A core group of around 40 pupils from across the school have been working along side a group of professionals in set, lighting, sound, writing and dance to explore their thoughts and reactions to their community and the idea of regeneration.Ìý The result of this work is The Hitchhiker’s Guide to Pitsea:Ìý The students response to the issue of Regeneration in Basildon and Pitsea and what it might mean to them. At the end of the project, after three amazing performances of the Hitchhikers Guide to Pitsea, some of the students were able to reflect on their time spent inside the Billboard container.Ìý These extracts give a glimpse of their thoughts about this unique experience. "Where do I start with the billboard project? What fun it has been to be part of this experience. To sum up the whole of the project I would have to say that it is a high involvement regeneration project; mobilising young people and their communities to produce a manifesto for urban development. The project was a great experience and I loved every second of it." Catherine Alger "It’s extremely cool when a big red crate appears in your school, but it’s even cooler when you find you have been chosen to go in it! Packed full of specialist media equipment and with a great team of specialist choreographers, designers, writers, cameramen, lighting and sound technicians, it wasn't hard to produce one fantastic production in our tiny town of Pitsea. "Nine weeks worth of team games, filming, acting, singing and dancing came together in the spectacular creation of the "Hitchhikers guide to Pitsea" where the audience were whisked 150 years into the future to be shown how Pitsea could be. "The show began with an extremely boring speech until it was rudely interrupted by a newsflash and creepy air hostess figures. The audience were then kidnapped and taken to passport control, where they were given a "2157 Swag bag" which would help them through their trip to the future. This preceded a "decontamination" spray down, which released the travellers’ imaginations. Everybody was then "hot branded" to ensure that nobody sneaked into the future by mistake. "Advancing towards the time tunnel (under Wickford Road!!!), the audience were told to pull out the mint from their swag bags to "ensure comfort in the new time zone."Ìý After the tunnel, the group found themselves in Pitsea 2157, where kids ruled and graffiti was a thing of the past. Guests of the future were taken to the trees; the only sacred place left in Pitsea and asked to pin their hopes on the benches. Next stop, the market stalls of the future which included a beach, chocolate factory, and antique stall with "old style" i-pods, laptops and other obsolete items. "Spectators were then taken to one of the main attractions of the 2157 universe, the Cosmic Garden; filled with many species of plants and animals, extinct and new. Visitors had to beware of the speakerworm, the giant bumble bee and the massive butterflies. At the "pond of hope" plenty of good citizens threw in their tokens to make a wish for Pitsea before being returned to the present – full of ideas and dreams. "This show was a great experience for everybody involved. A massive thanks go to Greg, Sam, Stef, Denise, Tim and everybody else that helped make it possible." Lydia Oliver "Nine weeks ago I was just an average, normal student, attending my daily sessions at school. Then I got asked to participate in the Billboard project – I didn't know what to think at first or what to expect... "... the first few sessions that we attended we got to know the project organisers and the rest of the team. We talked about Pitsea, the locations we liked most, places that we weren't too keen on and how we could improve the places we didn't like. Week by week the project became more in depth and understandable; how we could develop and create a better enhanced regeneration of Pitsea." Carlie Ferguson "I think we could make the changes happen if everyone worked together." ÌýJazmin Brushmear The Billboard project has now moved on, but the thoughts and ideas that it provoked will remain with the students of Chalvedon School and Sixth Form College in Pitsea for some time to come. | 
