Almost a year ago I won a place on Slackline Productions' 2019 scratch night with my short play 'Bats' and was thrilled to return this year to be part of a 24 hour writing challenge based, once again, at the Southwark Playhouse.
Slackline is a brilliant London-based company headed by Kristin Duffy to whom we all owe a massive 'thank you' for bringing so many creatives together and tirelessly producing the event.
Seven female playwrights met at Kristin's house where we were allocated directors and actors whom we had never met before. My director, Lizzie Jackson (picture above holding humus) and two actors, Erin and Katharine (to Lizzie's left) had brought prompts that meant something to them, but there was absolutely no formal instruction about what I had to write.
The play I came up with during the night, 'Intuition', was about a con-woman/psychic who gets a taste of her own medicine. Erin had brought a flamboyant hat that she'd wanted to wear in a show and Katharine had brought an elaborate fan. They are both natural comic talents and did a smashing job; Lizzie somehow managed to take the play on hand and get it on its feet under extraordinary time constraints. I tried to make the significance of having a good vocabulary (something Lizzie had talked about through her prop) central too.
Gave them the play. Went and dozed in the Tate Modern on Sunday afternoon. Enjoyed myself thoroughly in the Southwark Playhouse in the evening. Loads of fun.
Well done to everyone: I can't believe how many good plays came out of such a bonkers 24 hours.