Total Man

‘Total Man’ part of Electronic Voice Phenomena. Commissioned by Penned in the Margins and Mercy.

Our tour starts on Friday! I’ll be performing alongside Ross Sutherland, SJ Fowler, music group ‘Outfit’ and special guests. Further details HERE

‘Total Man’ is based on the writings of Stan Gooch, who, in his book The Paranormal, describes himself as ‘a reasonably well-endowed psychic’. Gooch was a sociologist/occultist/psychologist and the author of thirteen books including the epic ‘Total Man’. He was one of the first exponents of the ‘hybrid-origin’ theory of evolution. Most of his books explore the theory that humans are the result of cross-breeding between Cro-Magnum and Neanderthal. This research can be traced back to an experience Gooch had during a seance in 1958; he saw what looked like a Neanderthal man, crouching in the corner of the room ‘breathing heavily, as if nervous’.

I’ve been in touch with Dr. Brent Logan, who corresponded with Gooch in the last years of his life. Gooch’s final years (he died in 2010) were spent living in a rented caravan in Swansea, surviving on income support pension. Dr. Logan has sent me copies of the letters, which provide an insight into Gooch’s mind, his depression, and his commitment to his work. Here are some previously unpublished extracts. The first is from 1992:

I have now published well over a million words, often to critical acclaim by in themselves influential individuals. I have never made any money, and have lived much of the time in what most westerners would describe as poverty. Furthermore, I have signally failed to influence either the academic establishment or the world of alternative, new age thought. I am far too revolutionary for the former, and far too critical for the latter. Heigh ho.

2003:

The reversals and set-backs throughout my career have been continuous, relentless and un-remitting, as to some extent you already know. It all goes far beyond the reach of chance.

And later in 2009 finally some proof (underlining Gooch’s)

Recent discoveries of bones and skeletons in Spain have proved that Neanderthal and Cro-magnon did interbreed… When widely separated species of animal cross breed the offspring have two conflicting sets of instincts, with which they struggle to come to terms. And that’s why we’ve got left-wing political parties and right -wing parties. If lions evolved there would only be one political party – the lion party. If horses evolved there would only be one political party – the horse party. But we have two opposed political parties. (And as I’ve said in my books, if members of the labour party and members of the Conservative party were examined there would be: more left-handedness among the former; a greater incidence of the big toe being shorter than the other toes; shorter average height; less male baldness; larger cerebellum; more red-headedness, and so on and so on…)

Time to measure those toes….

‘Less’ male baldness, did you say?

Reading Stan Gooch’s books has been a trial. As soon as I’m able to follow his reasoning, he’ll matter of factly mention something like vampires, as if they prove his point. He draws on everything: psychology, sociology, archeology, mythology, the paranormal….which makes his writing fascinating, but also impossible. It’s easy to laugh at Gooch’s theories, but if I’m honest, I believe in fate, and I’ve experienced a few things that would deserve a chapter in his book The Paranormal. As Gooch said, the only proof of the inexplicable is personal experience. And even if you do experience something, it’s much easier to ignore it than to attempt an explanation. No wonder Gooch often found himself tangled in Ariadne’s web.  Within his theories about the life of Neanderthals is an attempt to understand the contradictions of humankind.

Join me as I attempt to channel Gooch and dissect, reverse, layer and articulate his ideas and experiences:

10 MAY 2013   THE SAGE GATESHEAD

15 MAY 2013   ST GEORGE’S HALL, LIVERPOOL

17 MAY 2013   THE BASEMENT, BRIGHTON

18 MAY 2013   RICH MIX, LONDON

19 MAY 2013   THE CUBE, BRISTOL

22 MAY 2013   ANTHONY BURGESS FOUNDATION, MANCHESTER

23 MAY 2013   ARC STOCKTON

25 MAY 2013   NORWICH ARTS CENTRE

Writing with you

The Disappearance of Sadie Jones is a play. Written on page. By me….

But now that we’ve gone through our development, rehearsal and production process, it has become a performance written in a space, with a creative team, and with you.

When my writing is occasionally published on a page it empties. As if the words have been stolen, type set, set in stone, an elegy, lost and concrete at the same time.

When I receive a book I have poems in, it sits for weeks before I can bear to look up my work.  When I eventually bring myself to do it, I skim them really quickly and never return to them after that.

I hate the finality. I suppose that the act of reading brings them alive again. I suppose when someone reads them they can live. But I don’t believe mine do, because I write for voice and space and people. Words can’t move when they’re trapped on a page.

Perhaps having a play published is slightly different, as the reader knows it is really just the blue print. I’d like to be able to give my plays to other people to play with. But still, the play text becomes final. A final word, I don’t want to have a final word on anything.

In conversation, in performance, we constantly adjust, to other performers, to space, to audience, even when it’s a quiet one. We adjust our bodies, faces, voices, intonation…it’s a constant search for communication. Even when the audience isn’t asked to respond verbally, it’s never a one sided conversation.

During the last few performances of The Disappearance of Sadie Jones at the Bike Shed Theatre, and during discussions afterwards, I felt the work being taken by an audience, taken into their imagination, their bodies…and what they translated was often more beautiful than anything we worked out the play was about.

The work is given a new life by the viewer, it is born, something of it is taken away and it might transform, and grow and become something else. A performance is a gift that is given in different shaped pieces to anyone who wants to take it home with them.

The audience member is an artist (yup, I’ve no problem with that word), the audience member is the most interesting artist at this stage in the process, because they are new, they are questioning, taking in, helping a birth, assembling and assimilating the work within themselves. The audience brings the final stage of the creative process to the work. In the end they are the best dramaturgs. Audience members help us to see the work fresh, to see it from many perspectives, to witness that it is continuing to be written, every night. The writing is never finished. 

 Stephanie Greer playing Sadie Jones. Photos by Eileen and Chris Long

The Sweeper & The Dreamer – A libretto

Adventures in Form

Adventures in Form 

published by Penned in the Margins

A Poetry Book Society Special Commendation

Discover a multitude of new and unusual poetic forms – from tweet to time- splice, and from skinny villanelle to breakbeat sonnet – in this inspiring and inventive anthology.

Adventures in Form features over ninety poems by forty-six contributors including Patience Agbabi, Christian Bök, Joe Dunthorne, Inua Ellams, Roddy Lumsden, Ian McMillan, Paul Muldoon, Ruth Padel and Hannah Silva.

Now available to pre-order for £9.99.

Norwich Poetry Club

Hannah with chin up

Off to Norwich next week to see my Grandma and perform some poems…

Tuesday January 24th, Norwich Poetry Club at the Bicycle Shop. Featuring headline act Hannah Silva, plus Martin Figura and John Osborne. £5 on the door, 7.30 pm.

From Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/events/306112706099284/

Hello, hello, it is us you’re looking for? Probably. We’re Norwich’s premier boutique poetry event and we’ve had a month off so you’re probably gagging for a big top-notch word action curtesy of some of the UK’s best poets. This month we have Hannah Silva who in 2008 was named as one The Times’ top 10 literary stars. She’s experimental, edgy and absolutely captivating. There is NO ONE like her on the poetry scene and you will not want to miss it. She lives in Plymouth (or somewhere down there) so we’ve done a bloody good job even getting her to the wilds of Norfolk, don’t miss it folks. Supporting we have the sublime Andy Mac, he of Dark Aunt fame. We’ve been told he is bringing one Dark Aunt with him, so our little club can experience he trademark blend of dark, sweet words and strange, dark melodies. Martin Figura, our resident ex-military man has some new stuff. The chances are it’ll be great, it usually is. John Osborne is going to compere and be all forceful and organisy (not a word) which will be exciting. He’s also got new stuff to read to you. It all starts at 7.30pm sharp. It costs a fiver. It’s in Norwich. Don’t be a wally, come.

Prosthetics at Ferment, Bristol Old Vic

just to prove I've been known to smile during performances...

What I should have said….

Well, it was a pretty intense for me last night at Ferment. Jack Dean opened the double bill with a really lovely new show called ‘Rain’. Hopefully he’ll develop it into a full length piece. He’s a really natural likable performer. He got us singing along and all generous and happy. And er, then I went on and kicked the audience in the gut when their guard was down! Particularly the last part of my set – Prosthetics – is a bit heavy. I went for it at the end, and really enjoyed performing but kind of felt unable to come back on in non-performance mode and say thank you at the end …on the train back to Plymouth I was really regretting that so, I just wanted to say now:

Thank you audience for coming! & for Ferment for having me! & apologies for punching you and not being able to talk like a human immediately afterwards! & hopefully see you again sometime, maybe at Opposition, which is less heavy and more funny…

Seriously, thank you for coming. It was my first performance in Bristol – apart from something in a basement of a pub years ago – and it was lovely to see you there. Keep in touch.

Plymouth gets poetic

Spread the word about poetry

Plymouth’s wannabe wordsmiths are being invited to unleash their inner laureate and get writing.

The Poetry School – which aims to provide high-quality teaching programmes for adults to develop their poetry – has opened a class in Plymouth.

The course is designed to inspire, motivate and get people to have fun with words and is being hosted by Plymouth poet, Hannah Silva.

Hannah said: “If you like playing with words – this is just for you. This is not about studying sonnets and forms, but having fun with the ideas that come into your head – and if ideas don’t come into your head, I’ve got loads of tricks to help tempt them out.

“Poetry is enjoying huge popularity across the country with poetry slams and evenings. Here in Plymouth a performance-poetry evening ‘Forked’, run by Apples and Snakes is packed out at the B Bar and word is spreading that poetry is not po-faced – it can be funny and entertaining as well.

“People are often intimidated by the thought of a poetry class, but it’s very informal and friendly.  We get people who’ve not written since school, students who like messing with words and people who just want to be a bit more creative.”

A past student said: “I’ve become more confident, more imaginative. It has given me ideas and I find time to write daily – and that’s to do with the confidence that Hannah brings out”.

Hannah, who was described by the Times as ‘one of the most ambitious and entertaining poets in the country’, performs internationally and has recently toured the country with Apples and Snakes.

She is a regular at the London Word Festival, and has featured on Radio 3’s The Verb. She has a background in music, choreography and theatre and is currently artist-in-residence with the Arts Unit, Plymouth City Council. She also runs courses through the Plymouth Adult and Community Learning Service.

There are still places available on the course which is open to new members at any stage. The fee is dependent on how many sessions are left and there’s a generous discount for students, over 60s and concessions. Anyone interested in enrolling should get in touch with the Poetry School by emailing administration@poetryschool.com or calling: 0207 582 1679. For further information check out their website at www.poetryschool.com

Hannah Silva on tour with Apples and Snakes. photo Nina Donagh

Plymouth’s Tunnels, Plymouth’s Squid

photo by Georgie Kirrin. ARP shelter Plymouth

I’ve been doing some research for Part 1 of my performance in ‘Ferment’ at the Bristol Old Vic.

It’s one of those occasions where I wrote the description of the work before I’ve actually written it all. I wrote that Part 1 is about ‘Plymouth’s tunnels’.

I have a poem that’s the basis for this idea – I wrote it after visiting the Marine Biology Research Library at the Citadel. The woman who showed me around thought I might like to explore the books and drawings…and I would….but I was especially interested in the stories she told.

In the forties there was a director there who had a parrot. She explained he had to go and get his parrot from the library before going down to the tunnels when Plymouth was being bombed.

She also told us about the research students they used to get there, from Oxford…They wrote poetry every year, which was great. But the thing I found brilliant is that they used to dissect squid down in the basement of the Citadel. As they were cutting them up they’d throw the parts over their shoulders, and they’d land on the ceiling. Now, apparently, they’re still there – it’s a hazardous zone.

So that inspired a poem. Here’s an extract:

Years ago the squid from Plymouth Sound
were massive, brought back to the lab to be
examined then tossed over a shoulder landing
on the ceiling and staying there – stuck, suckers.

The parrot was left in the library
when they went down to the tunnels,
this is not the future we are talking about,
simple bombing, simply bang bangs.

So I’ve been researching Plymouth’s tunnels – apparently there are tunnels under the flat where I live… I’ve come across some great blogs on Plymouth history: This one: http://www.cyber-heritage.co.uk – and this about the tunnels: http://www.cyberheritage.com/plymouth_hidden_tunnels/

& this hardy Plymouthian has done some exploring: http://georgiekirrin.com/

Better get back to it…

Hope to see you there. Ferment Festival. Bristol Old Vic, 20th Jan, 6:30pm

About ‘Prosthetics’, Ferment, Bristol Old Vic

Prosthetics

Composing Speech: An explanation of how I build my sound/poetry piece ‘Prosthetics’.

See Prosthetics on the 20th January at the Bristol Old Vic, ‘Ferment’ festival.

Prosthetics is the final part of a triptych of new work. The triptych explores language – the violence of language, the impact of words beyond meaning. The section before Prosthetics is from the perspective of a ten year old boy. He takes a word, ‘Gaddafi’, and repeats it until it goes beyond its meaning to become sound and then beyond sound to become –

A gaddafi of horses, galloping,
gaddafi gaddafi gaddafi

Sometimes people say things as if they have no meaning….as if they don’t realise how shocking, insane, crazy the   thing is that they are saying. In Prosthetics I wanted to take those things and give them time…pull them apart…examine them…taste their meaning…take them out of their original context and consider them.

I watched a documentary years ago, it was made in the U.S and was about prosthetic limbs.

It was very positive. Positive to the point that the positivity stopped being believable.

 

 

 

 

 

I work with lines that were glossed over in the documentary:

Forty percent of those with prosthetic limbs will go back into war.

Amputation is the first step in rehabilitation.

It’s a positive thing.

There was a story about a little girl who had chopped the arm off and gauged the eye out of her doll. ‘It looks like a monster now’, she said. – Her father came back from Iraq without an arm and an eye.

I start by pulling apart the statistic. I reduce it to vowel sounds, and then consonants. This produces a particular rhythm. I record layer over layer using a loop pedal. Over the top I play with the other lines. I explore ways of speaking ‘Amputation’. I reverse it ‘noitatupma’. I speak it like the word itself is being amputated…I cut it up…taste it….make the word concrete, physical…

‘It’s a positive thing’ is repeated. ‘It’s a positive thing’

The story of the little girl goes over the top.

A little girl cuts the eye out and arm off her doll.
‘It looks like a monster now’, she says.
Just like her father.

At the end I speak the full line:

Forty percent of those with prosthetic limbs will go back into war.

– over and over, pitched a semitone higher on each repetition.

It’s a positive thing.

New Courses with The Poetry School, Plymouth & Exeter

The Poetry School

*Language, Voice & Poetic Play

This course is ideal for those wanting to reawaken a love of words, to explore the musicality of language and to develop confidence as a writer. Each session includes writing games and exercises to get you going, and discussion and analysis to develop your work beyond that initial spark. You will receive regular feedback and will have the chance to develop the reading/performance skills essential for any poet wanting to reach an audience. Designed to stretch and inspire writers of all levels.

Booking information

Tutor: Hannah Silva
Duration: Five fortnightly sessions per term
Dates for Autumn 2011: 5th Oct, 19th Oct, 2nd Nov, 16th Nov and 30th Nov
Dates for Spring 2012: 11th Jan, 25th Jan, 8th Feb, 22nd Feb and 7th Mar
Level: Open to all
Location: The Quaker House, Mutley, Plymouth.

Session times: Wednesdays, fortnightly, 6.30-8.30pm

Cost per term:

Full cost:£57.00
60+:£45.00
Concs:£34.00
Bookings: 0207 582 1679

*Write out Loud

Explore the musicality of language and discover new ways to write and perform your poetry. A course for those wanting to get out from behind the computer screen and play with words out loud. We’ll experiment with a range of writing methods, such as writing collaboratively, playing with language in performance and sound based approaches. Designed to stretch and inspire writers of all levels.

Booking information

Tutor: Hannah Silva
Duration: Five fortnightly sessions per term
Dates for Autumn 2011: 12th Oct, 26th Oct, 9th Nov, 23rd Nov and 7th Dec
Dates for Spring 2012: 18th Jan, 1st Feb, 15th Feb, 29th Feb and 14th Mar
Level: Open to all
Location: Exeter, St Sidwell’s Centre
Start date:Wednesday 12th Oct 2011

Session times: Wednesdays, fortnightly, 6.30-8.30pm

Cost per term:

Full cost:£57.00
60+:£45.00
Concs:£34.00
Bookings: 0207 582 1679