Tikhtak

Over By Christmas Opening in Worcester Cathedral

This Thursday 30th January our new "Play in a Day" Over By Christmas will open at Worcester Cathedral working with 100 children from local schools. The play will run throughout 2014 commemorating the Out-break of WW1 and exploring and promoting peace and reconciliation. We will also run the project on 31st January at Worecster Cathedral and then on to Gloucester Cathedral in February. 

In Kony's Shadow - Online Exhibition

Christian Aid has recently launched an online exhibition called In Kony's Shadow  (Warning that readers might find content disturbing) It is the story of Joseph Kony's Lord's Resistance Army and those it left behind  – from children forced to become soldiers to civilians caught up in the conflict. In my time working for CMS I  took part in a Campaign called "Break the Silence" highlighting the plight of many children who were taken captive by Kony and forced to become Child Soldiers and others who were displaced from their homes. It is incredible that almost 10 years on and he has still ot been caught.

Merry Christmas & Happy New Year

The Christmas Nativity today...

Christian Aid have put together a collection of photos representing the nativity story through
the eyes of some of the people and communities they support around the world. Click on the Christmas Nativity Gallery

 

A Gospel Christmas 2013 - Christian Aid

Here's my first gig for Christian Aid... A  line-up of top gospel artists  taking part in a festive fundraising concert for Christian Aid.

Special guest, X Factor runner-up Jahméne Douglas, will be joining MOBO award-winning Lurine Cato, Paul Lee, John Fisher and London gospel choir IDMC, and the winners of 2013's Songs of Praise Gospel Choir of the Year, Town Hall Gospel Choir (THGC).

John Fisher, founder of IDMC, is looking forward to hosting the evening: 'This concert is so very special not only because of the stellar line-up of musical artists, but also because we will be able to celebrate the birth of our Lord Jesus Christ while supporting the awesome work Christian Aid are doing.'

Event details

When: 13 December 2013, 7-9.30pm

Where: Regent Hall, 275 Oxford Street, London, W1C 2DJ

Tickets: £15.50, with a limited number of concessions (£13) for children aged 15 and under, and those over 65. A booking fee of £1.50 will be added to ticket purchases (£1.37 booking fee for concessions) and all profits go to Christian Aid. 

Buy tickets

For more details and to purchase tickets, go to the Eventbrite website

Poetry and Opera at Denville Hall's Christmas Party

Yesterday my brother and I visited Denville Hall for their Christmas party. Denville is an care home for retired actors. It was a great event that brought everyone together both the residents and their families. The evening started with a mulled wine reception. Dan and I went to get our Mum from her room to bring her down for the booked entertainment Franz Hepburn a renowned Opera singer. We went down stairs led by his amazingly deep bass-baritone voice and seated Marg right at the front. This meant she got a lot of the serenading as he sang musical classics like "Old Man River" from Show Boat and "The Music of the Night" from Phantom of the Opera. After some very tasty food and visit to see the widest Christams tree I have ever seen inside a property, we made our way back upstairs. It was that difficult time of the evening where we have to say goodbye to our Mum but it was eased by listening to a recital of her lastest poem for Advent. You can find it here

Over by Christmas - New Play for 2014

Scene Change Arts have started booking "Over by Christmas" our KS2  play for 2014 commemorating the out break of WW1. James Manning and Myself had an afternoon last week at The Royal Festival Hall putting together how we want the workshops to look and how they will fit into the day. We were both very pleased with the end result.The play will cover some of the major events of WW1 such as  conscription, the battlefield and trenches and of course the memoriable day when war stopped for Christmas. The events are carried by a simple story line of a soldier who is killed on the battlefield. Finding himself dead he cannot accept it "How did it come to this?"  A voice calms him and helps him retrace his journey until he is able to finally accept his end. We are also excited to be using actual, poetry, letters and images from the front line which we hope will bring the whole experience home for the children. Our first booking is at Worceseter Cathedral on 30th and 31st January. If you know a primary school who might be interested then they can contact me on [email protected]

Final DREAM day 2013 at Jubilee Primary Sch, Thamesmead.

Last week Scene Change Theatre took our DREAM Project to Jubilee Primary School in Thamesmead. James Manning and myself worked with two year 6 classes to learn out Martin Luther King's iconic "I have a dream"  speech, the civil rights movement and other dreamers who have changed the world. It was a great day working together and seeing how the children visibly gained confidence and stage presence as the day went on. It didn't go unnoticed by the Year 6 Teacher who assisted us throughout the day:

"All the children joined in and were keen to take part. They all loved the acting and it really built on their self esteem. Our Children benefitted a lot from the day."

This was our last DREAM day of 2013. We will be taking DREAM to Guildford Cathedral in January 2014 before we launch our new project "Over by Christmas" to commemorate the out break of WW1.

Oh What a night!

Oh What a night! It doesn't get better than this for a forty six year old football lover. As a child I remember the perfect birthday was to have a 5 a side football party at the Top School (William Brookes), always followed by Jelly and ice cream in the little side room next to the reception. Now my knees and ankles might not get through a game of 5 a side so what could be better than inviting some of the greatest football minds in south London, Irish Bonner, Scouse Luce, Jarvy the Welsh,  Bird of the South  and Richy Rich from up north. And then England go and qualify for Brazil... A special thanks goes out to my wifey  Mannu of the East for getting it just right!!

That snail is fast!

Had a family trip to the cinema this afternoon to See Turbo. What a surprise! I usually fight the tiredness off in animated children's films but this kept my attention throughout. Its about a snail who has a passion for speed to the amusement of his fellow snails. However in an accident where he gets sucked into the gubbings of a car he comes out a racing machine. He then gets picked up by a Taco seller who races snails who discovers not just the snails potential but his own. He has failed in many whacky attempts to sell his brother's taco-making gifts but the snail gives him the crazy idea to enter him in the Indianapolis 500. The film reiterates "Go for your dreams!" "No dream is too big, no person too small no matter what people say" I won't spoil the end of the film but suffice to say I feel inspired to go for my dreams again...

Friendships...

Friendships

 Friendships are from heaven above,
 They are full of love.
 They take and give to those most dear,
 And bring to life, a joyful cheer.
 For it's now a time to celebrate,
 Lift up your hands and celebrate,
 To God who loves us and gives us joy,
 And brings us doves from above.

 

For more poetry from Mum go to http://margogracecooper.blogspot.co.uk/2013/09/friendships.html?spref=fb

My new "Testimonials page"

In the hope of getting more work I haved started a Testimonial Page on my own Profile work blog. Yesterday I delivered an RE day for the Barnabas in schools team on the theme of  "Who am I?" in a beautiful little primary school in Bramley, Surrey. If I say so myself not a bad start to my new page. Of course only the good ones will go up there :)

My Mum's become a Poet.

In 2006 my Mum was diagnosed with Parkinson's disease and had to give up her home in Much Wenlcock, Shropshire to live in Denville Hall Care home for Actors in London. She faces many challenges day to day but poetry has become an outlet for her and she also hopes to encourage anyone else coping with disability. To see her poems click on this link.

Here is a little taster.

Ow!

Ow!

You’re treading on my toe,

Oh, Oh, Oh, No!

Where’s the rhyme? You let it go!

Now we’ll see all those busies in the bees,

Chase you up into those trees.

Get away from the garden and the fleas,

Bees don’t do all the work!

The others do! You quirk.

I'm back blogging...

I haven't blogged since May 2011 but I have decided to re-open my old blog to attempt to bring together all the different strands of my life. Running my own business SCA, Coordinating a Christian Charity WSP and freelancing as a drama facilitator. I have tried to explain the focus of my blog in the About this blog page. I worked as a Youth Advisor for CMS when I decided to originally blog in 2005 and was encouraged and inspired by my colleague and friend Jonny Baker. Once I finished at CMS in 2009 my blogging cheerleaders were gone and by  2011 I began to run out of steam and time and so stopped. BUT now I am back.

These are some of the things that I might have blogged about iI hadn't stopped in 2011,

The Royal wedding (May),

Bin Laden killed (May),

Amy WineHouse death (July)

Holiday to Canada (July-Aug),

English riots (Aug)

Gaddafi Killed (Oct)

In 2012

The Torch Project  (jan)

Cruise Ship Costa Concordia runs aground (jan),

Cold snap (Feb)

Discovery of Prehistoric Penguin (Feb),

Fabrice Muamba Collapses in game (March)

Man City win premiership (May)

Chelsea win champions league (May)

The London Olympics (July-Aug)

Goodbye to Zach (Oct)

Gangham style fever (Dec)

In 2013

DREAM Schools Project begins (Jan),

New Pope (march)

Man Utd win premiership (May),

Trip to Disney Land (May),

Amma and Daddy visit London(July/Aug)

Syria Crisis (July/Aug.)

 

Singing Teacher needed for new arts project in Kingston on Saturday afternoons

"Saturdays' Cool" is a new performing arts school project that starts on Saturday May 7th in Kingston Upon Thames run by Scene change theatre and Studyscool. The project involves teaching three sessions of 45 minutes between 2pm till 5pm to three age groups, 7-9 yrs, 9-11 yrs and 11-14yrs. The rate of pay is £25 per session, so £75 for the 3 sessions. The project will run for 12 weeks.

If you are interested in being a Singing Tutor on the project please contact David Pollendine on [email protected] or by mobile on 07862728056.