The view from Vincent's Club
Location: Vincent’s Club Dining Room, 1A King Edward Street, Oxford OX1 4HS
(This is just off Oxford High Street where there is nearby parking, convenient public transport and wheelchair access)
Course Fees: £2,950 per year
(Two subsidised bursaries offer 50% discount for unwaged and under 25s)
HOW TO APPLY
Applications for the 2021/22 course will open soon.
To apply, please send the following to :
1. Your name, telephone number and address
2. A covering letter and a brief CV
3. Two samples of your written work, in any genre, neither exceeding 20 pages in length
John will contact you within two weeks of your application.
Interviews take place in Oxford.
Applications for next year's course are open now. Places fill up quickly, so early application is encouraged.
No academic qualification is required, and the course is open to anyone over 18.
Course Dates
Year 1
Year 1 has been cancelled for 2020/21. This is due to government guidelines about meeting in groups indoors, and also because going to see live theatre is an important part of the course, and is currently not possible to Covid-19 restrictions.
Year 1 will be revived in 2021. We will announce dates shortly.
Year 2
In May 2019, both Year 1 groups requested a 2nd year to the course.
Of the 15 writers on the 2018-19 cohort, 13 have continued with a Year Two 2 course.
The Year 2 course consists of 9 day-long sessions that take place once a month plus a final half-day Performance Workshop in June.
Each writer began the Year 2 course with the final draft of the play he or she wrote in the Year 1; and then outlined ideas for a new play to be written in Year 2.
The course explores the areas of adaptation, structure, character, dialogue, subtext and staging in greater depth; the group itself becomes a creative unit that motivates each writer to think more boldly and expressively than before.
Year 2 course dates, 2020/21
Fridays 10.30am – 6pm
Friday October 16th
Friday November 13th
Friday December 11th
Friday January 22nd
Friday February 26th
Friday March 19th
Friday April 30th
Friday May 28th
June 5th Saturday Performance Workshop
Friday June 11th
(10 sessions, including 1 Saturday Performance Workshop = 64 hours)
Year 3
Fridays 10.30am – 6.00
Friday October 9th
Friday November 6th
Friday December 4th
Friday January 15th
Friday February 12th
Friday March 12th
Friday April 16th
Friday May 14th
May 29th Saturday Performance Workshop
Friday June 4th
(10 sessions, including 1 Saturday Performance Workshop = 64 hours)
"If I were an aspiring playwright with an appetite to learn about the playwright’s craft, I couldn’t imagine a more skilled and supportive tutor."
Tom Morris, artistic director,
Bristol Old Vic
"John is a rare combination of an outstandingly creative theatre artist and a truly transformative teacher."
Tim Crouch, writer, director
"Usually, with a writing tutor, you get someone who knows how to write and how to teach writing. With John Retallack, you get those two gifts, plus a cracking experienced and imaginative director!"
Bryony Lavery, writer
"John Retallack is a hugely talented and experienced playwright and director. He combines practical know-how with incisive analysis and an infectious love of theatre. For anyone wanting to write professionally for the stage, I couldn't think of anyone better to support, challenge and inspire you."
Jonathan Lloyd, director
"John has a writer’s understanding of structure, texture, character and tone blended with a director’s eye and ear for a quality of performance that will make an audience not just think but also, crucially, feel. It was a privilege to work with him and I very much hope I’m lucky enough to do so again."
Owen Sheers, writer
Visiting workshop leaders and guest speakers
Upcoming:
2021 TIM CROUCH (Don’t Ask The Driver, An Oak Tree, England, The Author)
Previous:
June 2018 CHRIS CAMPBELL then Literary Manager at The Royal Court
June 2019 MIKE BARTLETT (Dr Foster, Press, King Charles 3rd, Albion, Earthquakes in London)
March 2020 KENNETH LONERGAN (Manchester by the Sea, You Can Count On Me, Starry Messenger, This is Our Youth)
