Get Ready For Literally Unplanned

One Fewer Night in Baghdad by Pedro M. VílloraTranslated from the Spanish by Lina Ferreira Cabeza-VanegasOne Fewer Night in Baghdad is a contemporary take on the story of Scheherazade and the Caliph.One Fewer Night in Baghdad was directed by Sarah Montague and produced by Sarah Montague and Matt Fidler, who also did the audio mixing and sound design. The play was performed by Mahira Kakkar and Arian Moyaed. Readings from The Arabian Nights were provided by Margot Avery, Gregory Bodine, Andrew Joffe, Lisa Beth Kovetz, Karen Michel, and Paul Singleton. Play for Voices audio plays are recorded at Harvestworks by audio engineer Kevin Ramsay. Play for Voices is produced by Matt Fidler, Anne Posten, Katrin Redfern, and Jen Zoble. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

In this episode we’re proud to present Illegal Helpers, a documentary play written by German-Italian playwright Maxi Obexer, translated into English by Neil Blackadder, and arranged for audio presentation by Play for Voices. Illegal Helpers was recorded before a live audience at the Czech Center New York in Manhattan, as part of an event called Freedom and Movement that was held in November 2018 to commemorate the anniversary of the Velvet Revolution. Illegal Helpers, which premiered in Salzburg in 2016 and was named one of the 2016 winners of the German-language Eurodram Prize, explores the current refugee crisis in Europe through the eyes of ordinary citizens. The play is based on verbatim interviews the playwright conducted with Swiss, Austrian, and German residents from all walks of life—doctors, judges, social workers, activists, and students—who took it upon themselves to help refugees. Some of these helpers broke the law multiple times and were charged with providing aid to illegal immigrants, and others could still be subject to legal action at any time. The Play for Voices production of Illegal Helpers was directed by Katrin Redfern and performed by JJ Condon, Roberto De Felice, Guenevere Donohue, Mariam Habib, Asta Hansen, Wayne Maugans, Joe Primavera, Francisco Solorzano, Harold Tarr, and Pauline Walsh. Asa Wember recorded, designed, and mixed the audio.Play for Voices is produced by Matt Fidler, Anne Posten, Katrin Redfern, and Jen Zoble.About the Author and TranslatorMaxi Obexer (author) writes drama, prose, and radio plays, and has made a name for herself in particular with political plays and essays, focusing especially in recent years on the refugee crisis. Her most widely produced play is Das Geisterschiff (The Ghost Ship), which deals with would-be immigrants crossing the Mediterranean. In 2011, Obexer published her first novel, Wenn gefährliche Hunde lachen (When Dangerous Dogs Laugh), a critically acclaimed work that tells the story of a young Nigerian woman who hopes to find a better life in Europe. Obexer’s plays have been produced in many cities, including Basel, Jena, Freiburg, and Stuttgart, and she has held residencies at the Literarisches Colloquium in Berlin and the Akademie Schloss Solitude. Obexer lives in Berlin and South Tyrol.Neil Blackadder (translator) recently retired as Professor of Theatre at Knox College, where he had taught since 1998. He began translating drama and short fiction in 2002. In 2011, he was awarded a fellowship from the Howard Foundation (Brown University) and a PEN Translation Fund Grant to translate plays by Lukas Bärfuss. He has twice held residencies at the Banff International Literary Translation Centre and Writers Omi at Ledig House. His work has often been supported by the Goethe-Institut, as well as by the Consulate General of Switzerland and the Austrian Cultural Forum. He is the Translations Editor for Another Chicago Magazine and the author of Performing Opposition: Modern Theater and the Scandalized Audience (Praeger, 2003). His short play Dad’s Guns appeared in 24 Gun Control Plays, ed. Caridad Svich and Zac Kline (NoPassport Press, 2013), and has been presented in staged readings in Australia and the US; a film version is in post-production.For a complete list of Illegal Helpers music credits, please visit Play for Voices.The complete translation was published by No Man's Land magazine here. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

One girl. One band. The publicity stunt from hell.  Razes Hell has taken off in the charts, and Ellie Hayes can't believe her childhood friends, Drew and Jason Brooks, are on TV and drawing crowds after years spent playing in dodgy bars. From obscurity to overnight success, Ellie soon realises life in the public eye isn’t all it’s cracked up to be as dark secrets become headline news and old conflicts are re-ignited. When a fake feud meant to boost the band’s popularity threatens to rip the boys apart for real, Ellie finds herself torn – a position which only gets more uncomfortable when her loyalty to Jason collides with her blossoming relationship with Drew. Nobody knows how deep their issues run; nobody but Ellie. With friendship, a music career and a new love on the line, can Ellie keep their tangled pasts from ruining their futures?

Two Friends. A music festival. What could possibly go wrong? Oh right, the Great British weather. Marnie Ross swore she wouldn’t get her hopes up when Logan Ryan invited her for a day out, listening to some of the UK’s hottest bands, and soaking up the sun in a field full of drunken revellers. After all, it isn’t a date, right? If only it were that simple. Marnie is in serious danger of setting herself on fire with the torch she carries for Logan. When a freak storm puts a dampener on their festival fun, Marnie and Logan are forced to check into a B&B for the night, and the only music they hear comes from the ancient jukebox in the pub down the street. However, will this change of plans be a blessing in disguise? Rum and cokes lead to reminiscing, and the sparks flying between them make Marnie’s feelings impossible to ignore. Everything has always come down to Logan, since she first scrawled his initials all over her school books. Will she embrace the chance to make her dreams come true, or will the fear of being burned keep her out in the rain?