Ric Neale - Composer Credits

Below is a list of some of the theatrical composition projects I have done, complete with relevant audio and video links. For my writing as a solo performer click here.

Dancing Bear - Jamie Feltcher & Company

Dancing Bear is a musical about faith and sexuality that was performed by The Jamie Fletcher Company at The Palace Theatre (Manchester), The West Yorkshire Playhouse (Leeds), The Contact Theatre (Manchester). I was the musical director, wrote many of the songs and did all the arranging and wrote all of the incidental music. I also acted and danced in the show and lead the seven piece band. As well as dealing with the music to be performed live, I also created a series of recorded pieces and sound effects that were used in the show. The shows work with the LGBTQ+ community lead to my lyrics being published in the Alphabet Anthology book alongside other activists including Peter Tatchell.

Never Worn - Self Produced for Wakefield Literature Festival

Never Worn was a commission from Wakefield Literature Festival in 2017 for myself and spoken word artist Rob Reed. We created an hour long theatre piece that mixed original songs, poetry and instrumental music that was inspired by an Ernest Hemingway short story. The show was performed at The Mechanic's Theatre (Wakefield) as part of the literature festival and we were invited to perform it as part of the Leeds Love The Words Festival. I co-wrote and co-directed the piece as well as performing in it.

Dancing With The Orange Dog - The 154 Collective

Dancing with the Orange Dog was conceived as a project that explores storytelling and how the presentation of it affects its audience. To explore this it successfully endeavoured to tell a single narrative across 3 different events in a single night and to use a variety of different art forms, such as animation, performance and music to present the story. As such, the audience would attend an art installation before watching a theatre show and finally attending a music gig. Each part of the project was created in such a way that it could be enjoyed as a standalone piece, however, when experienced collectively they created a richer and more rounded story. The project was produced by the 154 collective who invited my band The Housekeeping Society to create an album in response to it's themes.

The production was the first commission by Routes North; an initiative set up by ARC, Stockton; The Lowry, Salford and Theatre in the Mill, Bradford and received funding from the Arts Council, England. It was also performed at The Albany in Deptford.

The Big Sleepover - Wakefield Theatre Royal

The Big Sleepover was a commission from Wakefield Council in partnership with Mid-Yorkshire Hospitals NHS Trust. I was asked to write a song and some incidental music for the show written by Jane Thornton and directed by Rhiannon Ellis. The show starred Chris Hannon (of BBC's "Topsy And Tim") and Amy Thompson (of Channel 5's "Milkshake"). The show was for 5-7 year olds and toured schools in West Yorkshire before a one off theatre version at The Mechanic's Theatre (Wakefield).

Here is a video about the piece.

...and here is a video about how I wrote the song (It's pretty nerdy)

Round Window - Chapel FM

Along with The Housekeeping Society I was commissioned to create a record inspired by the new arts centre in Seacroft (East Leeds) by Adrian Sinclair at Chapel FM. Not only did we compose and record an EP in just five days on site; the project involved researching local history and visiting local community groups to record their stories and choral vocal performances that are used on the record. The title track from the EP continues to be used as a jingle on the community radio station Chapel FM.

45 RPM at Thirty Three and a Third - Pete McKee & Ralph Dartford

This was a commission from visual artist Pete McKee. It formed part of his Thud, Crackle, Pop exhibition which was was designed as a Pop-up exhibition. The show was based around a record store. All the paintings were related to the love of vinyl and all the prints were displayed like LP sleeves and displayed in record browsers so you had to find the prints much like you would search for that illusive album. The first event was held in a Paul Smith store in London in 2014. It then went on to visit Manchester, Harrogate and Sheffield later in the year before being featured at Festival No.6. For the piece, myself and fellow Housekeeping Society member Ivan Mack took a poem from spoken word artist Ralph Dartford and created a soundscape to underpin it's themes.

Here is a video where I explain the process of it's creation (admittedly its quite geeky).

100 Buskers - East Leeds FM

100 Buskers was a commission for East Leeds FM in which I had to find a way of getting 100 buskers to play together in a line that spanned the length of Briggate in the centre of Leeds. It was funded by the Trinity Leeds Artist Commission and was a really interesting challenge. The way i broke it all down is explained in the video below.

Beyond Bounds - CoActive

I was commissioned by CoActive arts to create a soundtrack for their show 'Beyond Bounds'. CoActive is an Arts Charity for and by people with learning disabilities. The project involved visiting the rehearsals and recording some of the performers to create the work that was ultimately performed at Wakefield Cathedral. I recorded thier voices and stories and worked with the group to create the soundtrack.

Holmfield Proposal - CoActive

I was invited by CoActive to create an old fashioned, silent movie, piano score for their film "Holmfield Proposal". CoActive is an Arts Charity for and by people with learning disabilities. They had been looking at slapstick and comedy and created the film then I was brought in to create the soundtrack. The project was funded by WDHCS an Creative Minds

Let Bygones Be - BBC Community Fund

With my band the Housekeeping Society I was commissioned to create a soundtrack to the dance film "Let Bygones Be" with CoActive. CoActive is an Arts Charity for and by people with learning disabilities. From April 2011 CoActive arts developed work on the themes of grief, forgiveness and reconciliation, freedom and restraint. In December 2011 and January 2012 they filmed their dancers at Yorkshire Sculpture Park, interacting with the Jaume Plensa exhibition. The film was funded by the BBC Community Fund, The Co-operative, and Wakefield District Health and Community Support.

Here is a video about the making of the record.

Almost There - Joe Simpson

'Almost There' is a project that combines painting and music.  Figurative painter Joe Simpson collaborated with twelve bands and solo artists to create a series of paintings that have an accompanying original soundtrack and I was one of them.  Each painting has a song written specifically for that piece, inspired by the scene and composed to compliment the mood of the image.  The paintings were exhibited with headphones beside them, so that you could simultaneously listen to the music and view the image.  The visual and audio components come together to create one new piece of art. 

The twelve paintings show scenes from one characters journey, as he leaves the city to find redemption on the open road. I composed the song "Dotted Line" for the project.

Heart Of Glass - Eggs Collective

Tasked with creating a show to celebrate the people, the history and the future of St Helens, Eggs Collective worked with the residents of Raglan Court, Parr Mount Court and Reeve Court housing schemes, uncovering a unique town through the eyes of those who know it best. I was the musical director and worked with the performers to create original songs and performed them at the show.

Barry The Pigeon - Fabric Lenny for Wakefield Literature Festival

Visual artist Fabric Lenny and I were commissioned by Wakefield Literature Festival to create a family show. We wrote "Barry The Pigeon" and performed it in Ossett. For the show I had to write original songs that the young audience could join in with and create live soundtracks for Fabric's artwork creation.