1666
Plague
Heroine and Healer or Wanton and Witch?
World Premiere
Year of Wonders
Newcastle
Alphabetti Theatre Tuesday 26th - Wednesday 27th
June 2018
Durham
Gala Thursday
28th June 2018
Newcastle Lit & Phil Friday 29th June
2018
Adapted
for Stage by Mike Alfreds and Jane Arnfield
From
the book by Geraldine Brooks
Directed
by Mike Alfreds
Performed
by Jane Arnfield
'I am particularly fond of single-actor performances and Jane
Arnfield exemplifies the best of that.’ Ruth Rendell
“Year of Wonders …has a vivid imaginative truth, and is
beautifully written.”
Hilary Mantel on Year of Wonders
When
an infected bolt of cloth carries plague to an isolated village, a housemaid
named Anna Frith must find the strength to unite a fearful and fragmented
community but there is a very human cost.
Based
on Geraldine Brooks’ award-winning novel, this moving story reflects real life
events that occurred in the village of Eyam during the plague year of
1666. Convinced by their minister to close off their village, the
residents of Eyam quarantined their small community for a year to contain the
infection and prevent the plague from spreading.
Many
died as a result.
Year
of Wonders is an uplifting tale that explores what happens when ordinary people
and extraordinary events collide. In a community faced with death, we find hope
within darkness and redemption within destruction. This powerful tale of one
tiny community in the 17th century who sacrificed themselves for
“the greater good” serves as a timely reminder of how fragmented,
individualised and separated the 21st century has become.
Brooks
a Pulitzer Prize winning writer has gifted the theatrical rights to Jane
Arnfield who is bringing this award-winning novel to the stage with director, long-term collaborator
Mike Alfreds. Their previous collaboration The Tin Ring by Zdenka
Fantlová toured to over 14 countries and played to thousands of audience
members.
The World Premiere of
Year of Wonders will take place at The
Lowry Theatre in Salford on 21st June and then tours the North East with
performances at the Gala theatre in Durham, Alphabetti Theatre and the Lit and
Phil in Newcastle upon Tyne.
Cast & Creatives
Jane Arnfield
Jane Arnfield is
Associate Professor and Subject Head of Theatre & Performance at
Northumbria University. She has worked with three major ensembles: Mike Alfreds
Method & Madness, David Glass Ensemble & Northern Stage Ensemble and
received international acclaim for her performance in The Tin Ring.
Mike Alfreds
Mike
Alfreds founded and ran Shared Experience for thirteen years. He was artistic
director of Cambridge Theatre Company, later renamed Method and Madness, and
has directed for the Royal Shakespeare Company, Shakespeare’s Globe, the Royal
National Theatre, where he was an associate director, and also for several
regional theatres. He has staged over 200 productions and won awards both in
the UK and abroad. His exemplary work on storytelling is detailed in his book
“Then What Happens?” published by Nick Hern
Geraldine Brooks
Australian-born Geraldine
Brooks worked as a reporter for The Sydney Morning Herald and The Wall Street
Journal, where she covered crises in the Middle East, Africa and the Balkans.
She has a Pulitzer Prize in fiction and is regularly on the New York Times bestseller
list.
Tickets:
Newcastle Alphabetti Theatre Tuesday
26th - Wednesday 27th June 2018
https://www.alphabettitheatre.co.uk/whats-on-menu/coming-up/17-whats-on-articles/292-year-of-wonders
Durham Gala Thursday 28th June 2018
Newcastle Lit & Phil Friday 29th
June 2018
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