The Test

Another from Future Learn. I didn't really complete the last course offered by the OU, but I'm led to believe that another one will come along later this year. It's now October so I'm guessing next month perhaps. The example below is from an exercise that was peer reviewed. I don't know how many reviews it received (only a couple I think), but they were generally favorable. I know that the exercise caused some disquiet among students due to the randomness of the reviewing process - the work had to be uploaded, then by some arcane system it would drop into another students working web area who would then be given the task of either reviewing it, or clearing it prompting a new one to take its place. This could take place an infinite number of times so you had to hope that at least someone liked it enough to actually want to review it - everyone had to review a piece of work to enable them to make progress in the course, but no-one had to review YOUR work. I think the brief for this the beginning of a longer story with emphasis of atmosphere and character 

'It was late and already dark as the solitary, slightly hunched figure of drama group leader Christian Robinson slowly read through the list of regular players. He was deep in thought, scratching his invisible beard, draining the last of his coffee slops and buttoning up his coat against the static cold of the old hall. He did a bit of acting himself, but these days was styling himself more as a director. He imagined himself as a creative influence capable of making other people do great things.

By this time everyone else had gone and he’d stayed behind wondering who to cast as the 'prince of darkness' for the upcoming horror play he'd promised the politics club: those fusty old worthies, who shared the Leddington-on Green village hall two nights a week who although rather dismissive of the drama group's work, had surprisingly requested a dark play especially for them. Christian without hesitation had said yes.

He had to be serious about casting this time though. If this went well, he knew at least two of the expected creak-filled audience were sufficiently influential in matters to do with local entertainments that if it went down well the next stop could easily the playhouse in town. The mayor or least his wife would be in this audience so maybe next stop would be The Leddington Athenaeum, Then maybe onto, who knows?  The world and oysters, he was thinking. So, someone tall, he thought, with the right amount of menace at his disposal. An ability to do creepy, yet urbane. Intelligence combined with the cad. Creepily urbane. Cleverly caddish. Sinister. Commanding.

He ran through the options. Paul was too short and didn't have anything like sinister in his delivery repertoire. His ears stuck out too - making him good for comedy. Richard's voice was too high pitched, his hair, foppish, his eyes too wide and his hands too small. This made him a good 'weak man', a hen-pecked husband, or a failing romantic. Malcolm was too effeminate in his manner - great for girl/boy roles or old fruits but not this. Tony, too rigid - too military, good policeman material and does petty officialdom brilliantly, but not this. Lewis, is too music hall. Maybe he could be a Jonathan Harker character at best, arriving at the glowering doors in the rattling rain and simpering against a backdrop of ropy sounding storms - courtesy of Bill and his ramshackle skip of percussive instruments that wobbled and hissed at his command. But someone needs to be there, he thought, someone standing expectantly in the shadows. Someone to frighten him and the audience. And none of this lot are cut out for this.

He suddenly realized how late it was, too late for this place. As he began hurriedly to gather up his things there was a knock on the door. It so hard it shocked him. So hard it echoed through the shell of the old building and made the startled walls moan and the air rumble. He purposely didn't look up. The candle guttered. The shock sound from the dark, kept his frozen eyes down. All he could see was the broken shadow that had slipped silently and unbidden through the hall window and seemed to hang everywhere. Whoever this was, he thought, he either had his man or was in grave danger.