Live Theatre releases 5 Plays Of Christmas, a virtual theatre boxset
Live Theatre has released 5 Plays of Christmas a virtual theatre boxset featuring five original and alternative festive stories from the coolest writers.
A spirited gift for theatre lovers, 5 Plays of Christmas is the perfect present to share and enjoy from the comfort of home and a great way to celebrate a yuletide like no other.
5 Plays of Christmas is the latest project in Live Theatre’s exciting Live Wired programme.
The five playwrights commissioned to write a festive short with a difference, all recently featured in the successful 10 Minutes To…Call Home season. All five plays were developed, rehearsed, performed and filmed behind closed doors for sharing across digital platforms.
The cracking line-up of premieres includes:
The End Of Term Show written by Olu Alakija, is a calamitous Christmas comedy directed by Live Theatre’s Creative Producer Graeme Thompson and performed by Brian Lonsdale. Memories of a 1980’s festive disaster come flooding back for Maxwell Martins – will he always be known as the boy that killed Christmas in the school nativity?
Written by visceral and engaging storyteller Mandi Chivasa, My Door is a heart-warming tale that sees Agnes, all alone remembering her younger days and sunny Decembers and thinking what her perfect Christmas gift could be. Directed by Maria Crocker and performed by Cleo Sylvestre, a distinguished actress and the first black actress to perform at the National Theatre.
Those Yet To Come by Ellen McNally, is a sharp and witty take on a Christmas classic. After the worst day, Eva misses her bus, leading to an unexpected meeting with some Christmas ghosts. Becky Morris, Creative Associate at Live Theatre directs performers David Raynor, Eilish Stout-Cairns and William Wyn Davies.
Can the Metro journey home heal a family rift or will this Christmas Eve be the end of the line for Joe and Danny in Skeletons In Cullercoats by Newcastle actor and writer Benjamin Storey? Graeme Thompson directs James Gladdon and Jessica Johnson in this comic and tender story.
Winner of a Northern Writers Award and Live Theatre’s Introduction to Playwriting Course alumni Sarah Tarbit, takes us on an unusual but beautifully poetic journey of a broken man in The Whale Washed Up On Christmas Eve. Chris Connel is Frank, more beast than man, reliving shattering memories of heartache. Directed by actor, writer and director Tracy Gillman.
Graeme Thompson, Live Theatre’s Creative Producer and director of Skeletons in Cullercoats and The End of Term Show said: “We are all looking at a different type of Christmas this year but Live Theatre are still able to offer the alternative festive theatre experience we have become known for. 5 Plays of Christmas is a fantastic collection of five very different festive plays. It’s great to be able to work with these writers again this year and continue to present Live Theatre’s new plays digitally. All five are a perfectly packaged Christmas treat and I am very excited to be able to share them, free to access, on-line.”
Supported by the John Ellerman Foundation, 5 Plays of Christmas is just one of the ways that Live Theatre is continuing to nurture emerging writers and invest in new talent.
5 Plays of Christmas, a sprinkling of Christmas magic, is free to view online now. Grab some mince pies and tasty snacks and enjoy this festive feast. Find out more: https://www.live.org.uk/5-plays-christmas
