[{"data":1,"prerenderedAt":11},["ShallowReactive",2],{"blog-post-pretend-bologna":3},{"_type":4,"body":5,"bodyHtml":6,"excerpt":5,"featuredImage":5,"publishedAt":7,"slug":8,"tags":9,"title":10},"blogPost",null,"So no, I've not been at the Bologna Children's Book Fair, but that didn't stop Canadian writer-director \u003Ca href=\"http://jeffnorton.com/\">Jeff Norton\u003C/a> and me today from PRETENDING. (After all, pretending things is our job.) \\r\n\\r\n\u003Cimg src=\"https://images.jabberworks.co.uk/lj/jeff_norton_pretendbologna14_zps9179ea23-ea43483cf2.jpg\">\\r\n\\r\nNow for the most exciting news to come from Bologna... I know the book won't come out for AGES, but I'm still geeking out about it:\\r\n\\r\n\u003Cimg src=\"https://images.jabberworks.co.uk/lj/reeve_bookseller_railhead_zps3e128c8c-43a0d9666e.jpg\">\\r\n(Original source: \u003Ca href=\"http://content.yudu.com/A2sc1y/BSBologna/resources/index.htm?referrerUrl=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.thebookseller.com%2F\">The Bookseller\u003C/a> - \u003Ca href=\"https://twitter.com/thebookseller\">@TheBookseller\u003C/a>) \\r\n\\r\n\u003C!--more Click for more under the cut!-->\\r\nOther cool thing from today, I got to go to my first-ever \u003Cb>Rehearsed Reading\u003C/b> of a play, directed by Francesca Simon's son, \u003Ca href=\"https://twitter.com/TooMuchJosh\">Josh Stamp-Simon\u003C/a>. (I met Josh a few weeks ago in Dubai at the \u003Ca href=\"http://jabberworks.livejournal.com/625071.html\">Emirates lit fest\u003C/a>.) A rehearsed reading is what people put on before they get a theatre to host a run of the play; no sets or costumes, just reading out the script. But it was fantastic. Josh had discovered a nearly unknown turn-of-the-century play and it was incredibly funny. And the acting made it come so alive that the lack of sets seemed irrelevant. I didn't take many photos at the Jermyn Street Theatre (I wasn't sure about Rehearsal Reading etiquette), but here's Josh introducing the piece, in front of actors \u003Ca href=\"http://unitedagents.co.uk/imogen-stubbs\">Imogen Stubbs\u003C/a> and \u003Ca href=\"http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0820653/\">Julia St John\u003C/a>. (You've probably seen Imogen in lots of films, including her role as Lucy Steele in the BBC's \u003Ci>Sense in Sensibility\u003C/i>.)\\r\n\\r\n\u003Cimg src=\"https://images.jabberworks.co.uk/lj/josh_imogen_reading_lores_zps222b0eaa-b39f19229b.jpg\">\\r\n\\r\nAnd here's the whole group. Spot children's book writer \u003Ca href=\"http://www.stevenbutlerbooks.com/\">Steven Butler\u003C/a> in the crowd. (Hint: maroon jumper, specs.) Best wishes for finding a theatre and getting the play on stage, Josh! This play's a cracker, I think he'll have several people vying for it at once.\\r\n\\r\n\u003Cimg src=\"https://images.jabberworks.co.uk/lj/Josh_reading_groupshot_lores_zps086800ce-5f91cd61d2.jpg\">\\r\n\\r\nToday was a day of discovering lots of people's talent I didn't know about! Until lunchtime, I had no idea that \u003Cb>Jeff Norton\u003C/b> is a film director, for example. Here's the zombie video that inspired his upcoming book, \u003Ca href=\"http://jeffnorton.com/memoirs-of-a-neurotic-zombie/\">\u003Ci>Memoirs of a Neurotic Zombie\u003C/i>\u003C/a>. I don't generally like zombie films, but this one is quite sweet. \\r\n\\r\n\u003Clj-embed id=\"2604\"/> \u003Cp>\u003Ca href=\"http://vimeo.com/32102311\">The First Zombie\u003C/a> from \u003Ca href=\"http://vimeo.com/jeffnorton\">Jeff Norton\u003C/a> on \u003Ca href=\"https://vimeo.com\">Vimeo\u003C/a>.\u003C/p>","2014-03-26T21:58:00.000Z","pretend-bologna",[],"pretend bologna",1776628726259]