New Show 21,000 MILES OF RAIL Explores How We Interact on Trains

A new theatre show called 21,000 Miles of Rail is inviting rail users to think about how they interact with others on the daily commute.

In an age where ticket fares are rising and stations are busier than ever, Hannah Butterfield has made a show for the commuters of the country that unpacks the rules of talking on trains and tests the possibilities of chance encounters with strangers.

21,000 Miles of Rail brings live music, heart-warming true train stories and even a little bit of laughter to its audiences.

You can't find your ticket, someone's sat in your seat and the train guard has just announced a 45-minute delay - sound familiar?

Like thousands of others Hannah has been on a lot of these train journeys, but this isn't a show about one person, one story or one, one-way ticket.

It's a season pass taking you on a number of routes, through a variety of stations, following a number of people making their way... somewhere.

Somewhere between a musical, a theatre show and A Brief Encounter, 21,000 Miles of Rail is about telling true stories and confronting the realities of the morning commute with the magic which surrounds travel by rail.

Hannah said: "This show was born out of a slightly unusual experiment: I spent a 'working day' observing people passing through Leeds city railway station. I was witness to all sorts of behaviours, coincidences, challenges and acts of kindness.

"21,000 Miles of Rail is about the possibility of making connections with the people you haven't met yet. It's about communication, or lack of in some cases, and finding hope in the most unexpected places."

Hannah Butterfield is rapidly becoming a celebrated young artist and her work has been championed by Sheffield Theatres and West Yorkshire Playhouse, and shown at international festivals around the world.

This show was developed through her time last year as a BBC Performing Arts Fund Fellow when she spent one year with the critically-acclaimed theatre company Third Angel.

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