Rhyl Takes Centre Stage In National Theatre Wales' First Production Of 2017

National Theatre Wales' first production of 2017 will be inspired by and performed in Rhyl, in north Wales this March/April, in the company's tradition of making theatre productions with and for local communities.

Lifted By Beauty: Adventures In Dreaming will be created by artist Mark Storor, and performed in locations across the town centre. National Theatre Wales have been getting to know Rhyl and many of its residents over several months; from coffee shops to council offices, from book groups to food banks, from the high street to the beach, they have been gathering stories from those who know the town best.

This brand new production will be inspired by some of the people they've met along the way, making Lifted By Beauty: Adventures In Dreaming a vivid portrait of the real Rhyl, a town on the cusp of regeneration.

The team will be working from a shop at 66 High Street, Rhyl between now and the performances, and everyone and anyone curious to know more about the production is welcome to pop in for a chat. Keep your eye on the website for the latest opening times.

National Theatre Wales' Artistic Director, Kully Thiarai, said: "At a time of great uncertainty, when it would be easy to shut ourselves behind closed doors, the act of coming together in a shared experience seems more important than ever. This production will, we hope, serve as an act of collective defiance - a celebration of the human spirit made with the multitude of voices in Rhyl, harnessing our capacity to imagine and dream."

Mark says: "This is an odyssey, an antidote to the darkness and the fear. A hymn to the unremarkable, daily acts of heroism made by people who offer a lifeline to others who may have lost their way. We consider the fragility of resilience, the generosity of the human spirit and the power of hope and possibility."

Mark Storor is an award-winning British artist with an international reputation. Working in the space between live art and theatre, he has been described in the British press as "a genuinely visionary theatre maker", "an alchemist" and "one of the most distinctive voices in British Theatre". His work is devised, often site-specific and always collaborative. His recent work includes Baa Baa Baric: Have You Any Pull? A Quiet Revolution (with Heart Of Glass, in St Helen's), Little Sister (Manchester Royal Exchange), The Simplicity of Truth (FACT), The Barometer of My Heart (Anna Ledgard in association with Artsadmin), Puffball (The Roundhouse, London and tour), The Paper Project (Oval House, London) and A Tender Subject (Artangel).

The Big Democracy Project

Lifted By Beauty: Adventures In Dreaming is the closing event of National Theatre Wales' three-year Big Democracy Project, which has explored how art and creativity can help communities across Wales re-engage with the democratic process.

Launched in July 2014, The BDP was borne of the company's Assembly programme, in which artists and communities combine performance and debate to tackle hot topics.

In its most recent phase, NTW hosted a free day of political performance and debate at the Senedd - 10 years to the month since it was opened - and Pierhead in Cardiff Bay, in March 2016. In the evening, one final Assembly was held inside the Senedd on all the issues raised, but also to ask 'what is the most pressing issue facing Wales?' with a view to producing a show inspired by the answer, in 2017. Perhaps unsurprisingly, 'austerity' was the reply. Lifted By Beauty: Adventures In Dreaming is, in part, a response to this; an artistic exploration of austerity - and what it can mean for towns all over Wales and beyond.

The Big Democracy Project is supported by the Rayne Foundation.

More details about Lifted By Beauty: Adventures In Dreaming will be released in February, when tickets will also go on sale.

http://www.nationaltheatrewales.org/lifted-beauty

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