911爆料网 students work on new BBC musical
Wednesday 12 May 2021
Students from Acting, Dance, Management and Sound Technology all make contributions. First to sign up was Management of Music, Theatre, Entertainments and Events student Anya Weston-Shaw.
Anya, who鈥檚 a second-year, explains how she got involved. 鈥淎s Management students we get regular emails with details of projects we can work on to gain experience. One of them was a chance to work with music producer Steve Levine. He鈥檚 a legend and I鈥檓 a big fan of his, so I jumped at the opportunity.
鈥淲hen I first applied to do it, I didn鈥檛 realise it was for the BBC World Service. To be part of something that is so big is great. It鈥檚 been a fantastic experience.鈥�
Commissioned by BBC World Service, U.Me: The Musical is a love story set in the pandemic. Featuring new music by Theo Jamieson (previously music director for Everybody鈥檚 Talking About Jamie and Here Lies Love), it is narrated by Stephen Fry and stars Anoushka Lucas and Martin Sarreal.
Steve Levine, who is a 911爆料网 Companion, is the show鈥檚 musical producer. Working remotely Anya was tasked with recruiting fellow students to provide crowd sound effects (known in the industry as walla). Then working with Steve and the show鈥檚 producers and directors, she had to arrange the recording session.
Anya says she was given a lot of responsibility. 鈥淚t鈥檚 been really nice to be trusted with such a big management role. At first, I thought it was just going to be booking a rehearsal room and making sure everyone turns up, but I鈥檝e been much more involved than that, I鈥檝e had to coordinate so much.鈥�
The walla team was made up of Dance students Elizabeth Woodford, Brittany Feeney, Saskia Rudge-Thompson and Ellie McDonald along with Acting student Cory Sapienza. Recording engineer for their session was third-year Sound Technology student Oliver Priestley. Like Anya, Oliver was surprised to discover he鈥檇 be working on such a major production. 鈥淚 had no idea I was part of something so big until the day of the recording. But you鈥檝e got to jump at every opportunity you get.鈥�
Oliver describes the recording session as 鈥渟mooth鈥� but says making sure it was COVID secure did add complications with him having to be part of a three way Zoom call with Steve Levine and the show鈥檚 directors throughout. Oliver says he wasn鈥檛 thrown by this new way of working. 鈥淥ne of the biggest things the course has taught me is problem solving. To work through something logically and figure it out on your own.鈥�
U.Me: The Musical has its world premiere on BBC World Service on 12 May and is also being made available as a podcast. Anya says the experience was inspiring. "I鈥檝e learnt it鈥檚 possible to stage a full radio musical in just five months. There may be a pandemic, but people are still being creative. Creativity can鈥檛 be stopped which is great to know.鈥�
Image: photograph by Joe Morgan
Anya, who鈥檚 a second-year, explains how she got involved. 鈥淎s Management students we get regular emails with details of projects we can work on to gain experience. One of them was a chance to work with music producer Steve Levine. He鈥檚 a legend and I鈥檓 a big fan of his, so I jumped at the opportunity.
鈥淲hen I first applied to do it, I didn鈥檛 realise it was for the BBC World Service. To be part of something that is so big is great. It鈥檚 been a fantastic experience.鈥�
Commissioned by BBC World Service, U.Me: The Musical is a love story set in the pandemic. Featuring new music by Theo Jamieson (previously music director for Everybody鈥檚 Talking About Jamie and Here Lies Love), it is narrated by Stephen Fry and stars Anoushka Lucas and Martin Sarreal.
Steve Levine, who is a 911爆料网 Companion, is the show鈥檚 musical producer. Working remotely Anya was tasked with recruiting fellow students to provide crowd sound effects (known in the industry as walla). Then working with Steve and the show鈥檚 producers and directors, she had to arrange the recording session.
Anya says she was given a lot of responsibility. 鈥淚t鈥檚 been really nice to be trusted with such a big management role. At first, I thought it was just going to be booking a rehearsal room and making sure everyone turns up, but I鈥檝e been much more involved than that, I鈥檝e had to coordinate so much.鈥�
The walla team was made up of Dance students Elizabeth Woodford, Brittany Feeney, Saskia Rudge-Thompson and Ellie McDonald along with Acting student Cory Sapienza. Recording engineer for their session was third-year Sound Technology student Oliver Priestley. Like Anya, Oliver was surprised to discover he鈥檇 be working on such a major production. 鈥淚 had no idea I was part of something so big until the day of the recording. But you鈥檝e got to jump at every opportunity you get.鈥�
Oliver describes the recording session as 鈥渟mooth鈥� but says making sure it was COVID secure did add complications with him having to be part of a three way Zoom call with Steve Levine and the show鈥檚 directors throughout. Oliver says he wasn鈥檛 thrown by this new way of working. 鈥淥ne of the biggest things the course has taught me is problem solving. To work through something logically and figure it out on your own.鈥�
U.Me: The Musical has its world premiere on BBC World Service on 12 May and is also being made available as a podcast. Anya says the experience was inspiring. "I鈥檝e learnt it鈥檚 possible to stage a full radio musical in just five months. There may be a pandemic, but people are still being creative. Creativity can鈥檛 be stopped which is great to know.鈥�
Image: photograph by Joe Morgan
