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Christopher Deans

CHRISTOPHER DEANS

  (1967 - )
Nationality:    Scottish
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Christopher Deans was born in Glasgow in 1967 and has been working as a playwright since the mid-1990s. He has worked with 7:84, Complete Productions, Borderline, and his own Theatre company, mct, with plays such as Free-Fall (shortlisted for Soho Theatres Verity Bargate Award 2004), Boiling a Frog (adapted from the novel by Christopher Brookmyre), It is Done, Another Space, Cut to the Chase, Mollys Collar and Tie and Smells and Bells. He was Playwriting Fellow at the Traverse Theatre during 2005 and Associate Playwright at Playwrights Studio Scotland in 2006. He has also written for radio, television, various pantomimes and cabaret revues. His work as a Dramaturg, teacher and script and workshop facilitator is extensive, working with the Citizens Theatre, National Theatre of Scotland, Glasgay!, the Traverses Class Act project, Glasgow University, Coatbridge College and many others. He is a former Chair of the Scottish Society of Playwrights.

Research:    http://www.playwrightsstudio.co.uk/playwrights/chris-deans.aspx

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below is a list of Christopher Deans's plays - click on a Play Title for more information

         Another Space         Boiling A Frog         Cut To the Chase         Free Fall         It Is Done         Lost Boy         Molly's Collar & Tie         Sauna Lads         Smells And Bells         Snow Falls On the Orphans

Another Space

Another Space
Christopher Deans' play another Space is a fast moving multi-character Drama about the lives of young people from a variety of backgrounds. the play focuses on the various communications and identities (real and fabricated) that young people use in daily life and in the virtual environment. the title reflects a number of situations within the play: the freedom and danger of virtual contact; the struggle of an agoraphobic to leave her house; the trans-national communication made possible through the internet; and the cosmic event of a solar eclipse which frames the timeframe of the play. the play tracks the journey of numerous young people searching for new ways of being or expressing themselves. Teenage runaway eve tries to make sense of her broken relationship with her mother by going online as a failing 40 year old mother. Her mysterious friend and co-resident in the homeless hostel, Viv, is leading a double life as a prostitute and attempting to cope with the reality of being pregnant at such a young age. Meanwhile Hannah, the agoraphobic, having been forced to leave the house due to a theft of her computer, begins to discover a real life friendship with Pip. alongside these scene are comic interludes between virtual soul mates Monkey Boy and Monkey Girl who discover their kinship online and slowly inch towards an actual meeting. all the journeys beautifully reflect the awkwardness and exploration that form part of the teenage process of making sense of the world. the play is a challenging and varied piece that creates layered characters for a large number of young performers, tackling personal dilEmmas within a complex and exciting framework."
Lorenzo Mele

Notes:
-

1st Produced:
Borderline Youth theatre    26 Jul 2001

Organisations:
-

1st Published:

Music:
-

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If Publisher (above) is underlined then the play may be purchased by direct click from the Publisher, otherwise (below) are AbeBooks for secondhand, signed & 1st eds and other Booksellers for new copies

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Genre:
Youth audience

Parts:
Male:  -            Female:  -            Other:  14 characters between 13 and 16 years old

Further Reference:
-

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Boiling A Frog

Boiling A Frog
This play is an adaptation of Christopher Brookmyres novel of the same name. the title refers to the anecdote that if a frog is placed in boiling water, it will jump out, but if it is placed in cold water that is slowly heated, it will not perceive the danger and will be cooked to death. the story is often used as a metaphor for the inability of people to react to significant changes that occur gradually. Here it is used to draw attention to the activities and dogma of the Catholic Church. It is a macabre tale of how the church pits itself against politicians, who are against section 28 and pro same sex marriages, to tarnish their reputations and gain the moral high ground. they stop at nothing  blackmail, child pornography and murder to achieve their ends. the plans backfire and elspeth, the more enlightened Catholic is left to question her beliefs.

Notes:
adapted from the novel by Christopher Brookmyre.

1st Produced:
Paisley Arts Centre    38386

Organisations:
7:84 Theatre Company

1st Published:

Music:
-

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If Publisher (above) is underlined then the play may be purchased by direct click from the Publisher, otherwise (below) are AbeBooks for secondhand, signed & 1st eds and other Booksellers for new copies

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Genre:
adaptation

Parts:
Male:  15            Female:  6            Other:  extras

Further Reference:
National Library of Scotland ref: 7:84 Theatre Company Scotland - acc.12911/141-142

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Cut To the Chase

Cut To the Chase
Here's a cheeky modern take on a classic of 18th century theatre that swaps the elegant interiors of Seville for down-market 21st century Benidorm. and the way Beaumarchais' densely packed language is replaced by a rip-roaring West of Scotland twang is pure dead brilliant. Based on the Barber of Seville, Christopher Deans' Cut to the Chase is aimed at youngsters. But I'll defy anyone over 20 not to enjoy the sheer pace and comedy of this show."
- Kenneth Speirs, the Mail on Sunday

Notes:
Original Playwright - Beaumarchais, Adaptation of the Barber of Seville

1st Produced:

Organisations:
Complete Productions

1st Published:

Music:
-

To Buy This Play:
If Publisher (above) is underlined then the play may be purchased by direct click from the Publisher, otherwise (below) are AbeBooks for secondhand, signed & 1st eds and other Booksellers for new copies

Booksellers:

Genre:
adaptation

Parts:
Male:  3            Female:  2            Other:  -

Further Reference:
-

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Free Fall

Free Fall
Set in an unspecified Scottish town . . . Christopher Deans' new work Free Fall explores the effects of the now 25 year old right to buy" policy and how it has [resulted in] . . . pensioners being evicted from their family home as a result of not maintaining mortgage payments on their ex-council house . . . it will always find a forum which inspires and prompts topical discussion and Debate"
- Louisa Mcewan, the Herald

Notes:
explores the effect of the now 25-year-old "right to buy" policy And how it has transcended into family life And Scottish values in the 21st century.

1st Produced:
Paisley Arts Centre / touring    38764

Organisations:
7:84 Theatre Company

1st Published:

Music:
-

To Buy This Play:
If Publisher (above) is underlined then the play may be purchased by direct click from the Publisher, otherwise (below) are AbeBooks for secondhand, signed & 1st eds and other Booksellers for new copies

Booksellers:

Genre:
Play/Drama

Parts:
Male:  3            Female:  2            Other:  -

Further Reference:
National Library of Scotland ref: 7:84 Theatre Company Scotland - acc.12911/155

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It Is Done

Synopsis:
about land reform

Notes:
-

1st Produced:
-    2003

Organisations:
project for 7:84

1st Published:
-   -

Music:
-

To Buy This Play:
If Publisher (above) is underlined then the play may be purchased by direct click from the Publisher, otherwise (below) are AbeBooks for secondhand, signed & 1st eds and other Booksellers for new copies

Booksellers:

Genre:
Play/Drama

Parts:
Male:  -            Female:  -            Other:  -

Further Reference:
National Library of Scotland ref: 7:84 Theatre Company Scotland - acc.12911/223

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Lost Boy

Synopsis:
-

Notes:
-

1st Produced:
-    -

Organisations:
-

1st Published:
-   -

Music:
-

To Buy This Play:
If Publisher (above) is underlined then the play may be purchased by direct click from the Publisher, otherwise (below) are AbeBooks for secondhand, signed & 1st eds and other Booksellers for new copies

Booksellers:

Genre:
-

Parts:
Male:  -            Female:  -            Other:  -

Further Reference:
-

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Molly's Collar & Tie

Synopsis:
-

Notes:
-

1st Produced:
mct & Drill Hall's Introduction Festival    1997

Organisations:
-

1st Published:
-   -

Music:
-

To Buy This Play:
If Publisher (above) is underlined then the play may be purchased by direct click from the Publisher, otherwise (below) are AbeBooks for secondhand, signed & 1st eds and other Booksellers for new copies

Booksellers:

Genre:
Play/Drama

Parts:
Male:  -            Female:  -            Other:  -

Further Reference:
-

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Sauna Lads

Synopsis:
Male psyche and violence in a sauna

Notes:
-

1st Produced:
rehearsed readings at Tron Theatre, Glasgow    2000

Organisations:
-

1st Published:
-   -

Music:
-

To Buy This Play:
If Publisher (above) is underlined then the play may be purchased by direct click from the Publisher, otherwise (below) are AbeBooks for secondhand, signed & 1st eds and other Booksellers for new copies

Booksellers:

Genre:
Play/Drama. - - Gay, full length

Parts:
Male:  -            Female:  -            Other:  -

Further Reference:
-

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Smells And Bells

Smells And Bells
the pope is dead. the race to replace him, led by a corrupt Scottish Cardinal, is on. Christopher Deans' play Smells and Bells . . . is a long, dark, bitter cry of rage against the attitude of the Catholic Church in Scotland to gay sexuality. Its thesis seems to be that the Catholic faith - with its powerful, sensuous imagery of pierced bodies, bleeding hearts, and flesh transfigured into spirit - has a way of penetrating with exceptional power, into the erotic imagination of vulnerable men, and then twisting it into a nightmare of denial, self-hatred and lies . . . It's immensely potent and evocative: but what it evokes is an atmosphere dictated by those who equate gay sex with sleaze and bad endings, now and Forever.
- Joyce McMillan, the Scotsman

Notes:
-

1st Produced:

Organisations:
mct Theatre company

1st Published:

Music:
-

To Buy This Play:
If Publisher (above) is underlined then the play may be purchased by direct click from the Publisher, otherwise (below) are AbeBooks for secondhand, signed & 1st eds and other Booksellers for new copies

Booksellers:

Genre:
Play/Drama. - - Gay, full length

Parts:
Male:  4            Female:  1            Other:  doubling

Further Reference:
-

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Snow Falls On the Orphans

Synopsis:
-

Notes:
-

1st Produced:
reading by the Caird Company    -

Organisations:
5 Corners Season

1st Published:
-   -

Music:
-

To Buy This Play:
If Publisher (above) is underlined then the play may be purchased by direct click from the Publisher, otherwise (below) are AbeBooks for secondhand, signed & 1st eds and other Booksellers for new copies

Booksellers:

Genre:
Play/Drama

Parts:
Male:  -            Female:  -            Other:  -

Further Reference:
-

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