Abstract

By looking into alternative listening practices within the context of Modern Scripted

Audio Drama, both as a medium as well as a contemporary sonic culture, this Audio

paper will attempt to analyse the material qualities of Audio Drama and theorise ways

that these practises may be applied. As well as give insight into how the culture of Audio

Drama can be steered in a more open, accessible, experimental and radical direction.

There is not much of a crossover between sound arts and Audio Drama. By making

these analyses and interpretations, This audio paper will attempt to bridge that gap, and

provide some practical directions and ideas.

Much of the research was done through analysis of relevant sources and interviews with

several figures who work within Audio Drama who each provide a different perspective

on the medium.

The ultimate conclusion is an encouragement to the Audio Drama community, both

listeners and producers, to learn to love and intentionally use “bad” audio and to seek

out productions made by newer creators. The hope being that more marginalised voices

will use audio drama to create politically radical productions and audio drama as a

whole will begin to be made in more experimental ways.

This Audio Paper Included audio from interviews with:

Lee Tomaneli

Marisa Ewing

Amber Devereux

Ella Watts

Quotes read by:

Gregory Carrobis

Avalon Willowbloom

Joe Cruz

Bibliography

Brandon Labelle, Bulut , Z., Chattopadhyay, B., Kanngieser, A., Frahm , O., Vrhovec Sambolec,

T.G., Stjerna, Å. and Raimondo, A. (2016). Dirty Ear Report #1. sound, multiplicity, and radical

listening

Brooks, A. (2015). 'Glitch/Failure: Constructing a Queer Politics of Listening', Leonardo Music

Journal (2015), 25, pp. 37-40. Available at: https://doi.org/10.1162/LMJ_a_00932.

Chion, M. 2019. Audio-Vision: Sound on Screen. New York Chichester, West Sussex: Columbia

University Press.

Heptonstall, G. (1988). NEW DIRECTIONS FOR RADIO DRAMA. RSA Journal, 136,

pp.273–275.

Jackson, D. (2020). Earwitnessing the Queer Acoustics of Public Space: Law, Sex and Nature

in Ultra-red’s Second Nature. Law Text Culture, [online] 24, pp.328–363. Available at:

https://ro.uow.edu.au/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1406&context=ltc.

Ultra-Red. (2011). Five Protocols for Organised Listening. Available at:

http://www.ultrared.org/uploads/2012-Five_Protocols.pdf [Accessed: 6 November 2023].

Ultrared.org. (2024). Ultra-red: Mission Statement. [online] Available at:

http://www.ultrared.org/mission.html [Accessed 24 Jan. 2024].

Watts, E. (2018). Drama Podcasts An overview of the US and UK drama podcast market.

[online] Available at:

http://downloads.bbc.co.uk/radio/commissioning/Drama-Podcast-Research-Dec2018.pdf.

Watts, E. (2018). Audio Drama and the Art of the Invisible Wall. [online] IPM. Available at:

https://www.internationalpodcastmonth.com/blog/the-art-of-the-invisible-wall [Accessed 6 Nov.

2023].

Watts, E. (2020). The Gays Destroy Capitalism in Space: the Radical Imagination of Audio

Fiction. [online] IPM. Available...

CW: Controlling behavior and Violence

For the intended experience, please listen with headphones.

This audio contains an example of gameplay for the game BrutalStar, and an additional section of instruction for running the game as a Star Monarch. Step off of your Star Treader and quest to defeat the wicked Galaxitron, in an adventure that YOU CAN REALLY PARTICIPATE IN!

Written and Performed by Greg Carrobis. Edited and sound designed by Greg Carrobis with Creative Commons 0 sounds from Freesound.org. Music by Jolene Cotnoir.

Greg's podcast, Ghosts on a Train- https://www.faustiannonsense.com/ghosts-on-a-train

Jolene's podcast, PSST: Paranatural Support Services Team- https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/psstcast6

(Submitted by Megan Gwen Davies)

CW: Tories, homophobic language, sexism, brief references to cultural events and tragedies, reference to racism and xenophobia, British politics, reference of suicide, propaganda, brief reference to police brutality, reference to real political figures

M@beth is a radio play written by Megan Gwen Davies during her Masters degree while lamenting about the state of British politics. Taking inspiration from The Thick of It and Accidental Death of an Anarchist, they produced this piece of work that Faustian Nonsense kindly offered to put into the world. It was produced in her tiny flat during lockdown with minimal access to things like actors, so they're very grateful to the friends and family she dragged into it.

Credits:

Knitter One - Liza Holmes

Knitter Two - Cait Gallagher

Knitter Three - Nicole Wainwright

ACTOR ONE (Macbeth, Malcolm, Caplan) - Harri Davies

ACTOR TWO (Lady Macbeth, Banquo, Duncan, Mcduff) - Megan Gwen Davies

Written, directed, edited, and icon by Megan Gwen Davies

transcript here