Refugee play on show at North East venues
Sep 18 2010 by Tony Henderson, The Journal
A PLAY due to be performed by Palestinian refugee camp youngsters in the North East has also been snapped up by theatres in Edinburgh and Liverpool.
Last year, 10 girls from the Shatila refugee camp on the edge of Beirut made the trip of a lifetime to Tyneside to perform a play by Cullercoats writer Peter Mortimer.
The 12 and 13-year-olds played to packed houses at The Sage Gateshead, Customs House in South Shields, Saville Exchange in North Shields and Bellingham Town Hall, Northumberland.
Next month, Peter will return to the camp to audition youngsters for a new version of the play. It will open in the North East on February 28 at the Sage, with performances also at the Saville Exchange.
Creative Scotland and Unison north west have also awarded grants so that the play can be seen in their areas.
The first airing of the play will be at the Theatre Monot in East Beirut in February.
It means that the play will now be seen in three countries and there will be 25 performances in the youngsters’ 11-day visit to the North East.
A concert to help pay for the visit will be held on September 21 at Newcastle Royal Grammar School, starting at 7.30pm. Tickets are £10, bookable on 0191 212 8930 or 0191 253 1901.
There will be further fundraisers at the Cumberland Arms pub in Byker, Newcastle, on October 21 and at the Crescent social club in Cullercoats on November 26.
