Raw Material
STUDIO — Play Nicely
CLIENT — National Theatre Wales
Raw Material was an innovative theatrical reimagining of Dylan Thomas’ Under Milk Wood by National Theatre Wales which took place in Laugharne over a weekend in May 2014.
I designed and co-produced a explorative online reimagining of the performance which allowed a user to explore ‘The strangest town in Wales’ through an interactive 3D map.
The map was populated with performance footage, images, bespoke animations and behind the scenes interviews. Through the experience users were able to explore the complex and layered relationship the town of Laugharne has with Under Milk Wood and Dylan Thomas.
The site was launched in 2014 as a part of Dylan Thomas’ centenary and was featured on thespace.org.
Layers and Layers and Layers…
Dylan Thomas lived in Laugharne during the 1930s, and after his death in New York, his body was brought back to the town church for burial. The town of Laugharne, along with its quirky and eccentric characters claims to be the inspiration for Llareggub (‘bugger-all’), the village in the drama. Many characters in the drama are based on real residents of the town from the 1930’s. For example the character of Willy Nilly, the postman, is based on the town’s actual postman in that period.
Every year, the town’s amateur dramatic society, The Laugarne Players, stage a performance of Under Milk Wood. The character of Willy Nilly is now played by the town's current postman, who himself is the grandson of the original postman on which the character is based. Throughout the town fiction is folded into reality in a number of curious ways...