As part of Refugee Week 2019 (17-23 June) Voicesin the Dark: From Around theGlobe will showcasethe w

As part of Refugee Week 2019 (17-23 June) Voicesin the Dark: From Around theGlobe will showcasethe work of young people - users of the British Red Cross Young Refugee Service,who have taken part in workshops led by theatre company, Compass Collective.Here we take a look at day one of rehearsals. You can catch the results of this collaboration on 22 June in the Sam Wanamaker Playhouse. Compass Collective are gathered in the Globe’sbrand new rehearsal space to begin devising a play, and they don’t know yet whomight turn up to be in it. So there’s a little nervousness about numbers. The four day rehearsal is planned during half term in order to have the best turn out,but it’s Ramadan. Having run evening workshops across five London boroughs atthe British Red Cross Refugees and Befriending sessions for the past two months, they knowthe amount of energy involved to take part and fear it may put off some ofthose who are fasting.Nevertheless 11 o’clock comes by andparticipants start filtering in. Some have met before through previous befriendingsessions there is a sense of familiarity in the room, making the name games easierwhen they begin.Half an hour later, Matilda, a producer from the Globearrives to give the group a tour of the Sam Wanamaker Playhouse. Even withoutthe candles which light it for performances, the theatre is magical. Each ofthe boys has their opportunity to speak on the stage, taking it in turns to saytheir name and their favourite thing (‘music’, ‘football’, ‘education’, ‘thiswhole building’) before swapping and experiencing the space as an audiencemember. To illustrate the acoustics of the space Leila from the Red Cross leadsa song. There are laughs as the group tries to fit Solomon’s name into astructure that only seems to have space for two-syllables.Back in the rehearsal room there is a buzz asthe young actors mark out the stage on the floor with tape, while others playon the keyboard and cajón brought along by Tom, Compass Collective’s musical director. As lunch timecalls, half the group peel off to the Prayer Room, while others juggle platesof pasta (donated by a local Carluccio’s) while dribbling footballs across thespace.In the afternoon, the group has been offered a‘Heaven and Hell’ tour, which explores from the Globe Attic down to the underbellyof the Stage. These aren’t available to the public, so it’s a really specialmoment. Entering through Stage Door, Patrick from Compass Collective points at one of thearchive photographs of raucous Jacobean comedy TheKnight of the Burning Pestle and starts attributing each of theactors in the picture to one of the boys.There’slots of laughter and it’s beginning to feel like a company.  On stage, the sense of excitement builds: one ofthe boys begins climbing a ladder to the Musician’s Gallery, and others millaround on the stage taking selfies and commenting on the flags that are hungaround the auditorium for the performance of HenryIV Part One that will take place later that day.Thestage meanwhile is set up for The MerryWives of Windsor. Downstairs in ‘Hell’ the stage aboveonly leaves around 5 feet of headroom in which the boys,  full ofteenage growth, awkwardly try to avoid bumping their heads.Backstage, a thunder sheet becomes a source ofgreat interest, before props take precedence – the live plants and flowers thatpopulate the The Merry Wives of Windsor set areparticularly pleasing – and someone becomes transfixed by the tannoy whichcalls actors to stage. ‘Is this for the sound?’ he asks. ‘Yes’, Patrick says,whisking him away before curious hands can interfere with the cues fortonight’s performance…As the day draws to a close, the boys areshown to the nearest tube stations and Compass Collective sit down to debrief and plan theactivities for the following day, the rehearsal space already lookingsignificantly more lived in. Only a few days to go…Join us for Voices inthe Dark: From Around the Globe on Saturday 22June, 6pm, in the Sam Wanamaker Playhouse. -- source link

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