The first episode of the soap opera went live. To make a bit of a splash we laid on a reception at the school where the first episode was produced, Witton Le Wear Primary. Before an invited audience of parents and all the pupils at the school we watched the trailer and at exactly 3pm we watched the actual episode (click here). At the event we also had Councillor Dennis Morgan and Mrs Morgan, Chair of Durham County Council and his wife.
The first workshop of the New Year took place at St Thomas’ Church Hall, Stanhope where we had bell ringing, brass quintet, set design, acting auditions, green screen enactment and costume. Photographs on this occasion are courtesy of Paul Dobson http://pauldobsonphotography.co.uk – thanks, Paul, the pics are fabulous.
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Drama in the Dale has come bursting into the New Year with great success! Auditions for “The Bonny Moorhen” play where held in St Thomas’ Church Hall on January 8th and local folk of Weardale (Alan Anderson, Ruth Haynes, Pat Davison, Mike and Lia Hamp, Jackie and Patrick Johnson, Ben Jackson, Laura Emerson, Tom Burton, Jonathon Liddle, Hannah Thompson and Jeremy Warr) are all now official members of the cast. I am pleased also to have the part of ‘Keeper Beadle’ in a comedy court scene. Whilst we were attending auditions the room next door was filled with a number of activities such as hand-bell ringing with Steve Robson and ‘Green Screen Animation with Gareth Hudson, making projected film backgrounds for the set.
AND the best news is that ‘The Shed’ in Unthank Park (Stanhope Agricultural Society’s Showground) opens on February 1st to begin its transformation into the Unthank Theatre! Anyone wanting to help Joseph Robson and the set-building team can drop in any time between 10am and 10pm from Wednesday-Sunday from now until the play is finished!
As this interview Julie Ward did with Simon Logan, BBC Newcastle 9.54 fm has dropped of the BBC “Listen Again” the BBC have kindly given us permission to post it here for posterity.
On the 193rd anniversary of the Battle of Stanhope (December 7th) the cast re-enacted the event. This was in the very pub where the battle took place. I was there to shoot video and to attempt to stream he event. I got dragged in to play the pub landlord who was abed poorly that morning.
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Frosterley Primary work by the river with Killhope tools.
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Wearhead Primary recorded their verse and then went to bed after a hard day down the lead mine.
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St John’s Chapel Prepare their episode
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At St Johns Chapel all the children march off to work (for 4 pence a day)
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