by National Theatre Wales on
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Thanks for a very thoughtful and perceptive analysis Sarah, I really enjoyed reading your response. The concept of a biography of place, and the way in which lost places also get re-written onto present places is a really nice way of thinking through the effects of the piece. looking forward to reading more of your work in the future.
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Permalink Reply by Gavin Porter on
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January seems a long time ago but the Soul Exchange is still fresh in my mind. On reflection I think that the Soul Exchange was a great success. Most, if not all, of the people I have spoke to about the show from Butetown talk positively about their experience. i had a conversation recently with a theater director who wasn't too impressed and thought that the could have been community involvement but as someone who was involved from the early stages I can honestly say that NTW could not have made more effort, she did have a good point about the carbon footprint of 50 taxis, maybe NTW could plant some trees or get involved in the Community Allotment I have set up in Butetown :)
Personally I thought the story gave a good over view of Butetown/Docks/TigerBay but tended to be a bit cliched.
Legacy was a word used a lot. I have been involved in quite a few community initiatives where an organisation would run a project in Butetown, get some photo's of 'ethnic' people for their publicity and then leave, shortly followed by the next. But since the Soul Exchange NTW have continued to work with some of the creatives involved with the show, including myself. Having the support of NTW has helped lend weight and credibility to some of the ideas I/we wish to pursue (more on that soon).
I would also like to thank NTW for the opportunity to be involved in the Soul Exchange and also like to thank them on behalf of AFC Butetown for sponsoring our kit, this has been a great help, the kit we had was looking a bit worn.
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