Primetime: New plays by children showcased at Royal Court Theatre

PRESS RELEASE

Primetime: New plays by children showcased at Royal Court Theatre

New short plays written by children aged eight to 11 will be showcased at the Royal Court Theatre from 28 to 31 May in Primetime, before embarking on a free tour to primary schools across London in June 2014.

The production of nine ten-minute plays will run for six performances in the Jerwood Theatre Upstairs, alongside two free family writing sessions. Primetime will then tour to 15 primary schools across London with a programme of practical workshops, introducing young people to playwriting.

This is the second time the Royal Court has taken a production to schools, having toured Suhayla El-Bushra’s play Pigeons to secondary schools last autumn.

_Pack your bags and hold on tight as you’re whisked away on a whirlwind of crazy adventures. And get ready to meet a host of captivating characters, including a talking sausage roll, a troop of cocktail-loving monkeys and a long-nosed hippo called Gary (of course), who will win you over with their charm whether you’re 8 or 80.
Ahead of the schools tour, catch Primetime at the Royal Court and join us for some family fun in the May half-term. These little writers might just be the next big thing._

The Primetime plays were written by school children aged eight to 11 from Kensington and Chelsea, Westminster, Southwark and Lewisham, as part of the Royal Court’s Young Writers Festival and Peckham Young Playwrights project in 2012. A selection of the plays were then given full productions, performed by a company of professional actors during Kids Court (a week of activities aimed at children and families) in Open Court – a festival of plays, ideas and events in Vicky Featherstone’s first season at the Royal Court Theatre in summer 2013.

The plays to be performed will be:

Bad Guy Rope by Temidayo Abayomi-Joseph
Journey to Food Paradise by Jose-Luis Aquino-Mejia
Flying Boy by Joseph Burke-Gaffney
Mason’s Journey by Naseem Charrat
Baby Sister by Ruby David-Pimlott
Sports Day Life Saver by Anya Davies
Emperor’s New Fudge by Lucas Ferrar
London We Have a Problem by Jack Franco
The Magic Wig by Isabelle Kennedy-Grimes

Vicky Featherstone, Artistic Director of the Royal Court Theatre, said:
“This tour is one of the most important things the Royal Court can do. To encourage young writers, to produce their work professionally, to captivate audiences with these imaginative and fearless plays will endlessly inspire and ensure that the future of theatre is safe in their hands.”

The production will be directed by Ned Bennett who was previously resident trainee director at the Royal Court Theatre. He recently directed Superior Donuts at Southwark Playhouse, Mercury Fur at the Old Red Lion as well as Pigeons for the Royal Court Theatre’s first schools tour.

The production is designed by Fly Davis, with music and sound by Giles Thomas.

The Royal Court’s Bar & Kitchen will offer a family meal deal from12pm – 3pm on performance days. Adults can choose from a selection at the burger bar, plus a ticket to the show for £15, while children under 14 can choose from a Fish Finger Bap, Chicken Burger, Hamburger or Bean Burger, plus entry to the show for £10.

Primetime will be in the Jerwood Theatre Upstairs from 28 to 31 May. Tickets £10, Children under 14, £5. Family writing workshops are free but bookable in advance, available online www.royalcourttheatre.com or 0207 565 5000.

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For further information, images or interviews, please contact Anna Evans on 0207 7565 5063 or email annaevans@royalcourttheatre.com

Notes to Editors:
Creative Team:
Ned Bennett Director
Fly Davis Designer
Giles Thomas Music and Sound Designer

Listings Information:

Primetime
By Temidayo Abayomi-Joseph, Jose-Luis Aquino-Mejia Naseem Charrat, Ruby David-Pimlott, Anya Davies, Lucas Ferrar, Jack Franco, Joseph Burke-Gaffney, Isabelle Kennedy-Grimes
Directed by Ned Bennett
Wed 28 May – Sat 31 May
Jerwood Theatre Upstairs, Royal Court Theatre, Sloane Square SW1W 8AS
Wednesday to Saturday 3.30pm
Friday and Saturday 11am
Tickets: Adults £10, Children (Under 14) £5
Box Office 0207 565 5000
www.royalcourttheatre.com
Meal Deal: Adults £15 (includes a ticket and a meal from the Royal Court Theatre’s Burger Bar) Children (Under 14) £10 (includes a ticket and either a Fish Finger Bap, Chicken Burger, Hamburger or Bean Burger)

For information on how to book a free performance of Primetime at your London primary school, email dionwilson@royalcourttheatre.com

The young playwrights are from the following schools:
Ashburnam Primary School (Kensington and Chelsea)
Burdett Coutts and Townshend Foundation C of E Primary School (Westminster)
Cardinal Vaughan Memorial School (Kensington and Chelsea)
Fairlawn Primary School (Lewisham)
Holy Trinity C of E Primary School (Kensington and Chelsea)
Our Lady of Victories Catholic Primary School (Kensington and Chelsea)
St Francis Catholic Primary School (Southwark)
St Peters Eaton Square C of E School (Westminster)

The Young Writers Festival Development Phase in 2011 was originally funded by John Lyon’s Charity.

The Royal Court Theatre is supported by Coutts

Coutts is a private bank and a wealth manager with three centuries of experience, providing customised solutions for its clients. These include investment, trust and tax services. Headquartered in London, Coutts is the Wealth division of Royal Bank of Scotland Group, connecting with clients from over 40 offices in key financial centres in the UK, Switzerland, the Middle East and Asia. Coutts has a long history of supporting the arts going back 200 years, having　looked after　the financial affairs of many famous clients connected with the arts such as Bram Stoker, Charles Dickens and　Chopin.　 In 1816, Thomas Coutts married Harriot Mellon, a popular actress of her day, and together they became partners of a number of London Theatres, including the Drury Lane and the Royal Opera House.　 Coutts　has even　featured in a number of artistic works including The Gondoliers by Gilbert and Sullivan, and Robert Louis Stevenson’s classic story Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde. In the new millennium, this tradition has continued not only through managing the finances of many of today’s top writers, actors and musicians, but also through our arts sponsorship programme and we are delighted to support The Royal Court and its diverse range of ground-breaking performances. For further information please visit www.coutts.com

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