It'll be all right on the night!
David Snell on script writing for the Epiphany Supper entertainment and the perils of planning in good time
Anyone who has watched much football on TV knows the scenario. It's the final minute of extra time in the last game of the season. The home team needs 3 points to avoid the relegation,gain promotion or qualify for European competition. A player who, earlier in the game, equalised from a fleeting opportunity now finds himself in possession, three yards from an open goal with the entire defence fast asleep and snoring gently.
I think that clinical is the word that sporting journalists use in this situation. So here goes. With clinical precision, the player plants the ball in row Z of the stand and the final whistle blows. Forget survival, promotion or Europe. The sad remark from the commentator is: "He just had too much time".
Well, the writers of the Epiphany Supper entertainment scripts have always borne in mind the risks of having too much time. Script conferences have usually taken place moderately early in December - say a week or two after the Advent Carol service. Then, a period of intense inactivity to allow the dialogue itself to mature in the authors' collective subconscious. Finally, the actual writing which seldom begins before Boxing Day. All of this contributes to the meticulously under-rehearsed performance on the night of the Epiphany Supper itself.
For the 2003 entertainment, we were forced to depart from this tried and tested formula. The Gower family was going to be away from Romsey and we had to begin our preparations much earlier than usual. Our script conference took place early in October. Writing began early in November and was well advanced before the Advent Carol service.
The open goal yawned before us and we were getting really worried. Fortunately, the rehearsal plumbed the usual depths and the performance on the night was rescued by the customary small technical hitches, missed prompts, misreadings and so on. It was a relief to know that we could achieve our usual standards despite having to cope with excessive time to prepare.
Will we do it the same way again? No chance. The pressure was unbearable.