by Chris Thorpe
Originally commissioned by Wonder Fools as part of Positive Stories for Negative Times. An amateur production by arrangement with the playwright.
Lead Practitioner: Tamika Gore
Assistant Practitioner: Bethan Siddaway
From the moment I met the group at the start of the academic year, working with them has been an inspiring and thought-provoking experience, I could tell they were ready for a challenge. Showing enthusiasm for working with each other, this was especially reflected when we devised our Holiday Mystery Story, at the end of Autumn term. Everyone brought their ideas into the room, were open to exploring each other’s contributions creatively and offered suggestions of where we could go next. Their shared sense of ownership and belonging was something that stood out for me.
In reading Hold Out Your Hand, the themes of connection, belonging, identity, and responsibility instantly made an impact on me. I knew this play would spark meaningful questions throughout our rehearsal process (and it did). From our first rehearsal, the group brought lots of questions and their full selves into the room being both curious and brave. These observations were answered once they’d had the read through where they were able to delve into the script. Being open to exploring the various themes such as identity, connection, disconnection, belonging and what it means to hold out your hand to someone else. Their honesty and creativity have helped to shape the play into what it is. Therefore, we invite you, the audience, to hold out your hand, to feel its power, and to reflect on the moments and connections whether near or distant, embracing the highs and lows, as these are the things that shape who we are.
I couldn’t be prouder of the group for their trust, commitment, playfulness, and for how far they’ve come as a group.
Thank you for joining us and enjoy!
Tamika Gore
by Chris Thorpe
Maryam Henly
Arianna Agbakhamen
Grace Hathaway
Farha Kashya
Tanveer Matharu
Bansi Parmar
Deep Ramdas
Sehaj Rathour
Grace Williams
Theresa Thurnbull, Bethan Siddaway and Octavia Nyombi (cover) for all your support during this process and working with me on my vision, and to Malala Sarwari, who hasn’t been able to perform with us this time but was an important part of the process.
Also thank you to PPL PRS and Jon and Katey Jorgensen for their continued support.