Unspoken Narratives

To those who know me, it's pretty obvious that I have a thing for reality TV (namely Made in Chelsea and The Voice) but I haven't really been watching Brtain's Got Talent this year.

I am now regretting this immensely and intend to rectify this for the rest of the season.

Eloisa James, one of my favourite writers, shared a link to Attraction's Shadow Theatre performance earlier today.  I'm not ashamed to admit that I cried.  Not only was it a beautiful and original performance, with an unspoken narrative that left me breathless and more than a little heartbroken, it did more than a little to alleviate my doubts about such talent...

I am a little soppy - the bf had to put up with me weeping during the opening of the new Star Trek film the other day - but this was more than that.

As a writer, I value words an awful lot, but there's something to be said for the unspoken narrative: take the first fifteen minutes of Up, for example, or most Pixar Short Films.  Even a photograph can plot an untold story without the need for dialogue.  I generally dislike cheesy sayings, but a picture's worth a thousand words kind of sums that all up.  I'm not suggesting that we lampoon people for writing (far from it - we need more decent writers), but I do think there's value in just watching something play out.

So kudos to Attraction and kudos to BGT for showcasing such talent.