International
Making Literature Travel
L.L.C. IN GREECE IN JULY 2024 – the 200th anniversary of Byron’s death.
Val gave a talk to The International Byron Conference at Messolonghi for the 200th Anniversary of Byron’s death there.
Her talk focused on The Live Literature Company’s work staging Byron the Poet
Byron in Love. It was dedicated to dear friend, Anne Fleming, who wrote these two performance pieces on Byron.
The finest rendition of Byron’s work I have ever heard – the love poetry was moving, the political rousing – delightful. The Rt. Hon. Michael Foot – The Byron Society.
L.L.C. IN INDIA DECEMBER 2019 – THE INDIA INTERNATIONAL CENTRE, DELHI.
Val was invited to Delhi to give her talk Tribute to Rabindranath Tagore at The India International Centre.
This was a very special occasion for L.L.C. and for Val, to be in India for the first time where she was honoured to give this talk.
L.L.C. IN UNITED ARAB EMIRATES (UAE) DECEMBER 2019.
Val visited Fatima Al Taei in Abu Dhabi and the British Council representative in Dubai.
Fatima lived with Val in her home while she was training to be an actress in London. Fatima has since played leading roles in T.V. programmes for the Arab world.
L.L.C. IN PORTUGAL AT MONSERRATE PALACE
Above: Val and Professor Antonio Lamas greeting the British Ambassador, Alex Ellis, and the audience, at Monserrate Palace, Sintra.
Val is often invited to speak about her work at a range of different events and venues. She has previously taught Public Speaking at Birkbeck University of London and continues to coach individual students.
If you would like to engage Val to give a talk or for coaching on public speaking, please contact her directly.
STAGING WILLIAM BLAKE: VENICE 2016
In 2016, Val was invited to Venice to present a talk about her stagings of William Blake’s Songs of Innocence and Experience to Circolo Italo-Britannico Venezia. The presentation included live readings by Anna Del Prete of Giuseppe Ungaretti’s Italian translations of Blake’s work. John Tavener’s music, which was inspired by Blake, was played on recorder. The presentation was followed by a dinner.
This was the first event we staged in Italy since our tour of Byron in Love to Verona, it was delightful to be invited to return!
Above: William Blake’s illustration of Beatrice and Dante for The Divine Comedy by Dante Alighieri.
L’AMBASSADE DE L’INDE (THE INDIAN EMBASSY IN PARIS): PARIS 2014
On November 13th 2014, Val presented an evening with Bee Formentelli about Tagore’s work on childhood. Bee Formentelli, a translator of Tagore’s short stories from Bengali to French, presented her thesis Tagore and Childhood. This was followed by a screening of Wadja’s film adaptation of Tagore’s The Post Office.
In their presentations, Bee and Val both highlighted Janusz Korczak’s staging of The Post Office during World War Two. Korczak staged this production with children in the Jewish ghetto in Warsaw. He specifically chose this play so that the children may experience joy (which is at the heart of Tagore’s play) before being sent to the gas chambers. Korczak chose to remain with these children and die with them.
Val spoke on her concept for her own staging of The Post Office, which included detailed research into Korczak’s work. She presented a short filmed extract from her production, which featured nine-year-old Jyoti Goel playing Amal (below picture). The presentation was followed by a discussion and questions with the audience and a concluding reception.
Above: Jyoti Goel and Noah Brooks after a performance of The Post Office.
L.L.C. IN VERONA, ITALY, IN 2003
Val directed actors Gerard Logan & Katey Odey in Byron in Love, for performances in Café Dante, Verona.
