From Norwich to Felbrigg Hall for Wolf's Child (About 22 miles as the Crow Flies)

Last night saw the first full preview performance  of Wolf's Child, the outdoor drama production by the renowned WildWorks theatre company. Staged in the grounds of Felbrigg Hall, a 17th century Jacobean country house close to the North Norfolk coast and now owned by the National Trust, Wolf's Child is a site specific work, written and conceived as the jewel in the crown of this year's Norfolk & Norwich Festival. It will be performed every evening (except Sundays) between now and May 23rd.

The first planned performance on Tuesday was cancelled because of  dangers caused by the high winds, so last night was, in effect, the world premiere. My volunteer rota had me down as an Event Steward, with responsibilities to include 'Coach Chaperone / Box Office Assistant / Tramper Mobility Scooters', and my instruction was to report to the Theatre Royal at 17.00hr. The final weather check, and decision to go ahead with the performance would be taken one hour earlier - the winds were still gusting strongly right through the morning. Cancelling would mean another round of phone calls, text messages and e-mails to all the ticket holders as well as performers and stewards.

First advice to any volunteers listed as Event Steward for Wolf's Child. If your shift starts at 17.00hr, that is the time that the coach LEAVES the Theatre Royal in order to get through the rush hour traffic in order to arrive at Felbrigg by 18.00hr. If you arrive at five minutes past, the coach will have left without you.

The coach was filled with a mixture of 'Crow Stewards', whose job is to dress up and, in character, escort an audience of 250 along the meandering woodland paths of Felbrigg Hall to the various sets; and 'Maids', who perform as a chorus in several of the scenes. They have all been travelling out to Felbrigg for rehearsals for the last month, and there is a real cameraderie on the coach, as well as an air of excitement and anticipation at finally performing in front of a live audience.

On arrival at Felbrigg, the wind is blowing, the rain has started, and waterproof and windproof jackets seem more appropriate than the light cotton costumes that the maids are going to be wearing. Whilst I await my instructions the maids are taken through a vocal warm up and a final run through of their parts, and the 'crows' are given a final briefing to take account of some last minute changes and amendments to the route the audience will take.

Because this is a site specific piece, the company arrived with only an outline of how the final show would appear. As rehearsal got under way Artistic Director Bill Mitchell familiarised himself with the landscape of the Felbrigg Hall estate, sets were conceived and built and the script was finalised. The version that the audience gets to see is the result of much experimentation, fine tuning, and collaborative suggestion. This is what has made the whole experience so immersive and rewarding for the volunteers involved in the project.

By seven o'clock the audience are beginning to arrive. I am charged with checking tickets and general meet-and-greet. Hot food and a bar is available, and the pulled pork baps look delicious. Off-road buggies have been arranged for those who have requested mobility assistance, so my main role is to make sure that the audience is briefed, and ready for the off at 7.45pm. Main tips for anyone coming for the show - wear sensible shoes, dress appropriately for the weather, and remember to use the toilets before you are led through the gates for the start of the performance. Once the audience were past the main house I was taken to change into a crow's costume, and allowed to join the performance for a one-night-only chance to be a part of 'Wolf's Child'.

The performance follows a path between a number of individual locations. After passing the main house the route enters the woods. By this time the sun is setting and the light is fading, as the audience are led deeper and deeper into the woods. At each location they are chaparoned and guided by the crows into a circle to watch the action. Some of the performers are already in place by the time the audience arrive. Others suddenly appear from within the surrounding woodland, accompanied by much flapping and kerfuffling by the crows. The dialogue and song sets each scene as the action unfurls, with haunting sound effects appearing to come from deep within the woods, and atmospheric lighting allowing the audience to become mesmerised and immersed in the story.

By the time it is completely dark we are following the torches of the crows as we pick our way through the woods. Lanterns pick out some of the route, but otherwise it is a case of looking where you are going, and avoiding the inevitable tree roots, twigs and puddles. As we arrive at each successive set the effect becomes more and more magical, and the audience is totally transfixed. There is no distracting chatter and everyone keeps their mobile phones and cameras in their pockets.

Only at the dramatically lit finale, when the entire have taken their bows to raptuous applause, do we start to pick up on the audience reaction. 'The best show I have ever seen' was just one comment that I heard personally.

As I got on the coach for the journey back to Norwich I felt extremely honoured to have been just a very small part of this production. I also felt slightly jealous of all the volunteers who are involved with Wolf's Child, either as maids or as crows. They are having a unique chance to work directly with an amazing theatre company, and to see the project right through from early rehearsals to final performance.

If you are sent out to Felbrigg as a volunteer steward, make the most of the experience. If you are involved with the production as a crow or maid, enjoy the rest of your performances. And, if you are attending a performance as part of the audience, you are certainly in for an unforgettable evening (and hopefully a warm summer evening and a glorious sunset).

Performances run until May 23rd, although some performances may already be sold out. Contact the Festival Box Office - 01603 766400, or book online at www.nnfestival.org.uk or www.theatreroyalnorwich.co.uk

Pick up a brochure, or go online, for details of the whole of this year's Norfolk & Norwich Festival programme.

Press Launches, High Winds and Planking - The Start of the Norfolk & Norwich Festival

I am still feeling a bit sheepish this morning.

Yesterday was the press launch for the Norfolk & Norwich Festival, a chance to get some additional publicity, and another chance for our illustrious Artistic Director, William Galinsky, to be photographed getting into the festival spirit. Last year's launch event, held at Norwich Railway Station via principal travel partner Abellio Greater Anglia, had Mr Galinsky blowing into a trumpet as part of a taster show by performance artist Holly Bodmer.

This year, commuters arriving at Norwich Station were met by the sight of Esther Steinkogler, a member of the Willi Dorner Company, hanging upside down by the main entrance, supported only by a plank of wood. This was a pre-taste of what to expect this Friday, Saturday and Sunday around the city centre as the company perform 'Fitting', an outdoor performance that views urban landscapes through fresh eyes.

'Fitting' outside Norwich Railway Station (photo - www.edp24)

Like I said, I am feeling a little sheepish, having been a bit of a plank myself. I was supposed to be one of four NNF volunteers helping out with the press launch but, due to a mix up over the way in which BT Yahoo are sorting my e-mails at the moment, I didn't read the message. The shift was offered on a strictly first-come first served basis before the Bank Holiday weekend, and I assumed I had been too late to register my interest. I had even intended to go along to the railway station anyway, just to see what was going on and take a few pictures. I therefore owe Lizzie, our Volunteer Co-ordinator, the other three volunteers, and anyone else who would have liked to have been there in my place, a huge apology. And after everything I said about volunteers needing to be reliable and keeping the organisers informed.

The pictures of Esther duly appeared in the evening's newpapers and on local television channels, although there was no sign of Mr Galinsky hanging upside down on the opposite side of the doorway. Shame on you, sir! However, he and Abellio's Jonathan Denby were there to be interviewed, and herald the start of this year's festival.

Another problem was caused yesterday by the high winds throughout the region. Last night's performance of 'Wolf's Child' had to be cancelled as the safety of cast and audience could not be guaranteed in the strong blustery conditions. This amazing adult fairytale drama is being staged in the woods of Felbrigg Hall, and is produced by WildWorks with a cast that includes a chorus of maids and flock of crows drawn from the local community. Unfortunately, it would have been simply too dangerous to have gone ahead with last night's preview performance. Hopefully the winds will have subsided sufficiently by this evening for tonight's show to go ahead. I certainly hope so, as I am due to be on the coach travelling out there to act as a steward, and it may be my only chance to see any of this amazing show.

And I promise faithfully that I will be there on time for the start of my shift.

Buy tickets for Wolf's Child, or any other events for this year's Norfolk & Norwich Festival at
www.nnfestival.org.uk/

The Rotas are Released! Unleash the Volunteers!

Some might say that waiting for the volunteer rotas to be announced for the upcoming  Norfolk & Norwich Festival can be as exciting as the walk up to school to collect your GCSE results. That may be a slight over-exaggeration, but for many of us the two weeks of the festival have been blocked off in our diaries for so long in advance, and our anticipation has been growing since the programme was announced, and we first put forward our names and confirmed our availability as volunteers back at the beginning of March.

For those of us that have volunteered before, we have a good idea what to expect and, speaking personally, last year's experiences were so rewarding that the final wrap party at Keir Hardy Hall potentially could have ended tinged with disappointment. It wasn't - it was a blast of an evening, attended by everyone from the Executive Team, as well as the office and production staff and the volunteers. But it did signal a return to normality and routine after two weeks of intense cameraderie and fun. (This year's party will be at 'The Talk' in Oak Street)

Many of this year's volunteers are involved with the WildWorks production of 'Wolf's Child' over at Felbrigg Hall near Cromer, either as part of the Maid's Chorus or as a Crow Steward. They have been busy rehearsing and being fitted with costumes for what promises to be a spectacular and atmospheric show, with the audience being led through the grounds of the hall as the sun falls, transforming the woods into a magical world of adult fairytale. Certainly the reports back from Felbrigg suggest that this is an event not to miss. Fortunately, I get to attend for a preview performance as a Box Office Assistant / Coach Chaperone. Hopefully I will also catch a bit of the action.

The sheer scale of Wolf's Child, with eighteen performances of the two-hour show, has placed a huge logistical challenge at the door of our two Volunteer Co-ordinators, Polly and Lizzie. With so many volunteers tied up with rehearsals and performances at Felbrigg, they have had to ensure that the remainder of the events in Norwich are stewarded, that drivers are in place to transport artists and equipment between sites, and that runners can liaise between the festival office and the event managers. The Adnams Spiegeltent in Chapelfield Gardens, home to many of the evening performances, owes its unique atmosphere as much to its volunteer team of Spiegelhosts as it does to its construction and elaborate mirrored interior.

The task of allocating shifts is further complicated by the huge variety in availability of the volunteers. Some are able to help for virtually the entire duration of the festival, others have family, work or study commitments that mean they can only offer a couple of evenings. There are those that are offering to perform a number of roles, whilst others are more restricted in what they can do. The policy has been to ensure that all successful applicants are given a share of the shifts. That is 130 individual rotas that have needed to be prepared.

The rotas were revealed to us on Monday, and the Facebook group page was soon buzzing with postings to find out what everyone had got. Obviously, people's situations change, and inevitably there will be appointments and personal commitments that have arisen since availability was submitted back in March. This now has to be fed back, and those shifts re-allocated, so some volunteers will still be offered more shifts than appear on their original rotas. Polly and Lizzie will issue a revised follow-up rota prior to our final briefing at The Forum next week. I guess this really highlights how important it is to keep them completely up to date with any changes in availability as soon as possible, especially after the rotas are received.

Polly and Clare reveal just one of four spreadsheets used in producing the volunteer rotas, whilst Tim attempts to spot his own name on the rota. 

I know that I was waiting to receive my own rota before committing to buying tickets for other festival events. Now that I have booked to see other performances, I need to remove those dates from my availability.

Once the festival is under way, situations still arise where volunteers will have to withdraw from certain shifts, but these gaps are normally filled via daily e-mails from the festival office. I know that last year my initial allocation of five shifts was steadily boosted as the fortnight progressed. My advice to any volunteers who did not get as many shifts as they were hoping for is to keep checking your e-mails throughout the two weeks. You may also get news of free and discounted ticket offers - last year we were offered a number of free tickets (on a first-come first served basis) for several events, and also a heavily discounted offer for a flagship production at the UEA.

So, we have had our training, and now know how to deal with anything from a lost child to a noisy sweet wrapper in a classical concert. We have perfected the art of lining up in birthday order, and can sort ourselves out into groups of five without knocking over our drinks and coating the Arts Centre floor in red wine. We are busy swatting up on all the performances and venues, and checking out the location of the public toilets. We have worked out how to layer up and down beneath our blue volunteer T-shirts in order to respond to the vaguaries of May temperatures, and have dusted down our bum-bags and rucksacks for our personal belongings. Sensible shoes and sunscreen patiently await.

Basically, we should all now be ready for our final briefing at The Forum on Thursday (after we have all voted, of course), and to receive our volunteer packs and T-shirts, and to pose for a group photograph. After that, unleash the volunteers, and let the fun commence!

The Norfolk & Norwich Festival website, with full details of all events, and links to the booking office is http://www.nnfestival.org.uk/