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Talk Shop

Have you seen Sixth Sense's production of The Rime of the Ancient Mariner? Well, this is your chance to tell us what you really think of it… or ask a question of the actors… or find out what other kids think.

So, don't just sit there, fill out your name and comment or question in the boxes below and click on the 'Submit' button. We'll post your comment on the Talk Shop board just as soon as we can.

Name	Comment
Jenny Toothill	thankyou for coming to are school we realy liked im saying what was my favourite part was in the play was when anna and jameson kissed and when ruth was a crab it was fun oh and mark because he was asking ruth to go out with mark so i realy injoy your play you afto come more times to are school so we wont do eny work at morning.from year 5 jenny on toothill primary school .and please reply back? Sixth Sense: Haha! Your message put a smile on my face Jenny!! I don't know that we'll be able to come to your schools more often- just so you can miss morning lessons, but we'll certainly try and come back this time next year with our new and exciting show 'First the Worst, Second the Best'.
Chelsey and Bethany	We really enjoy your shows you do they really enspire us. We really liked jaberwocky and we love Anna's part yours truly xoxo Sixth Sense: Great! You'll just have to wait for next years production now, so you can say you've seen 3 of Sixth Senses's shows....then, you're officially a fan!
Darcy Peatmoor	hithis is a comment not a question, i really enjoyed the show it was good because it made me feel different emotions like sad happy and it was scary! But some bits i did not understand question do you enjoy going to different schools and do you get scared or embarised? Sixth Sense: Well, live theatre is supposed to make you feel different emotions, so that means you watched it well. Also, don't worry that you didn't understand every little bit of the play. As long as you enjoyed it- the acting, the scenery, the props, the lighting, you can take from it what you will.
Chloe Peatmoor	Hi I love your shows.Is it hard to learn all the words?I liked the people you were and really liked Annas part!hopefully we will see you again with anotherof your plays thanks and bye.P.S.say thanks to everyone who did the show!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Sixth Sense: The actors get used to learning lines fast, so they don't find it too difficult. Plus they have a couple of weeks rehearsal time. Another Anna fan...she will get a big head!
Megan	i loved what you did today at peatmoor school it was like it was real.(thankyou)i liked the bit when she found her father dead. Sixth Sense: It was quite scary when her father was revealed as a skeleton though wasn't it!!
Maddie	how were you so good? Sixth Sense: Practice, practice, practice!!
Leila Hurst	I thought your play was very good. You have done very well with just 4 characters.How long does it take you to make the costumes. Sixth Sense: Thanks Leila. We borrowed some of the costumes from another theatre company, and some of them we made. They didn't take too long. The masks and poppets took a couple of weeks though.
Chloe Clements Mortimer St Marys	What outher plays do you do???????????Do you enjoy acting.????????????I loved the hole show its the best film that i have seen in school,!!!!!!!!!! i loved the boat.!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!Who made the boat????????????????Whos rings where they.????????????Are you comeing back to mortimer s.t marys?????????????????????All of mortimer s.t marys won't you to This is Chloe Suzane Clements here.!!!!!!! Sixth Sense: Next year Chloe...and you're the first pupil I'm announcing this to, we're touring a primary schools show called 'First the Worst, Second the Best'. It's a comedy about the relationship between children and sport...I bet you have friends who love it, and friends who think it's aweful?! The boat was designed by a lady called Tomasin, and built by a local builder. We bought the rings for the show- but they were'nt real gold!
Charlotte Telling	the show was great i really enjoyed it i hope you come to our school again.I found bites funny and scarry that was proberly the best show i have seen for a long time i do so hope you come again from Charlotte Telling xx Sixth Sense: We're glad you enjoyed it.
Annet	Tell me one of your jokes Tom? Sixth Sense: Q: How do you make milk shake? A: Give it a good scare!! (That was just for you Annet!!)
Julius Fusco Toothill	How far do you travel to do a play? Sixth Sense: Well we're based in Swindon Julious, and most of the schools we go to are in Swindon or Wiltshire. However, we also take our shows to schools in Reading, Bath, Bristol, Somerset and Cheltenham.
Hanna Luker Grange Junior School	How long did it take to write the play? Sixth Sense: About a year Hannah, there were several drafts before we got to the final version!
Millie	i thought the ancient mariner play was brilliant, and if you didn't i am gob smacked!!it is amazing how the actors acted out the poem with only 4 people!! Sixth Sense: Thanks Millie. And yes, we only used 4 actors so some of them had to play numerous parts.
Natasha	How did you get everything ready all at the same time? Sixth Sense: The actors and Stage Manager arrived at your school about 80 minutes before the show began, to put up the set up and get all of the props/lighting/ sound effects ready.
Rachel Lee Mohan Mortimer St Mary's	I go to Mortimer st. Mary's Junior school, and on the 28th March 2008, the theatre group came along and peformed "The Ancient Mariner." I thought it was great!The ocean's spirit was really scary, and Mary was my favourite character.But I thought it was a shame that the beautiful bird got killed,and that it didn't really have a happy ending, but I still liked it all the same. Sixth Sense: It is a shame that the albatross gets killed, you're right Rachel. But it is a show about life and death, superstitions and karma...
Luke Telling Mortimer St Mary's	the hat was freaky stuff man come to our school again. (mortimer st mary's)BRILL!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Sixth Sense: Thanks Luke. See you next year hopefully!
Zoe and Georgia	We loved the bit of the play when you used the death mask over one of your hats to show the spirit of the sea in her ship. Also, how you brought in the rings on the ribbons! It was GREAT! Please reply back...Love Georgia and Zoe!! Sixth Sense: You were watching carefully. We're glad you liked the spirit of the sea figure...you obviously didn't find it as scary as some of the others did...?
Georgia	Hey!!!Your all wonderful actors! I loved the play!What will be your next play(s)?Is Mary really 12yrs old??if she is well,your an amazing actor and singer!!WOW!!!Can't wait to see your next play!see you soon love......georgiawalwayne!! Sixth Sense: Hi Georgia, this is Anna who plays Mary. I'm a bit older than Mary in real life actually. She's about 12 years old...I'm in my 20's.
Zoe	I think that your version of The Rime Of The Ancient Mariner was FAB!! I hope that you will go to John of Gaunt to preform next year because i'm going there! Where did you go to learn how to act? How long did did it take to learn the words? Do you have a lot of fun when your practising for the play? I think that you are all BRILLIANT actors and I would really like to see you again sometime! I hope you come back soon! (P.S. please can you tell me who replies because I would really like to know!) Sixth Sense: Well, we've certainly had a lot of people asking us to visit John of Gaunt next year...so I suppose it would be rude not to! We'll see what we can do! We all went to drama school actually, where we learnt to act, dance and sing. We did have some giggles during rehearsals- and we still do now, but it's also hard work! Griff
Katie	I missed your performance the day you came to my school, but luckily my friends have told me all about it and it sounds so interesting. An amazing treat to me would be to see you perform "The Rime Of The Ancient Mariner" at school once again without missing it. I look forward to seeing you again. Sixth Sense: Oh, that's a shame Katie. I'm sure you'll be able to see our next show- but at least you've got your friends to tell you about The Rime of the Ancient Marienr!
Natalie	How did you get the big ship up from we watched your show Sixth Sense: The 4 actors and Stage Manager have to put it up and take it down again! It's a wooden set with 7 or 8 differnt parts that fit together like a jigsaw puzzle- and then there's the mast which is really tall and heavy. They're getting strong!
Jessica- Anne Green- Shaw	Do all of you like your job or do you want to do something else? Sixth Sense: Yes, we all like our jobs very much. We'd rather be performing that sat at a computer all day earning our keep!
Rachael	Hi, how did you get the sound effects? Sixth Sense: The music/ sound was pre-recorded- captured on tape.
Robert Clifton	I really liked the play. Does the person who plays Mr Crab really have bad breath? Sixth Sense: Don't tell anyone, but yes!! We give her mints to suck, and hint that she may prefer to have a salad for lunch rather than a curry...but it's difficult you know! We don't want to upset her!
Kirsty Dawn Harris	Was Sarah the albatross? If she was how did she get changed so quick and where did she get changed? Sixth Sense: Yes, Ruth who played the character of Sara also played the albatross. She changed behind the mast so nobody could see her- but much of the costume was actually the same. She just added props like the albatross head.
Tom Banyard	How long did it take to make the play? Sixth Sense: That's a very smart question Tom. The writer wrote the first draft for us about 1 and a half years ago...so techincally about this long.
Zoe	I have your wallpaper as my background! It's really cool!I LOVED your performance of The Rime Of The Ancient Mariner! It was FAB! Thanks for coming to our school to show it to us! It was BRILLIANT (again!)I think the actors were GREAT! How long does it take you to learn your lines?I would love to be an actress to! How many auditions did you have to do to be able to get the part? Sixth Sense: The actors had about 2 months to learn their lines, as they had them before they came into rehearsals. Each of the ators auditioned once only. It was quite an easy decision actually!
Erin Surridge	To sixthsense I thought Rime of the Ancient Mariner was very good. It got very scary and sad. What was the place called that was cold? Sixth Sense: I think you're referring to the 'Land of Ice'- where the ship gets stuck in the ice.
Charlotte Thomas	Hi my Name is Charlotte and i have some Questions for you.How long have you been practicing for?how old is the youngest actor? Thank you for the play i really enjoyed it.Love from Charlotte Thaoms. Sixth Sense: The actors rehearsed for 3.5 weeks Charlotte, but along the way the director gets them to change their lines, and do things differently so the show is always getting better and better!
William	How many different stories have you produced? Sixth Sense: We've been around since 1986 so lots and lots!!
Maddie Walwayne Court	Hi on 4/3/08 you came to Walwayne Court School and performed 'The Rime of the Ancient Mariner.'It was FAB!!!! I loved it and the props really helped everyone to imagaine it!!!! Hopefully next year you will possibly play at John of Gaunt which were i'll go next year!!! Hope you come to play at Walwayne again before i leave!!!Everytime you come i enjoy it more and more!!! P.S we have been writing letters and reviews about the play about how much we enjoyed the Play!!! Sixth Sense: Bring on those letters! We're glad you enjoyed our show!
Molly & Katie Walwayne Court Yr6	The rime of the ancient mariner have come to my school and it was GREAT! I was stunned by the tension in the room.... I would love it if you could come again and perform a different play. The death mask was very imaginative and i really felt like i was in the story myself! Also, the albatross' wing span could really be inagined and i would really appreciate it if you came to our school again! OH YES! So... please can you reply a.s.a.p? Thank you very much! It is much appreciated! p.s. please could you tell me who has replied when you reply? thanks!! love you lots!! xxxx Sixth Sense: Hi Molly and Katie, this is Anna who plays Mary. Thanks for your wonderful feedback. See you next year hopefully!
Ellie	how ald are you mary? Sixth Sense: Mary is about 12 years old.
Amreeta Bhui	thankyou for coming to brookfield school and telling us about the rime of the ancient mariner. why did tom fancy mary?why did the bird want to help? Sixth Sense: I think Tom fancies Mary because she's strong minded, intelligent and knows what she wants which he finds attractive. The albatross is traditionally seen as a lucky omen- and our albatross likes Mary so wants to help her find her dad. That's why it brings her her dads hat and wedding ring.
Phoebe and Flo Walwayne Court	We watched the show and we enjoyed it, we are from Walwayn court. Phoebewonts to be a actress and we are in pantamines. What are you doing next time? Sixth Sense: We're pleased you enjoyed the show. We're currently thinking about our plans for next year- you'll have to keep visiting the website to see what decisions we make! Great news that Phoebe wants to be an actress...do you know we run Swindon Youth Theatre for 7- 11year olds? Keep on with the pantos though!
Megan Watkins	How did you make the background with all the colours? Sixth Sense: The set was designed by a lady called Tomasin, and built by a set builder. Tomasin coated the set in shades of blue paint to represent the sea, and then vanished it so it so the paint won't come off.
Amber Robert Le Kyng & Summer Viveash Grange Junior School	How did you make deaths mask? you came to my school today ive got a question for you what was the mask made out of in the rime of the ancient mariner thanks for coming to grange junior school Sixth Sense: The mask is made from Plaster of Paris (plaster starts as a dry powder that is mixed with water to form a paste which liberates heat and then hardens). The hair is made from pieces of rope, sprayed gold. Then, the mask was painted white, and Tomasin the designed gave her blood red lips!
Rania Witwit Brookfield School	Thank you ever so much for coming to Brookfield School it was lovely and your great actors Sixth Sense: Thanks Rania. We try our best...!
Maddie Walwayne Court	Hi on 4/3/08 you came to Walwayne Court School and performed 'The Rime of the Ancient Mariner.'It was FAB!!!! I loved it and the props really helped everyone to imagaine it!!!! Hopefully next year you will possibly play at John of Gaunt which were i'll go next year!!! Hope you come to play at Walwayne again before i leave!!!Everytime you come i enjoy it more and more!!! P.S we have been writing letters and reviews about the play about how much we enjoyed the Play!!! Sixth Sense: Thanks Maddie...we're looking forward to receiving your letters. Hopefully you'll see one of our shows at John of Gaunt next year.
Bethany Walwayne Court	The performance of The Rime of the Ancient Mariner came to my school! It was great and I personally really enjoyed it! Well done! It was really enspiring and the choreography was FAB!!! I'm from Walwayne Court Primary (in Trowbridge) (You came to us on Tuesday 4/3/08, remember?) Anyway, I'm in year 6! Sadly this means I'll be leaving so I probably wont see you again, but I'm going to Jhon of Gaunt! -do you perform there at all? It would be great if you did as I love the plays you do! By the way could you tell me (if your allowed) which one of you replys to my comment/question? If so that would be great! (and make sure ou tell me who you played or I wont know!) Thanks!P.S. I forgot to tell you at school we're writing letters and reveiws about the performance and my teacher says shes going to send them off! So look out for mine if you get them! Thanks again! Sixth Sense: We're so glad you enjoyed it Bethany...and can't wait to receive your letters! We'll certainly keep an eye out for yours...our no.1 fan from Waywayne Court! It just might be possible to bring a show to Jhon of Gaunt in 2009 so watch out for us! P.S This is Mark, I play Captain Billy!
Emma & Amelia	Was it a bit horrible kissing in front of all those people? Sixth Sense: No... it was just a peck! And, we've sort of got used to it now!
Rachel Nythe Primary	i am from nythe primary school.did you have to learn how to play the instruments in the play this question is for all of the actors. Sixth Sense: Yes, all of the actors had to learn to play the instruments. Some of them already knew how to play the flute, which is similar to the penny- whistle, so that wasn't much of a challenge!! They all had to learn the concertina and shruti- box from scratch though.
Poppy	How did you know all the words? Sixth Sense: Read the script once, read the script twice, read the script one hundred times and the words get stuck in your head!
George Braham	What were the names of the instruments called in The Rime of the Ancient Mariner? Sixth Sense: Great question George! We used concertinas and shruti- boxes on stage. Concertinas are boxed- shaped instruments with buttons at each end.. The layout of buttons is very logical and fully chromatic, and permits very high speeds to be achieved when playing melody. Shruti boxes provide a rich drone background that supports singing or playing almost any instrument. A shruti box is hand-pumped, so you can produce a slightly pulsating constant chord to support the right rhythm for the style of music you are playing.
Rachel Davis Year 6 Nythe Primary	how long did it take for you to learn all of your lines. please comr to our school again before i leave to go to dorcan technology college do you go to dorcan ppppppppllllllllllllleeeeeeeaaaaaaaasssseeeeee say yes Sixth Sense: It took the actors about a month to learn all of their lines. That's how long they had to rehearse. P.S We often take our shows to Dorcan Technology College, so you won't miss out!
Kerris Drew McGirr Year 4 Goddard Park	hi i am from GODDARD PARK I likeJabberwocky and the rime of the Ancientmariner. I thought they were both cool andfunny.PPPPLLLLLEEEAAASSSEEEEE.........COME TO MY SCHOOL AGIAN.PPPPPLLLLLEEEAAASSSEEEEEEEEEE Sixth Sense: With a plea like thay Kerris, how could we not come to your school again! Thank you for your lovely comments.
Emma	Why does Mark want to replace Marys dad? Sixth Sense: Well Emma, Mark is actually the actor who plays the character of Captain Billy. Captain Billy believes that Mary's dad is dead- that he died away at sea. He is in love with Mary's mum, and now wants to take care of her- and Mary. It is not until Mary realises that her father did indeed die in the land of ice and blistering heat, that she comes to accept that in the same way as her Mum- Mary too has to move on. Mary will never forget her dad though.
Emilie Musoke	How long did it take to learn how to play the instuments? Sixth Sense: Well, all of the actors are musicians too- they can pick up almost any instrument and play a tune! None of them had ever played a concertina or shruti-box before, which are two of the main instruments. It took them about a month (maybe a hour a day) to get used to the instruments and learn to play the music that was written for the show.
Salma Omar Momacre Hill	I am from mowmacre hill primary school. You came to our school at tuesday 26th february 2008 and I would like to ask you a question.How would you have felt if you got kicked out of the play you were doing?I hope this question is answered. I liked your expressions and how you talked because that really gave me a feeling that it was really happening.bie for now!from salma omar Sixth Sense: Good question Salma. I don't think we'd kick somebody out of the play (it's never happened before)- unless there was a really good reason for it!! We'd need to find another actor to take over the role...quick!
Edward	What is your favourite part of the play? Sixth Sense: We have so many favourite parts- but the one bit we all really like is the whale scene, when Mary decides not to shoot the whale and realises what a beautiful creature it is. We also like the reveal of Mary's father as a skeleton (because it's a bit scary) and the funny bits, like when Mary kisses Tom!
Vanish	we luv ur play its soooooo cool plzz can u cum agen it was quite scary though!! Sixth Sense: I'm sure we will be visiting your school again next year. Glad you enjoyed the show. We tried to make it a bit scary to make you feel different emotions.
Maddy Boulton	who was in the marsk the most ?have you ever sean a abtros ?did you like the play you did ?have you ever brok a bone?I WONT BE THER NEXT YARE COME A GANE PLEESSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSS.......... Sixth Sense: I think Mark, who played Captain Billy may have worn the mask the most, but they all had a turn. None of us have ever seen an albatross, but will certainly look out for one when we're near the sea-side now. 3 out of 4 of the actors have broken bones, none of them work related though...! It's a shame you won't be at your school next year, but fear not, we put on shows at theatres and public venues too so you've no excuse!
Momacre Hill	Dear Sixth Sense friends,We like your brilliant play! Some of our favourite parts were, when the sail dropped and we saw the albatross, the scary mask (was this the spirit of the sea?), when Mary persuaded Tom to hide her on the boat, the funny part when Mr Crab was making Tom do all his jobs and he kept saying 'yes sir' and finally we liked the bit when they kissed. The bit with the red light was excellent it made it really spooky. The part when Mary saw her dad was very sad and a little bit scary. Where those bones real?Was the blood on the albatross real? Or was it tomato ketchup?Is an albatross a real type of bird or did the poet make it up?We would like to tell you about our play that we did at christmas. The play was about Home Alone, we sang Rockin around a Christmas tree. There were nasty burglars trying to break into Kevins house. Thank you for coming all the way to Leicester for us. We hope you come again next year. Sixth Sense: Glad you liked the play...and it was a pleasure to come all the way to Leicester to visit you. Unfortunately (or fortunately!) the bones weren't real. It was a plastic skeleton! There wasn't actually any blood on the skeleton, but there were shells and seaweed tangled around the bones...urgg! Yes, an albatross is a real kind of bird. They're beautiful sea birds with huge wingspans that are traditionally seen as lucky Omen's by sea crew. Your Xmas play sounds fabulous, we would have liked to have seen it to get some tips!
Courtney Bray	How did you get people to go under the stage? I did not know we had a big hole in the floor. Sixth Sense: Well, actually Courtney, there isn't a big hole inthe floor of your school hall. The set slopes up at the back which means the actors can crawl into the trap doors and lie underneath! Clever hah!
Year 5 Goddard Park	What is your favourite play that you have performed? Do you enjoy performing? Which is your favourite character? What inspired you to do that set? What got you into acting? Why did you choose that story? Did you enjoy the music/do you have to play an instrument to be part of the acting group? Is it scary acting infront of so many people? Do you have to be able to play and sing to be one of the actors? Do you have to be a certain age to perform?What is it like to be and actor? What happens if you fall out with someone you have to work with? Sixth Sense: Griff's favourite play so far is Jabberwocky. Anna and Mark like The Rime of the Ancient Mariner. Yes, the actors all love performing- it's what they get up for in the morning! Being an actor is hard work- if you aren't passionate about your job you may as well do something else! You need to ahve a very positive outlook to be a successful actor. The set was designed by a lady called Tomasin. Having read the Coleridge poem, the script, and talked to the director about what he wanted, she came up with the set. Why the story- because we wanted to adapt a classic poem for one, and we liked the themes of the narrative that The Rime of the Ancient Mariner offers- like the supernatural, superstitions and karma. When we auditioned actors for the parts, we did specify that they also needed to be musicians, and be able to sing- I think they all enjoy the music as it's quite unusual! The actors sometimes get a bit nervious before they go on stage, but because they have already delivered so many perofrmances of this particular play, and they know their parts so well, they're very confident performers. You don't have to be a certain age to perform.. As long as you are out of school! It's hard work being a theatre actor. Lots of early starts, often 2 shows a day for several months, and the physical work is challenging too- they have to put the set up and take it down every time they put on a show! If 2 of the actors fell out, it would be really hard...they'd just have to try and get on for the sake of the other team members.. After the tour, they never have to speak again if they don't want to...but that would be a shame!
Lewis Wickens Moredon	When you went to visit Moredon Primary School, which is my school, I thought the quality of the production was absolutely breathtaking. A lot of the viewers from my school, teachers, pupils did make a comment that it was outstandingly brilliant, my favourite part was when the evil spirit had made a bet with a young girl called Mary. I have no questions what so ever, but could you all PLEASE!!!! come again with another production that we would all think is better than the old performance,The Rime of the Ancient Mariner. Because hopefully, the whole team of you will gain more experience and,enjoy and achieve all the hard and wonderful work you can all produce together as a team. PLEASE COME AGAIN........PLEASE!!!!! Sixth Sense: We're really glad you enjoyed the show Lewis- and the teachers and other pupils at your school did too. We'd love to visit again with another show next year. We're currently deciding what this might be!!
Zoe Gale Wanborough	hi i am from wanborough primary school and was woundering what sixthsense is doing next year if you will ever come back to wanborough primary school i think crabey is scary but is a wurrieing to me. what are all your names i know one of them i think it is Annebellaand i think i think it is james or something sorry i have to go now byefrom zoe gale p.s wanbouorgh pirmary school love you they fort it was so so funny bye bye from zoe Sixth Sense: Hi Zoe. We hope you found Mr Crab scary in a good way?! I'm sure we will come back to Wanborough Primary School next year - you'll have to re-visit the website in a month or so to find out what we'll be doing next! Click on the 'Meet the Members' tab on the home page to find out all of our names...you're not far off with Annabella, there is an Anna who plays Mary...?

Name

Comment

Jenny

Toothill

thankyou for coming to are school we realy liked im saying what was my favourite part was in the play was when anna and jameson kissed and when ruth was a crab it was fun oh and mark because he was asking ruth to go out with mark so i realy injoy your play you afto come more times to are school so we wont do eny work at morning.from year 5 jenny on toothill primary school .and please reply back?

Sixth Sense: Haha! Your message put a smile on my face Jenny!! I don't know that we'll be able to come to your schools more often- just so you can miss morning lessons, but we'll certainly try and come back this time next year with our new and exciting show 'First the Worst, Second the Best'.

Chelsey and Bethany

We really enjoy your shows you do they really enspire us. We really liked jaberwocky and we love Anna's part yours truly xoxo

Sixth Sense: Great! You'll just have to wait for next years production now, so you can say you've seen 3 of Sixth Senses's shows....then, you're officially a fan!

Darcy

Peatmoor

hithis is a comment not a question, i really enjoyed the show it was good because it made me feel different emotions like sad happy and it was scary! But some bits i did not understand question do you enjoy going to different schools and do you get scared or embarised?

Sixth Sense: Well, live theatre is supposed to make you feel different emotions, so that means you watched it well.

Also, don't worry that you didn't understand every little bit of the play. As long as you enjoyed it- the acting, the scenery, the props, the lighting, you can take from it what you will.

Chloe

Peatmoor

Hi I love your shows.Is it hard to learn all the words?I liked the people you were and really liked Annas part!hopefully we will see you again with anotherof your plays thanks and bye.P.S.say thanks to everyone who did the show!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Sixth Sense: The actors get used to learning lines fast, so they don't find it too difficult. Plus they have a couple of weeks rehearsal time. Another Anna fan...she will get a big head!

Megan

i loved what you did today at peatmoor school it was like it was real.(thankyou)i liked the bit when she found her father dead.

Sixth Sense: It was quite scary when her father was revealed as a skeleton though wasn't it!!

Maddie

how were you so good?

Sixth Sense: Practice, practice, practice!!

Leila Hurst

I thought your play was very good. You have done very well with just 4 characters.How long does it take you to make the costumes.

Sixth Sense: Thanks Leila. We borrowed some of the costumes from another theatre company, and some of them we made. They didn't take too long. The masks and poppets took a couple of weeks though.

Chloe Clements

Mortimer St Marys

What outher plays do you do???????????Do you enjoy acting.????????????I loved the hole show its the best film that i have seen in school,!!!!!!!!!! i loved the boat.!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!Who made the boat????????????????Whos rings where they.????????????Are you comeing back to mortimer s.t marys?????????????????????All of mortimer s.t marys won't you to This is Chloe Suzane Clements here.!!!!!!!

Sixth Sense: Next year Chloe...and you're the first pupil I'm announcing this to, we're touring a primary schools show called 'First the Worst, Second the Best'. It's a comedy about the relationship between children and sport...I bet you have friends who love it, and friends who think it's aweful?! The boat was designed by a lady called Tomasin, and built by a local builder. We bought the rings for the show- but they were'nt real gold!

Charlotte Telling

the show was great i really enjoyed it i hope you come to our school again.I found bites funny and scarry that was proberly the best show i have seen for a long time i do so hope you come again from Charlotte Telling xx

Sixth Sense: We're glad you enjoyed it.

Annet

Tell me one of your jokes Tom?

Sixth Sense: Q: How do you make milk shake? A: Give it a good scare!!

(That was just for you Annet!!)

Julius Fusco

Toothill

How far do you travel to do a play?

Sixth Sense: Well we're based in Swindon Julious, and most of the schools we go to are in Swindon or Wiltshire. However, we also take our shows to schools in Reading, Bath, Bristol, Somerset and Cheltenham.

Hanna Luker

Grange Junior School

How long did it take to write the play?

Sixth Sense: About a year Hannah, there were several drafts before we got to the final version!

Millie

i thought the ancient mariner play was brilliant, and if you didn't i am gob smacked!!it is amazing how the actors acted out the poem with only 4 people!!

Sixth Sense: Thanks Millie. And yes, we only used 4 actors so some of them had to play numerous parts.

Natasha

How did you get everything ready all at the same time?

Sixth Sense: The actors and Stage Manager arrived at your school about 80 minutes before the show began, to put up the set up and get all of the props/lighting/ sound effects ready.

Rachel Lee Mohan

Mortimer St Mary's

I go to Mortimer st. Mary's Junior school, and on the 28th March 2008, the theatre group came along and peformed "The Ancient Mariner." I thought it was great!The ocean's spirit was really scary, and Mary was my favourite character.But I thought it was a shame that the beautiful bird got killed,and that it didn't really have a happy ending, but I still liked it all the same.

Sixth Sense: It is a shame that the albatross gets killed, you're right Rachel. But it is a show about life and death, superstitions and karma...

Luke Telling

Mortimer St Mary's

the hat was freaky stuff man come to our school again. (mortimer st mary's)BRILL!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Sixth Sense: Thanks Luke. See you next year hopefully!

Zoe and Georgia

We loved the bit of the play when you used the death mask over one of your hats to show the spirit of the sea in her ship. Also, how you brought in the rings on the ribbons! It was GREAT! Please reply back...Love Georgia and Zoe!!

Sixth Sense: You were watching carefully. We're glad you liked the spirit of the sea figure...you obviously didn't find it as scary as some of the others did...?

Georgia

Hey!!!Your all wonderful actors! I loved the play!What will be your next play(s)?Is Mary really 12yrs old??if she is well,your an amazing actor and singer!!WOW!!!Can't wait to see your next play!see you soon love......georgiawalwayne!!

Sixth Sense: Hi Georgia, this is Anna who plays Mary. I'm a bit older than Mary in real life actually. She's about 12 years old...I'm in my 20's.

Zoe

I think that your version of The Rime Of The Ancient Mariner was FAB!! I hope that you will go to John of Gaunt to preform next year because i'm going there! Where did you go to learn how to act? How long did did it take to learn the words? Do you have a lot of fun when your practising for the play? I think that you are all BRILLIANT actors and I would really like to see you again sometime! I hope you come back soon! (P.S. please can you tell me who replies because I would really like to know!)

Sixth Sense: Well, we've certainly had a lot of people asking us to visit John of Gaunt next year...so I suppose it would be rude not to! We'll see what we can do! We all went to drama school actually, where we learnt to act, dance and sing. We did have some giggles during rehearsals- and we still do now, but it's also hard work! Griff

Katie

I missed your performance the day you came to my school, but luckily my friends have told me all about it and it sounds so interesting. An amazing treat to me would be to see you perform "The Rime Of The Ancient Mariner" at school once again without missing it. I look forward to seeing you again.

Sixth Sense: Oh, that's a shame Katie. I'm sure you'll be able to see our next show- but at least you've got your friends to tell you about The Rime of the Ancient Marienr!

Natalie

How did you get the big ship up from we watched your show

Sixth Sense: The 4 actors and Stage Manager have to put it up and take it down again! It's a wooden set with 7 or 8 differnt parts that fit together like a jigsaw puzzle- and then there's the mast which is really tall and heavy. They're getting strong!

Jessica- Anne Green- Shaw

Do all of you like your job or do you want to do something else?

Sixth Sense: Yes, we all like our jobs very much. We'd rather be performing that sat at a computer all day earning our keep!

Rachael

Hi, how did you get the sound effects?

Sixth Sense: The music/ sound was pre-recorded- captured on tape.

Robert Clifton

I really liked the play. Does the person who plays Mr Crab really have bad breath?

Sixth Sense: Don't tell anyone, but yes!! We give her mints to suck, and hint that she may prefer to have a salad for lunch rather than a curry...but it's difficult you know! We don't want to upset her!

Kirsty Dawn Harris

Was Sarah the albatross? If she was how did she get changed so quick and where did she get changed?

Sixth Sense: Yes, Ruth who played the character of Sara also played the albatross. She changed behind the mast so nobody could see her- but much of the costume was actually the same. She just added props like the albatross head.

Tom Banyard

How long did it take to make the play?

Sixth Sense: That's a very smart question Tom. The writer wrote the first draft for us about 1 and a half years ago...so techincally about this long.

Zoe

I have your wallpaper as my background! It's really cool!I LOVED your performance of The Rime Of The Ancient Mariner! It was FAB! Thanks for coming to our school to show it to us! It was BRILLIANT (again!)I think the actors were GREAT! How long does it take you to learn your lines?I would love to be an actress to! How many auditions did you have to do to be able to get the part?

Sixth Sense: The actors had about 2 months to learn their lines, as they had them before they came into rehearsals. Each of the ators auditioned once only. It was quite an easy decision actually!

Erin Surridge

To sixthsense I thought Rime of the Ancient Mariner was very good. It got very scary and sad. What was the place called that was cold?

Sixth Sense: I think you're referring to the 'Land of Ice'- where the ship gets stuck in the ice.

Charlotte Thomas

Hi my Name is Charlotte and i have some Questions for you.How long have you been practicing for?how old is the youngest actor? Thank you for the play i really enjoyed it.Love from Charlotte Thaoms.

Sixth Sense: The actors rehearsed for 3.5 weeks Charlotte, but along the way the director gets them to change their lines, and do things differently so the show is always getting better and better!

William

How many different stories have you produced?

Sixth Sense: We've been around since 1986 so lots and lots!!

Maddie

Walwayne Court

Hi on 4/3/08 you came to Walwayne Court School and performed 'The Rime of the Ancient Mariner.'It was FAB!!!! I loved it and the props really helped everyone to imagaine it!!!! Hopefully next year you will possibly play at John of Gaunt which were i'll go next year!!! Hope you come to play at Walwayne again before i leave!!!Everytime you come i enjoy it more and more!!! P.S we have been writing letters and reviews about the play about how much we enjoyed the Play!!!

Sixth Sense: Bring on those letters! We're glad you enjoyed our show!

Molly & Katie

Walwayne Court Yr6

The rime of the ancient mariner have come to my school and it was GREAT! I was stunned by the tension in the room.... I would love it if you could come again and perform a different play. The death mask was very imaginative and i really felt like i was in the story myself! Also, the albatross' wing span could really be inagined and i would really appreciate it if you came to our school again! OH YES! So... please can you reply a.s.a.p? Thank you very much! It is much appreciated! p.s. please could you tell me who has replied when you reply? thanks!! love you lots!! xxxx

Sixth Sense: Hi Molly and Katie, this is Anna who plays Mary. Thanks for your wonderful feedback. See you next year hopefully!

Ellie

how ald are you mary?

Sixth Sense: Mary is about 12 years old.

Amreeta Bhui

thankyou for coming to brookfield school and telling us about the rime of the ancient mariner. why did tom fancy mary?why did the bird want to help?

Sixth Sense: I think Tom fancies Mary because she's strong minded, intelligent and knows what she wants which he finds attractive.

The albatross is traditionally seen as a lucky omen- and our albatross likes Mary so wants to help her find her dad. That's why it brings her her dads hat and wedding ring.

Phoebe and Flo

Walwayne Court

We watched the show and we enjoyed it, we are from Walwayn court. Phoebewonts to be a actress and we are in pantamines. What are you doing next time?

Sixth Sense: We're pleased you enjoyed the show. We're currently thinking about our plans for next year- you'll have to keep visiting the website to see what decisions we make! Great news that Phoebe wants to be an actress...do you know we run Swindon Youth Theatre for 7- 11year olds? Keep on with the pantos though!

Megan Watkins

How did you make the background with all the colours?

Sixth Sense: The set was designed by a lady called Tomasin, and built by a set builder. Tomasin coated the set in shades of blue paint to represent the sea, and then vanished it so it so the paint won't come off.

Amber

Robert Le Kyng

Summer Viveash

Grange Junior School

How did you make deaths mask?

you came to my school today ive got a question for you what was the mask made out of in the rime of the ancient mariner thanks for coming to grange junior school

Sixth Sense: The mask is made from Plaster of Paris (plaster starts as a dry powder that is mixed with water to form a paste which liberates heat and then hardens). The hair is made from pieces of rope, sprayed gold. Then, the mask was painted white, and Tomasin the designed gave her blood red lips!

Rania Witwit

Brookfield School

Thank you ever so much for coming to Brookfield School it was lovely and your great actors

Sixth Sense: Thanks Rania. We try our best...!

Maddie

Walwayne Court

Sixth Sense: Thanks Maddie...we're looking forward to receiving your letters. Hopefully you'll see one of our shows at John of Gaunt next year.

Bethany

Walwayne Court

The performance of The Rime of the Ancient Mariner came to my school! It was great and I personally really enjoyed it! Well done! It was really enspiring and the choreography was FAB!!! I'm from Walwayne Court Primary (in Trowbridge) (You came to us on Tuesday 4/3/08, remember?) Anyway, I'm in year 6! Sadly this means I'll be leaving so I probably wont see you again, but I'm going to Jhon of Gaunt! -do you perform there at all? It would be great if you did as I love the plays you do! By the way could you tell me (if your allowed) which one of you replys to my comment/question? If so that would be great! (and make sure ou tell me who you played or I wont know!) Thanks!P.S. I forgot to tell you at school we're writing letters and reveiws about the performance and my teacher says shes going to send them off! So look out for mine if you get them! Thanks again!

Sixth Sense: We're so glad you enjoyed it Bethany...and can't wait to receive your letters! We'll certainly keep an eye out for yours...our no.1 fan from Waywayne Court! It just might be possible to bring a show to Jhon of Gaunt in 2009 so watch out for us!

P.S This is Mark, I play Captain Billy!

Emma & Amelia

Was it a bit horrible kissing in front of all those people?

Sixth Sense: No... it was just a peck! And, we've sort of got used to it now!

Rachel

Nythe Primary

i am from nythe primary school.did you have to learn how to play the instruments in the play this question is for all of the actors.

Sixth Sense: Yes, all of the actors had to learn to play the instruments. Some of them already knew how to play the flute, which is similar to the penny- whistle, so that wasn't much of a challenge!! They all had to learn the concertina and shruti- box from scratch though.

Poppy

How did you know all the words?

Sixth Sense: Read the script once, read the script twice, read the script one hundred times and the words get stuck in your head!

George Braham

What were the names of the instruments called in The Rime of the Ancient Mariner?

Sixth Sense: Great question George! We used concertinas and shruti- boxes on stage. Concertinas are boxed- shaped instruments with buttons at each end.. The layout of buttons is very logical and fully chromatic, and permits very high speeds to be achieved when playing melody.

Shruti boxes provide a rich drone background that supports singing or playing almost any instrument. A shruti box is hand-pumped, so you can produce a slightly pulsating constant chord to support the right rhythm for the style of music you are playing.

Rachel Davis

Year 6

Nythe Primary

how long did it take for you to learn all of your lines. please comr to our school again before i leave to go to dorcan technology college do you go to dorcan ppppppppllllllllllllleeeeeeeaaaaaaaasssseeeeee say yes

Sixth Sense: It took the actors about a month to learn all of their lines. That's how long they had to rehearse.

P.S We often take our shows to Dorcan Technology College, so you won't miss out!

Kerris Drew McGirr

Year 4 Goddard Park

hi i am from GODDARD PARK I likeJabberwocky and the rime of the Ancientmariner. I thought they were both cool andfunny.PPPPLLLLLEEEAAASSSEEEEE.........COME TO MY SCHOOL AGIAN.PPPPPLLLLLEEEAAASSSEEEEEEEEEE

Sixth Sense: With a plea like thay Kerris, how could we not come to your school again! Thank you for your lovely comments.

Emma

Why does Mark want to replace Marys dad?

Sixth Sense: Well Emma, Mark is actually the actor who plays the character of Captain Billy. Captain Billy believes that Mary's dad is dead- that he died away at sea. He is in love with Mary's mum, and now wants to take care of her- and Mary. It is not until Mary realises that her father did indeed die in the land of ice and blistering heat, that she comes to accept that in the same way as her Mum- Mary too has to move on. Mary will never forget her dad though.

Emilie Musoke

How long did it take to learn how to play the instuments?

Sixth Sense: Well, all of the actors are musicians too- they can pick up almost any instrument and play a tune! None of them had ever played a concertina or shruti-box before, which are two of the main instruments. It took them about a month (maybe a hour a day) to get used to the instruments and learn to play the music that was written for the show.

Salma Omar

Momacre Hill

I am from mowmacre hill primary school. You came to our school at tuesday 26th february 2008 and I would like to ask you a question.How would you have felt if you got kicked out of the play you were doing?I hope this question is answered. I liked your expressions and how you talked because that really gave me a feeling that it was really happening.bie for now!from salma omar

Sixth Sense: Good question Salma. I don't think we'd kick somebody out of the play (it's never happened before)- unless there was a really good reason for it!! We'd need to find another actor to take over the role...quick!

Edward

What is your favourite part of the play?

Sixth Sense: We have so many favourite parts- but the one bit we all really like is the whale scene, when Mary decides not to shoot the whale and realises what a beautiful creature it is. We also like the reveal of Mary's father as a skeleton (because it's a bit scary) and the funny bits, like when Mary kisses Tom!

Vanish

we luv ur play its soooooo cool plzz can u cum agen it was quite scary though!!

Sixth Sense: I'm sure we will be visiting your school again next year. Glad you enjoyed the show. We tried to make it a bit scary to make you feel different emotions.

Maddy Boulton

who was in the marsk the most ?have you ever sean a abtros ?did you like the play you did ?have you ever brok a bone?I WONT BE THER NEXT YARE COME A GANE PLEESSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSS..........

Sixth Sense: I think Mark, who played Captain Billy may have worn the mask the most, but they all had a turn. None of us have ever seen an albatross, but will certainly look out for one when we're near the sea-side now. 3 out of 4 of the actors have broken bones, none of them work related though...! It's a shame you won't be at your school next year, but fear not, we put on shows at theatres and public venues too so you've no excuse!

Momacre Hill

Dear Sixth Sense friends,We like your brilliant play! Some of our favourite parts were, when the sail dropped and we saw the albatross, the scary mask (was this the spirit of the sea?), when Mary persuaded Tom to hide her on the boat, the funny part when Mr Crab was making Tom do all his jobs and he kept saying 'yes sir' and finally we liked the bit when they kissed. The bit with the red light was excellent it made it really spooky. The part when Mary saw her dad was very sad and a little bit scary. Where those bones real?Was the blood on the albatross real? Or was it tomato ketchup?Is an albatross a real type of bird or did the poet make it up?We would like to tell you about our play that we did at christmas. The play was about Home Alone, we sang Rockin around a Christmas tree. There were nasty burglars trying to break into Kevins house. Thank you for coming all the way to Leicester for us. We hope you come again next year.

Sixth Sense: Glad you liked the play...and it was a pleasure to come all the way to Leicester to visit you. Unfortunately (or fortunately!) the bones weren't real. It was a plastic skeleton! There wasn't actually any blood on the skeleton, but there were shells and seaweed tangled around the bones...urgg! Yes, an albatross is a real kind of bird. They're beautiful sea birds with huge wingspans that are traditionally seen as lucky Omen's by sea crew. Your Xmas play sounds fabulous, we would have liked to have seen it to get some tips!

Courtney Bray

How did you get people to go under the stage? I did not know we had a big hole in the floor.

Sixth Sense: Well, actually Courtney, there isn't a big hole inthe floor of your school hall. The set slopes up at the back which means the actors can crawl into the trap doors and lie underneath! Clever hah!

Year 5

Goddard Park

What is your favourite play that you have performed? Do you enjoy performing? Which is your favourite character? What inspired you to do that set? What got you into acting? Why did you choose that story? Did you enjoy the music/do you have to play an instrument to be part of the acting group? Is it scary acting infront of so many people? Do you have to be able to play and sing to be one of the actors? Do you have to be a certain age to perform?What is it like to be and actor? What happens if you fall out with someone you have to work with?

Sixth Sense: Griff's favourite play so far is Jabberwocky. Anna and Mark like The Rime of the Ancient Mariner. Yes, the actors all love performing- it's what they get up for in the morning! Being an actor is hard work- if you aren't passionate about your job you may as well do something else! You need to ahve a very positive outlook to be a successful actor. The set was designed by a lady called Tomasin. Having read the Coleridge poem, the script, and talked to the director about what he wanted, she came up with the set. Why the story- because we wanted to adapt a classic poem for one, and we liked the themes of the narrative that The Rime of the Ancient Mariner offers- like the supernatural, superstitions and karma. When we auditioned actors for the parts, we did specify that they also needed to be musicians, and be able to sing- I think they all enjoy the music as it's quite unusual! The actors sometimes get a bit nervious before they go on stage, but because they have already delivered so many perofrmances of this particular play, and they know their parts so well, they're very confident performers. You don't have to be a certain age to perform.. As long as you are out of school! It's hard work being a theatre actor. Lots of early starts, often 2 shows a day for several months, and the physical work is challenging too- they have to put the set up and take it down every time they put on a show! If 2 of the actors fell out, it would be really hard...they'd just have to try and get on for the sake of the other team members.. After the tour, they never have to speak again if they don't want to...but that would be a shame!

Lewis Wickens

Moredon

When you went to visit Moredon Primary School, which is my school, I thought the quality of the production was absolutely breathtaking. A lot of the viewers from my school, teachers, pupils did make a comment that it was outstandingly brilliant, my favourite part was when the evil spirit had made a bet with a young girl called Mary. I have no questions what so ever, but could you all PLEASE!!!! come again with another production that we would all think is better than the old performance,The Rime of the Ancient Mariner. Because hopefully, the whole team of you will gain more experience and,enjoy and achieve all the hard and wonderful work you can all produce together as a team. PLEASE COME AGAIN........PLEASE!!!!!

Sixth Sense: We're really glad you enjoyed the show Lewis- and the teachers and other pupils at your school did too. We'd love to visit again with another show next year. We're currently deciding what this might be!!

Zoe Gale

Wanborough

hi i am from wanborough primary school and was woundering what sixthsense is doing next year if you will ever come back to wanborough primary school i think crabey is scary but is a wurrieing to me. what are all your names i know one of them i think it is Annebellaand i think i think it is james or something sorry i have to go now byefrom zoe gale p.s wanbouorgh pirmary school love you they fort it was so so funny bye bye from zoe

Sixth Sense: Hi Zoe. We hope you found Mr Crab scary in a good way?! I'm sure we will come back to Wanborough Primary School next year - you'll have to re-visit the website in a month or so to find out what we'll be doing next! Click on the 'Meet the Members' tab on the home page to find out all of our names...you're not far off with Annabella, there is an Anna who plays Mary...?

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