|
|
||||||
|
News
|
||||||
|
News |
Dateline: 9th January, 2005
Big Break for New NE Writers Three budding North East writers are to see their comic creations debut on the big stage next month as part of The Customs House February Drama Festival. Paul Buie, Kevin Gardner and John Barnshaw, all from South Shields, were all winners of the New Comedy Writing Competition, launched by The Customs House and New Writing North last year. Now, for the first time, all three new writers will have their plays professionally produced and performed at The Customs House. The February Drama Festival has been running for four years, featuring new works by established North East Writers. This year, to celebrate The Customs House 10th Anniversary, the South Shields venue decided to do something a bit different and invite amateur writers to submit their work.
The Customs House received scores of entries but managed to whittle them down to just three. The first controversially titled play Jump You B*****d was written by Paul Buie and is a black comedy about a man who has had enough of his life and climbs to the top of the Tyne Bridge to contemplate suicide. He is joined by a policeman who tries to talk him down, and a radio reporter who sees the incident as a career stepping stone. Directed by Jackie Fielding, the play will run from 2nd to 5th February.
The second winner, Kevin Gardner, has written a play called Off Track which focuses on a group of mis-matched, would-be commuters who are trapped in the sandwich bar of a run-down railway station. While waiting for their trains, the group embark on a journey of self-discovery and conspire to change their lives forever. Off Track, directed by Dolores Poretta-Brown, runs from 9th to12th February.
John Barnshaw's Scribblers follows a group of writers who meet once a week in a small room inside a local library. Surrounded by other group activities, including Dog Training Classes, Spritualists and the town's Amateur Dramatic Society, the situation is far from ideal. The fun starts when a large consignment of life-sized stuffed animals is dumped in their meeting room. Scribbler is directed by Chris Elphinstone and runs from 16th to 19th February. Customs House director Ray Spencer said the venue prides itself on bringing new talent to its audiences. "The quality of entries, and in particular the three plays we are staging, demonstrate the wealth of undiscovered talent that exists in our region," he added. "The Customs House works hard to bring our audiences new and exciting entertainment and I'm sure the February Drama Festival will not disappoint. "I sincerely hope that this is just the beginning for these three talented writers." Tickets for the Festival cost £9 or £7 for concessions. To book, phone the Box Office on 0191 4541234. Please note that all three Archive indices are very long and will therefore take some time to download.
|
|||||
|
|
