Middlesbrough Town Hall & Crypt, Middlesbrough
Tuesday 22nd May 2012 from 7:30pm

written and performed by Chris Larner
directed by Hannah Eidinow

In November 2010, Chris Larner accompanied his chronically ill ex-wife to Switzerland’s Dignitas clinic. He came home with an empty wheelchair and a story to tell.

This moving, bittersweet show reflects on the circumstances, morality and humanity surrounding the journey. In a candid, poignant and sometimes comic performance, Chris explores both the profound personal implications and the wider ethical considerations of the contentious issue of assisted dying.

The show premiered at the Edinburgh Fringe 2011, where it won the coveted Scotsman Fringe First Award and was featured on BBC’s Newsnight Review as a highlight of the festival.

‘The word extraordinary is misapplied… but there’s few other words that do justice to Larner’s show.’ ***** Edinburgh Evening News

‘Chris Larner tells his story simply… with scrupulous, unflinching honesty. This is a show that reminds us that how we die is as important as how we live.’ **** The Guardian

www.aifk.co.uk

Recommended Age: 14+

Duration: 70 minutes

http://www.ents24.com/web/event/An-Instinct-For-Kindness-Middlesbrough-Town-Hall-%26-Crypt-2856260.html

This is designed to help you present your stories and ideas efficiently, effectively and professionally.

We’ll cover what to include and what to leave out, why some pitches fail to capture the imagination, who to pitch to and why. Then we’ll pitch our ideas to one another, and work together to revitalize and improve them.

Pitching is crucial in lots of professional environments, and particularly to writers who must be able to convey their ideas effectively. Come along to this workshop to learn how it’s done!

Writers’ Block is now based at Dundas House in the Dundas Arcade, Middlesbrough town centre.

We’ll explore the commercial potential of each of the participants’ ideas and works in progress, their unique selling points, who the stories are intended for and how suitable they are for their intended markets, and how far the pieces of work are doing what writers want and intend them to.

The aim is to provide participants with a more objective perspective on their work and put writers in a better position to brand themselves and package their work professionally, creatively and effectively.

Every participant will have the opportunity to storyboard a section of their own works-in-progress based on the theory and ideas taught in the session, and to receive feedback on their visual ideas from the whole group.

And then we’ll present some of our ideas as a collaborative fanzine, which can be absolutely anything we want it to be. A series bible, a collection of jokes or statements, a mish-mash of images, words or storyboards, a script in booklet form, or all of the above!

The workshop will be designed to facilitate effective working relationships between professionals and to spark new collaborations. Support and feedback are crucial to every writer: this could be the start of a number of co-mentoring groups and partnerships.

We’ll put script editing and development skills into practice, fix story problems, and learn from one another.

Writing is rewriting! This workshop will assist you as you embark on the long and often difficult development process.

We’ll look at ways to tell a story concisely and make the most of every word and detail. We’ll each start in the action, set up a world, characters and engaging dilemma, and every participant will develop a story with a beginning, a middle and an end.

We’ll also explore how to blog and micro-blog effectively, and the creative potential of social media sites and digital forums to showcase your work and reach new audiences.