In attendance: A. Blundell, R. Jones, P. Mannion, T. Mackay, K. Nesbitt, F. Andrew, J. Dyer.
Apologies: H. Sloan, S. Gregson, S. Bradley, L. Fenwick, T. Eaton, A. Ralston, E. Burckhardt
Agenda
Proposals
Devised Slot
AOB
1. Proposals
Stewart Archibald proposed “Cleansed” by Sarah Kane for the GUU Main-stage slot, which was accepted. F. Andrew will be the board rep for this production. P. Mannion will send feedback and organise the director’s pack.
2. Devised Slot
Everything is progressing well for the devised slot. The dates of the production need to be clarified with A. Blundell and L. Fenwick. K. Nesbitt encouraged different positions to keep in touch with the director, and promoted communication throughout the production.
3. AOB
F. Andrew – is unimpressed with his Ball Committee of him and one other person so is going to involve the Board in the creation of the Ball. K. Nesbitt will be organising the awards ONLY.
K. Nesbitt – had discussed with L. Fenwick the possibility of running an online poll to see how interested people were in STaG elections and STaG in general. From this poll, STaG can gage how much work it might need to do in the run-up to elections and for next year.
In attendance: H. Sloan, A. Blundell, R. Jones, P. Mannion.
Apologies: S. Gregson.
This is a general summary of discussion points.
Elections – There was consensus that we need to advertise the elections, i.e. make ourselves visible around campus, particularly in Theatre Studies. The Board should note that blurbs for your position should be worked on over the holiday. STaG will also hand out contact information for current board members, so that potential candidates will have an opportunity to discuss the roles they are interested in. It was suggested that we make it clear that people who are aboard this year know that they can run as well. People should declare their intentions in advance, as per last year. The STaG Picnic and Elections will be on Sunday, May 9th, and all STaG Board members should be present.
Post-mortems – The Exec has agreed that it would be best practice to invite the director(s) of a production to the Post-mortem, to encourage discussion and further contact with the board. As the director, most of the time, will be on the board, this appears the fairest way to deal with the situation. We need to appear transparent and open to criticism, and feel able to critically discuss the production in front of the director. It was agreed that Post-mortems should take place on the same day as the Open Board Meeting, to allow and encourage people to come along. There was discussion of ensuring that a director knows that there will be a post-mortem of their show, and P. Mannion will put it in the Director’s Pack.
Board Rep – It was agreed that the guidelines for Board Rep were useful. It is important to treat each director in a similar way, even if it is a close friend. We need to encourage everyone to use their board rep. The Board Rep should not be making decisions on their own, but they should be flagging these issues with the board. Transparency is key in these situations. We are still in the process of shaping this role, and the work so far has been good.
Handover – All Board Members are expected to write a blurb for their position. At handover, meeting with your elected counterpart will be enforced, and you will need to explain how your role works and how the board works to them. It should be stressed that Board Members should make themselves available by email to their counterpart after handover is complete to ease the transition. It was suggested that we formalise the handover process, with each position having a folder of useful documents and notes that can be passed on through the years. There was more ‘chat’ of a STaG Wiki.
Ordinary Board – There was discussion the possibility of one of the Ord Board being attached to publicity. The publicity committee idea is still not functioning well, and it was suggested that it could be more of a directorial responsibility that is advised by the Publicity Officer. There needs to be more discussion of how to make this work.
In attendance: H. Sloan, A. Blundell, R. Jones, S. Gregson, P. Mannion, S. Bradley, T. Mackay, K. Nesbitt, J. Dyer,F. Andrew,L. Fenwick, T. Eaton, A. Ralston, E. Burckhardt.
Also in attendance: C. Felstead
Agenda
Proposals
The Goat Post-mortem
Fringe
Lights
AOB
1. Proposals
L. Fenwick proposed “Self Confession vs. Self Service Tills” for the devised studio slot, which was accepted. K. Nesbitt will be the board rep for this production. P. Mannion will send feedback and organise the director’s pack. There were no proposals for the GUU Main-stage slot. The Board are going to advertise the slot for next week, at L1 and L2 Theatre classes. There will be a board meeting next week for proposals.
2. The Goat Post-mortem
H. Sloan and the board congratulated all those who were involved in The Goat, as it was agreed that the production went extremely well. There were various discussions about the successes and difficulties of the production and these are listed as follows:
The Monday night of production week was taken off STaG, due to unforeseen circumstances, and this meant that The Goat only had Tuesday night to tech/dress/prepare. It would be useful to warn potential directors that this problem might arise in future.
There were issues with programming, as it was on St. Patrick’s Day (a drinking holiday), and this might be something to bear in mind with other slots.
STaG needs to work on communicating with all in the building – G12 Tech, G12 Front of House, Theatre Studies Dept. and Janitors. It is important not to assume that everything is being done, and it would be useful to check in with each section to make sure things are happening the right way.
There needs to be a clarification with G12 Front of House about how many people are allowed in the space.
There was an altercation about ticket bookings, and the structure of how STaG works a booking system needs to be refined. It is important to tell audience members that they should pick up their tickets 15 minutes before the play start-time otherwise they will be given away to people who are waiting. Audience members should also be told that they cannot book after 5pm on the day of the performance. It is vital that we make this clear so that STaG don’t have to turn audience members away.
It was noted that we should check in with janitors to see if our shows are covered by them. It was suggested that having a contract with the G12 should become protocol. If STaG has booked the space, they should be able to prove that they have a right to it.
There was much discussion, ongoing, about what the Board Rep’s role is. It was suggested that explaining the practical activities that a Board rep might take on might help to clarify the position.
It was discussed that Board Rep can have a distancing effect on directors/productions. It was discussed that the Board should be more pro-active at coming to new directors and communicating about how they can help in the production. It was suggested that at proposals the Board could ‘meet and greet’ with the director and be introduced to all the people they’ll have to communicate with during production time.
The director’s pack needs to be updated with Warm-Ups and more information and P. Mannion will make it a better document.
There was discussion of a Board Rep pack.
S. Gregson reported that The Goat made £270 profit, which the Board agreed was excellent.
3. Fringe
’45 and a Half Miles’ has been given its Bedlam Fringe slot, which is 9.45am – 11.15am, with the show start time at 10am. (EEK!). This is in Weeks 1 & 2 of the Fringe. The venue hire is £1920 for the 2 weeks. A. Blundell is forming a Fringe committee to help the production along the way. E. Neville will be receiving feedback this week. P. Mannion is still writing the Fringe Pack.
4. Lights
T. Mackkers and H. Sloan-Dawg have been in touch with a ‘man’ who happens to own lights, and would like to sell them to STaG. J. Dyer will ask the SRC if there is space for STaG to store the lights and T. Macaroon and H. Sloanmeister will have the lights valued.
5. AOB
F. Andrew – is forming a BALL committee this week. There is a chance a 12pc swing band might like to play for the Ball and the current theme suggestion is ‘Ignorance Is Bliss’ – which could mean anything…
A. Blundell – is going to inform the Ramshorn that we will accept their generous offer to write off our debt.
P. Mannion – asked about No Wasted Education at St. Andrews, and this is going well.
In attendance: H. Sloan, A. Blundell, R. Jones, S. Gregson, P. Mannion, S. Bradley, T. Mackay, K. Nesbitt, J. Dyer, F. Andrew, L. Fenwick, T. Eaton, A. Ralston, E. Burckhardt.
Agenda
The Goat
Fire Safety
GUU/Main-stage/Production Fund
Proposals
New Writing Festival Reflection
Elections
AOB
1. The Goat
S. Gregson reported that The Goat had distributed posters. There was also an offer to have the poster displayed electronically around the University, on television screens, which appears a good opportunity. The Goat fundraiser raised £114.19, which is excellent. H. Sloan will arrange people for the Doors next week.
2. Fire Safety
S. Gregson bumped into the Fire Safety Wardens on their annual visit to the STaG Room, and they were generally positive about the condition of the room. They had stated that it might be worthwhile contacting Estates and Buildings to fix the walls. It is fine to poster the walls, but sofas are frowned upon.
3. GUU/Main-stage/Production Fund
The GUU slot is available from the 13th May to the 15th May, and S. Gregson and H. Sloan are going to discuss if the GUU is the most economically viable location for the final main-stage slot. The production fund will be applied for this week. There is a possibility that STaG will still use the Studio to accompany this project.
4. Proposals
It was agreed that the proposals for the devised slot would be Monday 22nd March. This will be advertised to the membership.
5. New Writing Festival Reflection
The Board discussed the successes and pitfalls of the New Writing Festival. Many points of discussion arose and these are listed below:
It was agreed that Festival went well and run reasonably smoothly.
A major hiccup was that there was no transport arranged to carry set to and from the Ramshorn Theatre, and this should be arranged in advance of production week next year.
The Ramshorn Theatre was a brilliant venue for giving directors and technicians more scope and opportunity for creativity. The venue added a sense of credibility to the Festival, and it should be kept there in the future.
It is important to be completely clear with the judges about the criteria that they should use to select the winning play – it was not highlighted that they were judging on the best production to go to the Fringe, not just the writing.
The role of the VP (Studio) as Festival Director was discussed, and it was agreed that the VP (Studio) should remain impartial throughout the Festival and, at elections, it should be made clear that they cannot enter the Festival in any capacity.
It is difficult to be selective about who is on the judging panel of the New Writing Festival, but it needs to be stressed that Bedlam judge is vitally important. The composition of judges should be considered: potentially a theatre critic, STaG Alumni etc. An odd number of judges can ease and settle decision-making.
It was suggested that we could try and secure judges earlier next year.
There was much discussion about how to inform the judges' decisions, with portfolios from each director, interviewing each writer, etc. but it was agreed that the productions should speak for themselves.
It was highlighted that the STaG judge should speak up if they consider the competencies of one of the entrants is questionable in their ability to take a show to the Fringe.
The Board agreed that the decision time for the competition should be extended so that judges have more time to consider the entries. While there is practical issues to this, it should be regarded as good practice to give the decision time.
It was thought that the decision should be formalised with set criteria to produce structured, debatable responses. It was suggested that a form could be copied from Scottish Arts Council evaluation to give to the judges to aid the decision.
There was grand debates surrounding pitching the New Writing Festival as a works-in-progress event, with a chance for directors to recast and re-techie their show, as not all the plays have a chance to develop fully. It was agreed that the director should make these decisions to recast and re-techie their show, if they see fit.
It was noted that pitching the event as works-in-progress could have the Festival lose its edge, enthusiasm from the actors could wane and not all plays will work hard to produce a polished product.
It should be made aware explicitly to the director that they should cast with an eye with potentially transferring to the Fringe.
The people who are cast in the winning play deserve to go, unless the director considers they have to recast them, with the feedback they received from the judges. It was noted that the STaG Board should support directors' decisions, if they are competent, and remember that plays in development have been recast in the past. There should be an emphasis on play development, without losing the edge of the competition.
S. Bradley read an email from one of the judges. It was agreed that the split within the judges should have been dealt with better, involving more people in the decision. The conflict should have been handled openly with the Board and not discussed solely by certain individuals, and should not have been revealed to the general membership. It is imperative to note that sensitive information should not be discussed in public where affected members might be able to hear; it probably should not be discussed in public, regardless.
It was stated that STaG Board Members should be aware of what they are saying, as it can be hurtful to those listening and seem unprofessional. It is important to be careful with sensitive information that is discussed in private.
It was agreed that Board Reps should be on the Board, and should be experienced with a critical engagement in the production. It was stated that the Board Rep are unnecessary for the New Writing Festival and the impartial VP (Studio) should to take on this role.
Expanding the technical team of the New Writing Festival was considered an important point for next year, especially a floor manager.
The technical team, led by the legendary T. Mackay, were given little thanks for their hard work throughout the week. It was agreed that actors, directors, writers etc, should be more thankful to technical operators, assistants and managers. The impartial VP (Studio) should champion this thanking.
It was agreed, again, that the Festival was well-run and well- received. Audiences' perceptions of the Festival were positive and turn-out for the Box Office looks positive.
The Ramshorn staff were very happy to have STaG use their space, and said that STaG should come back soon.
The VP (Studio) should remain impartial.
STaG Board members should be more willing to help out at events.
6. Elections
The elections will take place on Sunday 9th May 2010.
7. AOB
P. Mannion – Handovers are important, so start gathering information now.
H. Sloan – The STaG Board Gatherin' of Awesome Banter and Beverages will be on Sunday 21st March. It will be an evening social mixer, and people should be dressed accordingly.
In attendance: H. Sloan, A. Blundell, R. Jones, S. Gregson, P. Mannion, S. Bradley, K. Nesbitt, T. Mackay, F. Andrew, L. Fenwick, A. Ralston, E. Burckhardt, T. Eaton.
Apologies: J. Dyer.
Agenda
SRC Presidential Candidate
Nice, fluffy, cuddly things
New Writing Festival
G12 Production Fund
Props and Costume
Publicity
G12 Letter
AOB
1. SRC Presidential Candidate
Philip Neal, who is running for SRC President, came in to discuss his campaign and the role of the SRC for clubs and societies. The Board shared some concerns: the G12 closure, funding, and the Ramshorn closure. It is important to remember that we can approach the SRC at any point to raise issues with the University.
2. Nice, fluffy, cuddly things
The Board shared the love, as H. Sloan wanted to ensure that everyone was happy and healthy.
3. New Writing Festival
Congratulations to everyone involved with the New Writing Festival, especially T. Mackay and A. Blundell. There will be a post-show discussion next week, for people to share their thoughts on the festival.
4. G12 Production Fund
The deadline for the next G12 production fund is Friday 12th March. The Board decided that they will still apply for it, for the “main stage” slot. There is still much discussion of what the “main stage” slot will be, but H. Sloan and F. Andrew will speak to the GUU this week, and then STaG will be able to apply for the Production Fund. The options are 2 weeks in, either the Studio or the GUU.
5. Props and Costume
H. Sloan wished to remind everyone that if something is bought with STaG’s money, it belongs to STaG. It is hoped that this will filter out to the general membership, and P. Mannion will add it to the Director’s Pack. R. Jones suggested that the Board should consider the options that signage might offer.
6. Publicity
S. Bradley is in the process of making the posters to advertise the activities the society undertakes every month. H. Sloan and S. Bradley double-checked dates of different events. A budget was agreed.
S. Gregson suggested that STaG should up its profile on the SRC Clubs & Societies section of the website, and S. Bradley will look into this. The website is still under construction, but is being worked on.
7. G12 Letter
STaG are outraged at the closure of the G12 Theatre, and K. Nesbitt and committee will draft a letter to be sent. STaG hope to front a campaign in protest of the closure, and will also support the G12 in their campaigns. H. Sloan reminded all that the campaign should make sure STaG’s views are a priority, and that SRC could be a help in this. F. Andrew stated that it would be fruitful to develop a rapport with Central Room Booking to make it easier to book rooms. J. Dyer should begin this, in case…worst case scenario
8. AOB
K. Nesbitt – has completed the director’s mailing list, and the audience mailing list set-up. S. Bradley and she will meet up to talk about the audience- only mailing list. K. Nesbitt wished to flag up that the STaG Room cupboard needs a padlock.
F. Andrew – stated that the next STaG Theatre trip will be to see his flatmate, the legendary Victoria Jane Beesley, ex-President of STaG, in The Winter’s Tale, by Willy-um Shakes-spear. F. Andrew also asked all to attend the New Writing Festival Wrap Party.
S. Bradley – had some point about judging the New Writing Festival, which will be discussed next week.
S. Gregson – will be holding a The Goat, or Who is Sylvia? fundraiser. An all-day event, with films, cakes, raffle and The Baff-tas. This Friday, STaG Room.
P. Mannion – is creating a Fringe Pack, to help the person who will be going to the Fringe. She is going to email it to people who have been to the Fringe previously so they can add to it.
R. Jones – did not say anything about Booze, nothing. R. Jones said nothing about booze, and H. Sloan did not say it was not appropriate. Nothing happened. I swear.
