» News

We tend to use this page as a kind of round up, so if you'd like something a bit more up-to-the-minute, please check our blog or our twitter-feed. If you'd like to recieive emailouts from Talking Birds alerting you to events and performances, please sign up here.

« Spring 2013 »

» We're Only Here Today

We're making a new play. For theatres. You can see it in Birmingham in March, and/or book it for your venue...

Here's the show in a sentence:

Two door to door salesmen look for a missing girl. They perform King Lear. Then they leave.

We're re-uniting David Colvin and Richard Kidd, who performed in our acclaimed We Love You City at the Belgrade Theatre, giving them a pile of suitcases and a harmonium and casting them onto the streets (sort of). It'll be good. Promise.

We’re Only Here Today was given a scratch performance at Warwick Arts Centre’s Bitesize festival, followed by a Pilot Nights performance at The RSC’s Courtyard theatre in July 2012. It is a Holding Space commission and premieres at mac birmingham on on Tues 12th and Wed 13th March 2013.

» Troy Story

Following the success of Space Odyssey in 2011 [Homer's Odyssey, set in space], we're tackling the Illiad now and making a new composite schools opera with the Orchestra of the Swan. Troy Story [which puts the Illiad and the Odyssey together] is currently being developed in workshops with Welcombe Hills, Thomas Jolyffe and Wilmcote schools in Stratford and will be performed at Stratford Civic Hall in April and Town Hall Birmingham in July.

» 110m Hurdles > book and exhibition tour

You may remember hearing about our 110m Hurdles project, part of our epic Decathlon. Using poems and photographic portraits, the project explores and celebrates the techniques older people have devised for facing up to and overcoming life's hurdles. Talking Birds worked with poet Julie Boden and photographer Joanna Ornowska, Princethorpe Court care home and Moseley Primary School on 110m Hurdles and we're excited and delighted to be able to let you know that you can now purchase a book containing the poems and portraits generated as part of the project!

In another great development, we have produced a smaller touring version of the exhibition of Joanna's photographs and Julie's poems. [It's currently touring Warwickshire libraries. If you missed seeing it at The Herbert last year, where visitors to the exhibition described it as "life-affirming", "moving" and "an inspiration", it's well worth a visit. Warwickshire Libraries are also running some Hurdles workshops with Julie and Joanna.]

If you'd be interested in booking the exhibition for your own school, library, theatre, gallery or other venue, please contact Janet.

Excitingly, Hurdles has generated a huge degree of interest and developed into a somewhat Open Source project: so if you'd like to submit your own portrait and poem for our pool, or run your own project, you can. We've set up a blog to showcase some of the Hurdles submitted, and share hints about how to run your own project. We'd love you to join in and for you to let us know how you got on...

» Decathlon: Shot Putt

We've made a game you can play on your mobile! The Shot Putt game is a suitably Talking Birds' ish take on the genre, with a requirement for all kinds of skill and dexterity (or something) as you try to throw the cannonball shot putt as far as you can - watching out for seagulls, ships and sea monsters. It's been made for us by Ashley Brown and is available for apple and android devices. There are also a *limited number* of edible shots up for grabs for those emailing us a review of the game...

"I like it. It's good. I sank a ship and hit the treasure once!" Tom, aged 7.

"It's fab and I love the pirates oooo arrr and music...satisfying to sink a ship and hit the treasure chests" Sadie, age unknown.

» The Whale

The Whale had a very busy year travelling up and down the country playing at all sorts of festivals throughout 2012, adding to the repertoire a second show 'Pilchard' especially for family audiences. If the preliminary bookings list is anything to go by, it is set for an equally busy 2013! If you'd like the friendly aluminium leviathan to make an appearance your event, festival or venue next year (and, frankly, why wouldn't you?) - we are now taking bookings - Lou is the person to speak to.

Finally, if you spot the Whale out and about, do take a pic! You can tweet these to @birdmail with the tag #tbwhale or you can post them on the Whale's very own facebook page.