Hi Elaine, Hi everybody (Hi, Dr. Nick !)... I just wanted to clarify a few things before tempers rise and all of this gets blown out of proportion. Also, we've got a lot of stuff to talk about at the meeting Monday, and I would rather not spend the first 20 minutes of it engaged in a shouting match. "Almost everyone on the committee has made a comment to me about your mail, but so far no-one has aired their views on the list. Ironic seen as some of the issues in it are definitely down to lack of communication." I'm with you on this one, sister. Many of the problems that Drama is having this year stem from a lack of communication. I find it troubling that, as you've said above, almost everybody has had something to say about Friday's email. What I find especially troubling is that my phone has not rang once all weekend, nor have I received a single email from any committee member save yourself. I would like to think that I am a fairly approachable kinda guy. I'm more than happy to discuss any issues that anyone has with me or the way that I do things (in fact I welcome the opportunity), but if people would rather contact you to talk about me than contact me personally, then that IS a problem. I'm not here to start a fight, I'm not here to cause hassle, I am certainly not here to fuck up relations with anybody on the committee. Yes, there was an element of frustration involved in writing the now infamous email. No, it was not scribbled down in a hurry and fired off without any second thoughts. While not trying to get a rise out of people, we WERE trying to provoke a reaction. Not to get anyone pissed off at us, but rather to make people realise that yes, there are problems with Drama this year. Now, as you know, I'm new and don't know what Drama was like last year or previous years. I have been told from more than one source that this year is a "blip" year, that there is a huge sense of lethargy and apathy around the college when it comes to getting involved in extracurricular activity. We're doing what we can to reverse that particular trend. "If you think you're efforts are going unnoticed I can tell you that they're not." It's not about having whatever effort that Dave and I (or anyone else for that matter) put into the Drama Society noticed. It's not about me and it's not about Dave either. I'm not here to cover myself in glory. I've been accused of being a 'scene whore', in a nice (and complimentary) way mind you. That's just who I am, you should see me at work - everybody else waits tables while I provide light entertainment... Sorry, wandering there a bit. Anyway, what I do, I do for Drama. I'm not looking for a clap on the back or a handshake and a photo opportunity. I just put my efforts into making sure that our membership have fun and get involved. Sometimes it works ("Knights") and unfortunately sometimes it doesn't (Panto cancellation). But at the end of the day, my enthusiasm level does not diminish. Stuff gets fucked up, we pick up the pieces and move on. Stuff goes down a bomb, we do it again. MacBeth: As you know, Conor asked me to step in as the producer. I agreed but would feel much more comfortable if I had a couple of co-producers to back me up. I may be as old as the hills, but I've never done anything like this before. I did have a one hour meeting last Friday with Conor where he voiced some of his concerns and frustrations. I offered a few solutions and we threw around a couple of ideas. I've got two pages of assorted ideas and whatnot that I would like to get together and discuss with you and whoever we come up with for a production team. The sense of urgency comes from Mark's statement that he would decide this week whether he would go ahead with the play or not. I have not spoken to Mark personally, but Conor seemed quite frantic (and for such a laid back bloke, that's a bit of a worrier). I concede to you the point about stuff getting dumped into people's laps. Nothing was dumped into my lap, I willingly took on all the projects that I've participated in so far this year. And I'd take on more if it was possible. I'm at my happiest when I'm running around like a maniac, doing a million things at once - I get a buzz from the activity. We have unearthed plenty of good talent this year, from Aislinn (who's already published several children's books and wrote a play for "fresh" in two days) to Yiannis, while he's a filthy buggering Greek, is still a good director. Shane, who'll be playing Blackadder in the variety show, is a bloody good actor (See Tony Blair in the "Knights"). We need to encourage and nurture this talent - it'll bode well for future Drama.... In regard to the One Act play festival, I was relieved when Ana said she didn't want to put on her play. I didn't have the heart to tell her that it was crap. I loved the original story and still do, but Ana could bring orgasms into a discussion about income tax. We took on the "Knights" at short notice, and willingly too, and I feel that we made a good fist of it. DCU got to have a play in the festival, and a bunch of us had a laugh setting it up. I personally was unable to attend the awards as I had to work (it's a four letter word I know) although I did explain that to Martin French on the Wednesday night and he assured me that he understood. That's what Drama is all about: frantic activity and having a laugh. Because of the time we devoted to the "Knights" and because of a myriad of other issues, the Panto suffered. We bounced back. I feel confident that we'll put on a good show on Tuesday night. Chances are we'll be coming up with new ideas even as the show is going on - improvisation and inspiration all in one ! We're all for the committee. The very definition of committee is that we put our heads together and discuss problems and offer solutions. All voices should be equal. I do sometimes feel that this process is not followed. I would prefer to sit in the meeting room until 8 o clock every Monday if it meant that situations were resolved, rather than rush through the agenda so that we can get out by 7. And yes, mea culpa, I've had to leave meetings early once or twice this year, always to make an appointment that was drama related. I never said I was perfect... If we have an issue on the agenda, I feel we should stay with that issue until we have decided on a course of action and assigned that task to a committee member. If that member is me, great. If it's someone else, I'm willing to help out where needed. We're one big team, let's not forget it. In a slightly related matter, I'll be on the ticket desk Monday but we don't have tickets printed up. Will photocopies with a SPC stamp do ? See ya Monday, Bob. PS: If you've read all the way to the end of this email, I commend you. I've often been accused of having diarrhea of the keyboard... -- Roibeard O Mhurcu # 54144094 DCU Drama, 1st Year Rep. www.dcudrama.ie "In Your Face, Space Coyote !" - Homer Simpson, America's second biggest schmuck -