Jim Cartwright, whose plays include The Rise and Fall of Little Voice, visited The Dukes in Lancaster to work with the theatre's Young Actors Company. The visit was part of the Connections programme run by the National Theatre which gives theatre companies the chance to stage a brand new play written for actors aged 13-19.
Jim has been commissioned to write one of the works, entitled Mobile Phone Show, for Connections 2013 so he took the chance to pick the brains of the young actors to discover more about how important mobile phones are in their lives.
They, in turn, learned a few tips about playwriting from the man who created Two which was staged at The Dukes last autumn.
Jim was accompanied by Antony Banks, associate director of National Theatre Learning and both were said to have been impressed with the Young Actors input.
The Dukes Young Actors are just one of the groups who meet at DT3, The Dukes youth specific venue in Moor Lane. They are young people from Years 12, 13 and 14 who work together to create ambitious new theatre and new work. Their most recent success was The Unsociables which was presented at The Dukes last week to acclaim.