Blue Stockings – Tue 10th – Sat 14th Sept 2019
By Jessica Swale
Directed by Sheila Carr
Set in 1896, this is the story of four young women fighting for their right to a university education in a world that assumes women belong at home. The girls study hard and match their male counterparts grade for grade but little do they anticipate the hurdles in their way. The distractions of love, the cruelty of the class-divide, the stigma of being a ‘blue stocking’, or the strength of the opposition to deny them degrees – all this will mean they may return home unqualified and unmarriageable.
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The Nether – Mon 21st – Sat 26th October 2019
By Jennifer Haley
Directed by Sharon Laws and Rick Thompsett
The Nether offers complete freedom – a new virtual wonderland providing total sensory immersion. Just log in, choose an identity and indulge your every desire. An intricate crime drama and a haunting thriller set in the year 2050, The Nether follows an investigation into the complicated, disturbing morality of identity in the digital world, and explores the consequences of making dreams a reality.
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ANNE OF GREEN GABLES, Wed 8 – Sun 12 & Wed 15 – Sat 18 January 2020
Adapted by Sylvia Ashby from the novel by L M Montgomery
Directed by Ian Brown
A refreshing, contemporary telling of the classic story. Stern Marilla and her warm-hearted brother Matthew hoped to adopt a boy to work on their farm. But the orphanage sends a loquacious little girl by mistake. Anne, redheaded, befreckled and incurably romantic causes chaos at Green Gables and in the village but her warmth and wit delight everyone around her—even eventually the cold Marilla. We follow Anne through her rebellious years, her transformation into a young woman, and her romantic pairing with Gilbert. This play has been charming audiences around the world.
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THE HOTHOUSE Mon 24 – Sat 29 February
By Harold Pinter
Directed by Chris Hearn
This atmospheric and, at times, humorous play is set in an institution whose nature is subject to interpretation. After the murder of one patient and the assault and subsequent pregnancy of another, Roote, the governor, orders Gibbs, his assistant, to find the perpetrators. Is this an opportunity for justice to be done, or to wrap their world in red tape and bureaucracy in an effort to grab power and influence?
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A GRIMM NIGHT FOR HANS CHRISTIAN ANDERSEN Tues 21 – Sat 25 April
By Sue Gordon
Directed by Debs Brooks
A comic retelling of famous fairy tales with a contemporary twist, this short play brings together many favourite characters from the storytellers The Brothers Grimm and Hans Christian Andersen. The world-renowned writers become embroiled in a dispute about the similarities of many of their stories. From The Little Mermaid to Rumpelstiltskin, we meet the characters as they are transported into modern day situations and eventually stage a revolution against the terrible plot lines they have had to suffer. This fast-paced play for young actors, starring up to 40 individuals is sure to be fun for all the family.
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THE LAST OF THE HAUSSMANS Mon 1 – Sat 6 June
By Stephen Beresford
Directed by Julie Cumbo
Judy Haussman is an incorrigible ageing hippy, still anarchic and feisty but now ill and so members of her dysfunctional family, as well as neighbours, come to visit her. The play is set in and around the Haussman family home, a 1930s’ art deco property in a state of virtual dereliction, on the South Devon coast. There are rows, revelations, touches of comedy and touches of pathos in this lively, funny and touching drama.
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BRIGHTON BEACH MEMOIRS Mon 20 – Sat 25 July
By Neil Simon
Directed by John Shepherd
Neil Simon returns to his roots with this affectionate, semi-autobiographical piece about his early years in Brighton Beach, a poor, mainly Jewish-American, neighbourhood in Brooklyn. The ‘not quite 15’ Eugene introduces us to his family household: mother, father, elder brother, aunt and her two teenage daughters, and shares his teenage angst directly with the audience. Filled with Simon’s customary wit and well-drawn characters, the play will leave you with a smile on your face and a warm glow inside!
