Site-Specific Staging of Dickens Christmas Story THE CHIMES to Shine Light on Homelessness

Today, on Thursday 7th September, a dynamic collaboration between a team of music theatre makers and three of the country's leading homeless charities is being launched.

The Chimes is a new piece of music theatre which has been adapted from the second Christmas story by Charles Dickens. It has been written by David Willis and Conor Linehan and is produced and directed by Judith Roberts, in partnership with Chapter arts centre.

The production will be staged, site-specifically, in the magnificent churches of St. John's Church in Canton, Cardiff and St. John's, Waterloo, London - with ten performances in each city in December 2017.

The Chimes was the story Dickens wanted "to be longest remembered for". It is the story of Trotty, a man who has lost his faith in Humanity and believes that his poverty is the result of his unworthiness. On New Year's Eve, Trotty is visited by spirits whose mission is to restore his faith and show him that nobody is born evil; crime and poverty are created by man.

Dickens's biting satire was intended to effect real political change and this musical adaptation doesn't pull its punches. It is a sharp, witty musical adaptation of Dickens's tale for today's audiences which will invite a group of men and women who are supported by three of the country's homeless charities to become members of an ensemble which joins a professional cast to create this dynamic new piece of music theatre.

The weaving of the non-professional and professional has, in recent years, created works of stunning originality. This week, the creative team start working with The Passage in London and The Wallich and The Huggard in Cardiff to offer weekly workshops for men and women who have been homeless and are striving to rebuild their lives. During the coming months they will grow into two community ensembles - one in Cardiff and one in London. When rehearsals begin in November, the community ensemble will join a professional cast of eight.

Director Judith Roberts comments: "We started by asking "What might Dickens think of Britain in 2017? .... and what might he want to see us do about it?" David, Conor and I are not politicians, we're theatre makers, as are the actors and designers we're working with. Some might argue that we should pour our energy into direct fundraising for the charities we're working with, (and there will be an opportunity to donate to those charities at the performances), but The Chimes does more than that - it invites men and women who know exactly how hard it is to rebuild your life when you've become homeless, to join, and work with us to create a production which has been inspired by Dickensian wit and prompted by 21st century Britain."

The Chimes officially launches on Thursday 7 September at a fundraising evening at St John's Church in Waterloo, London. Following the launch of the project, Chapter will be running a fundraising campaign throughout the autumn.

The Chimes will be on at St. John's Church in Canton in Cardiff 7-16 December (exc. 10 Dec) and at St. John's Church in Waterloo, London 19-30 December (exc. 24, 25, 26 December). For more information about The Chimes, follow the project on Facebook at www.facebook.com/TheChimesDickens.

IF YOU GO:

The Chimes

Presented by Judith Roberts in partnership with Chapter

Adapted from Charles Dickens's The Chimes

Written by David Willis

Directed by Judith Roberts

Composed by Conor Linehan

7th - 16th December (no perf. on 10th), 7.30pm

St. John's Church, Canton, Cardiff

029 2030 4400

www.chapter.org

19th - 30th December (no perf. on 24th, 25th , 26th)

St. John's Church, Waterloo, London

www.ticketsource.co.uk/the-chimes

Running time approx. 2 hours 15 mins inc. interval

The Chimes is supported by Arts Council England and the Arts Council of Wales with contributions from the Simon Gibson Charitable Trust, Oakdale Trust and the Gibbs Charitable Trust.

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