What have you learnt from your audience feedback?

We held a listening party in order to receive feedback and primarily we received very good feedback, averaging out on an overall seven out of ten, based on 26 votes.

The things most liked about the Radio drama, were the use of sound effects and music, the script and the atmosphere created. It appeared within our other comments that our desired effect from our audience was also reciprocated; in a relatable tone the drama was well presented and had a sense of naturalism to it. On the other hand, we also received comments such as the end scene being slightly uncomfortable to listen to; however, I personally perceive this to be a good reaction as the issue of domestic violence is not a pleasant topic to contend with, so this was intended. The use of  language was brought us as an issue, particularly “vindictive whore”,  and whether it should have been cut out or re-written, yet in contrast to contemporary soaps I don’t think we pushed the boundaries enough to require a watershed. Another comment, about the narrative, was that the acting was a bit stiff in places, but unless we were to get in actors this could not be avoided.

In regards to development, one thing predominantly stuck out; somehow during editing we had managed to include a double scene, where Lara calls Susan. This was our major fall back due to it breaking the tension and atmosphere created by the rest of the piece. Also, the levels need adjusting, in order for certain sound effects and sections of dialogue to be clearer.

On the whole we received very constructive criticism and a vast amount of variety when it came to personal opinions; some said it was too dramatic, others not enough drama, more said it was realistic than not and the odd comment was raised about the characters, how they needed to be developed more and how Jonathon appeared too ‘evil’, yet this wasn’t a standalone episode and the character development would have been done in previous episodes.

All issues raised were contended with and seen to in our second round of editing.