Great Expectations by Charles Dickens
presented by The Company Of Players
Using only Charles Dickens' extraordinary words and a chameleon ensemble of eight actors, Neil Bartlett's powerful stage version of this much-loved story brings its settings and characters to thrilling theatrical life.
From its opening image of little Pip, alone on the windswept marshes, to the haunted darkness of mad Miss Haversham's cobweb-strewn lair, this new adaptation especially commissioned by Aberystwyth Arts Centre takes its audience on a journey right to the heart of Dickens' great exploration of childhood terrors and hopes - and of adult dreams and regrets.
Awarded the Ted Harden Rose Bowl for Runner-Up
Awarded the Tony Bentley Tankard for Adjudicators Award
The Accrington Pals by Peter Whelan
presented by Barn Theatre Club
During the Great War, the smallest town in Britain, Accrington in Lancashire, raised its own battalion of volunteers to serve in Kitchener's New Army. They were known as "The Accrington Pals" and numbered around 700 men. Nearly all were killed in a single day during the Battle of the Somme.
2014 will be 100 years since the start of this War and this rewarding and humane play dramatizes the true story of the Pals. It focuses as much on the women left behind as the men who go off to fight, through depicting a close knit community on the brink of change. The play is funny, intimate and moving. As well as the men who are facing their greatest challenge as they go off to fight, it shows what happens to the people left behind as it focuses on the friendships, families and intimate relationships of the young men and women about to have their lives changed forever.
Days Of Wine and Roses by Owen McCafferty
presented by White Cobra Productions
The Days of Wine and Roses by Owen McCafferty tells the bittersweet love story of a couple on the loose in London on the cusp of the Swinging 60's. This version is a re-imagining of the hit film starring Jack Lemmon and Lee Remick.
One drink is all it takes to change the lives of Donal and Mona as they relocate from sleepy Belfast to the most happening city on the planet, and the play examines the way each of them deals with a relationship that becomes almost too powerful to bear.
The play was a huge hit when first produced at the Donmar Warehouse in London and now White Cobra founders Kate Billingham and Richard Jordan play the central couple.
The Cherry Orchard by Chekhov, translated by Tom Stoppard
presented by Water Lane Theatre Company
The classic Chekhov play, in a new version by Tom Stoppard in 2009, is a comedy-drama dealing with the social upheaval faced by Russia in the early 1900s.
A once wealthy family, now faced with financial ruin, ignore all advice and fail to appreciate that their beautiful cherry orchard is at stake. The story abounds with unique characters that we can all associate with and addresses relationships - both serious and comedic - between social classes.
Shadowlands by William Nicholson
presented by Hertford Dramatic & Operatic Society
In the 1950's, the reserved middle-aged bachelor C.S. Lewis is an Oxford University academic and author of The Chronicles of Narnia series of children's books. American poet, Joy Gresham and her young son Douglas, visit England and meet Lewis.
After a formal meeting of two very different personalities, their relationship develops into an intense feeling of connection and love. Lewis's quiet life with his brother Warnie and his male dominated world is disrupted by the outspoken and feisty Gresham.
They agree on a marriage of convenience to allow Gresham to remain in England. But as their relationship deepens, Gresham is diagnosed with cancer and Lewis's faith is tested as his wife tries to prepare him for her imminent death.
Awarded the Mercury Challenge Cup for Winner
Awarded the Freston Salver for Audience Award
Blue Remembered Hills by Dennis Potter
presented by Be-Jou Productions
Originally written for TV, the play is set in l943 (wartime) in the Forest of Dean. This play is about childhood in a difficult period of history, seen through the eyes of five boys and two girls, all about seven years old.
This is a charming play about innocence with startling revelations with the children all being played by adults as the author intended.
Awarded the Roy Seamen Hart for Stage Presentation
In extreme circumstances this programme may be subject to change without notice. Refunds on tickets will only be given if there is no performance.
