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We've set ourselves quite a challenge here at Standby Theatre. Site-specific theatre. Oh yes, nothing like throwing ourselves at the theatrical deep end. But we love a challenge, and that's exactly what it will be. Our first production, 'Lovers and Madmen' was a tremendous amount of fun. We played with some of Shakepeare's best loved characters in a new, fun context, and despite cramming it in alongside our full time jobs, we achieved a lot in a few short months.

But we can't rest on our successes. We all agreed that we want to take it that stumble further and create something totally new that compliments the many talented people in the group. If someone wants to play the spoons or sing a Haiku, let them! It's all about letting our creativity blossom and shine.

After exploring an amazing derelictish space, we sadly realised that the floor resembling jelly really wasn't going to be conducive with a safe, lively theatre experience. Thinking hats firmly back in place, Lotty and I explored Holy Trinity Churchyard and the paths leading towards it. We may have looked crackers scribbling down names from Victorian Gravestones and hiding in dens of trees, but we realised that something as simple as an everyday pathway could be used to great dramatic purpose. Throw in an mp3 player, some carefully crafted directions and a few unsuspecting audience members and bam! That's theatre, right? Well, kind of.

The prickle with the term 'site-specific' is that it is often bandied about without any real thought- a 'trendy' term that will entice a younger audience away from twitter for a few hours. But here at Standby we want to create a site-specific piece in the purest sense- a play born from a direct response to a place. The place informs the action, not the other way round.

So, that sounds like fun, but how to we start? To ease ourselves into what is quite a daunting task, we're developing some simple directions. I'm currently asking myself odd questions such as 'What is the abstract emotion for this place?' and 'What visual images develop from the weather of this environment?' in order to create something. Who knows if this piece will be used as anything more than valuable practice but what the process will hopefully demonstrate is that the audience will be taken on a unique journey, using mixed media but keeping it simple, allowing the heart of the place and its inhabitants to tell the story. For a writer, this is the most exciting stage of the process, facing a brand new project that is inscribed with a huge sense of freedom. People respond to environments in a variety of ways, and it's my job to explore one interpretation of that.

Practically, we are also giving ourselves more time to develop this piece, but we hope to see it all coming together beautifully very soon.

Now, back to the pen and paper (I like my traditional methods.) I'm determined to get the name Eustace in there somewhere...