Theatrical Blog Tour

Hey everyone,

Today I’m the first stop on the blog tour for Maggie Harcourt’s new book Theatrical. The book follows Hope, as she interns on a major stage production at the theatre of her dreams. But with a distracting romance, lots of responsibility, a stroppy Hollywood star and a juicy secret Hope is determined to keep under wraps, she’s finding it hard to keep her cool.

If you’ve seen my blog in the last week or so, you’ll know how much I LOVED this book. My review is here in case anyone wants to check that out, and I’ll be uploading a YouTube review of it soon too, if anyone is interested.

My favourite production was Bard on the Beach in Vancouver. They were putting on a production of Shakespeare’s King Lear and the atmosphere was just perfect. The whole thing was in a big marquee on the beach and the weather was a bit stormy that night. The stage was really minimalist, and the background was just a huge gaping window with a view of the sea. During Lear’s storm madness monologue, the waves were crashing and the sky was just starting to darken and they couldn’t have planned it better if they’d tried. What are your experiences with the theatre? Let me know everything in the comment section 😀

And now, drumroll please… I have an interview with Maggie herself, exclusively for you guys, all about writing and theatre!

Q and A with Maggie Harcourt:

1. I loved how much research went into Theatrical and how much I learned about the theatre through the book. Did any of your own experiences feed into crafting this story?

 One of the best things about writing Theatrical was being able to go and see brilliant productions and performances in lots of different theatres and call it “research”! The theatre in the book – the Earl’s – is fictional, but partly built from borrowed pieces of theatres I love, especially the Old Vic, the Bristol Old Vic (where the team were kind enough to give me my own private tour of the auditorium, front of house and backstage areas) and the Theatre Royal Bath. I was actually part of the Theatre Royal Bath’s summer school a couple of years back, learning about theatre production, and a lot of what I learned there went into the book, especially the stage management part of it! More than anything, though, it was the passion, talent and generosity of the theatre community that I wanted to put into the book, because it’s a big part of what makes theatre so special: the people who create it.

2. If you could put on any play and cast the leading man and lady, what would you pick and why?

That is so hard.

I mean, really hard, because I’m thinking about how many brilliant actors I would fantasy-cast at the drop of a hat… all of whom have different strengths and styles and chemistry with one another. So short of being able to commission an entire season of lots of different plays somewhere like the Almeida, I magically gift myself the opportunity to create something new with Simon Stephens (whose plays I love), and we’d come up with a story together and write with specific actors (who would obviously all be available and delighted to sign up) in mind for each role…

3. I am thrilled we got to see so many nods to Unconventional! Do you think you’ll revisit bits of that book and Theatrical again in any future projects?

I thought it would be fun to connect the books so they feel like they belong together. If you’ve read Unconventional, you’ll recognise a couple of faces and you’ll spot the big link between them… but if you haven’t, you won’t feel you’re missing out! As a reader, I love coming across in-jokes and Easter eggs hidden in books so this was my way of trying to do the same thing – and besides, it’s nice to think that one of Lexi’s fan conventions could be happening just down the road from Hope’s show. I like to think I’ll be able to keep it going – so who knows whose paths might cross (or where) in the future…?

4. Theatre seems to involve a lot of routines and superstitions. Do you have any of those while you’re writing?

I didn’t think I did… and then I started to answer this question! In terms of routine, I try to write at least 1500 words every weekday if I’m writing a first draft, either listening to music that connects to the story in my head, or to white noise from somewhere like Rainy Mood. Thinking about it, I’m a bit superstitious about titles: I really don’t like saying them out loud until I’ve sent a full draft to my agent and editor. Until I’ve finished a ‘real’ draft (which is usually the third or fourth draft) nobody gets to read it. Nobody – and beyond the agent and editor sacred circle, I might only tell one or two people what I’m working on at all until it’s gone through the first round of edits. I think I have an odd idea about it somehow flying away from me if I actually talk about it… Maybe it’s like whistling backstage: I don’t want to jinx it.

By the way, I actually found out where the ‘no whistling’ theatre superstition comes from while I was researching Theatrical – it’s because many theatres were built near docks, or in towns and cities where there were ports. As theatre scenery and backdrops were all on ropes and had to be hauled up and down by hand when needed, the majority of stage crew were sailors on shore leave, who – just as they did at sea – worked the ropes according to whistle cues. One whistle call meant one thing, a different one something else. If you wandered around backstage whistling, they might think you were cueing them, and you could easily end up with a heavy wooden beam getting dropped on your head!

5. Some actors like having specific things in their dressing room like certain flowers, snacks or drinks. If you were a famous actress what would you want your room filled with?

First of all, anyone who’s ever seen me on stage will know I could never be an actress. I’m horrendous and immediately turn into someone who has no idea what to do with their face, or have any grasp of what their hands are for. I had to do a bit of acting as part of the theatre summer school: not only that, I had to walk, talk (remembering my lines, cues and blocking) and carry a large tray with a champagne bottle and several very expensive borrowed glasses filled with sparkling apple juice balanced on it right across the stage. In front of an audience of theatre producers. It’s fair to say I have never been more terrified in my entire life.

But if I had a dressing room, I’d probably be pretty lo-fi about it: a notebook and a stack of gel ink pens – I lose them like you wouldn’t believe – a couple of books, a phone charger (again, I don’t know where they all go…) my laptop and some water would be pretty much all I’d need. That doesn’t sound very glamorous, does it? Maybe if I was really being a diva we could go as far as some fairy lights and a packet of Percy Pigs…?

That’s it from me folks. Thank you so much for joining me on stop one of the tour and thanks so much to Maggie and the team at Usborne for organizing this fabulous blog tour. If you’re interested in keeping up, the next stop is tomorrow over at Reality’s a Bore so go check it out! And don’t forget to let me know what your favourite theatre experience or production is, I’d love to hear your thoughts <3

Theatrical is now out in stores, so if you’re curious about Maggie’s new book or just want to read more about the theatre you can grab your own copy through Waterstones here, Amazon UK here, and Book Depository here. Please note that I am now a Book Depository affiliate, so if you purchase any books through them using the links on my blog, I will be able to earn a small amount of credit to use for future purchases.