The Court Youth Company presents Bite-Sized Plays in TRIO

Young performers are serving audiences bite-sized theatrical treats in Trios. The Court Youth Company bring their unique voices and perspectives to the Gloucester Room of the Isaac Theatre Royal with a collection of short plays devised and performed by the company.

Audiences will be immersed in a satire of 1950s American housewives; get caught in a heist, and will lose themselves in a collection of physical theatre, comedy, drama, and much more.

For the past two months, the 22 members of the company have been working with directors Holly Chappell-Eason and Tom Eason of Two Productions to devise and develop a variety of short plays featuring two or three performers.

Youth Company members Alice Cheersmith, Sam McLean and Miriam Qualls are proud of what has been created. "There's a huge range of different ideas," says Qualls. "At the end of each session we show each other extracts," says McLean. "Seeing everyone's work slowly grow and develop from a small idea is very cool," says Cheersmith.

The Court Youth Company has spent much of the year focussing on performance skills, including a popular season of The Crucible earlier in the year. Trios is the first foray into creating original works from scratch for many company members. Their process included research into genres and styles of performance, sharing work with each other for feedback and careful editing of ideas and content to create the final pieces for performance.

The young performers are excited to bring their voices to the stage. Cheersmith says, "We want audiences to experience a mix of works - there's something in there for everyone to enjoy." Qualls agrees. "it's like a cheeseboard... everyone gets a taste." McLean feels "it's a good way to see a demonstration of what we do - audiences can see different forms of theatre done by a big cast of young people."

Education Manager Rachel Sears is delighted with the range of pieces on offer in Trios. "The diversity of work represents the incredible talent of this young company and demonstrates the varied types of theatrical experiences and styles," says Sears. "This process showcases how the company work together to support individual creative voices and shows that our young people have something awesome to say about our world and how we live in it."

Two Productions have enjoyed their work with The Court Youth Company fostering the voices of tomorrow. "We're really excited that they're all learning through the act of creating and performing," says Eason. "It's not learning how to master something, it's learning how to start a journey towards mastery."

ADDITIONAL INFORMATION

Recommended for ages 12+, contains adult themes and coarse language

Ticket Prices: Adults $20, Students $14

Show Times: 7pm Thursday 7 December

8:30pm Friday 8 December

4pm & 7:30pm Saturday 9 December

Bookings: Phone Ticketek 0800 842 538 or visit www.courttheatre.org.nz