What we have done

2022

Cumberland Crack

Early in the year David came up with the idea of putting on "A Celebration of Cumbria in Comedy, Song and Dance". Thus "Cumberland Crack" was born. 

This is being performed on 24th to 26th November at the John peel Theatre, Wigton by people from North Cumbria. All monologues, sketches, Cumbrian dialect poetry, song and dance have a Cumbrian feel.

Where else could you find Cumbrian dialect poetry, Cumberland clog dancing, Wordsworth desperately trying to be an angry young man, and deadly deeds on Helvellyn all on one night? 

Local primary schools as well as a community choir and a duet will be performing Cumbrian folk songs too.

David says "As well as producing it, I have written two sketches for this show. One sketch is about what may have happened when emperor Hadrian went to the Carlisle planning office to tell them about his new wall. The other explores Wordsworth's desire to be an angry young man, wanting to be remembered for his kitchen sink dramas."

This should be well worth a deek (as the Cumbrian's might say!) you can even get some tickets right here ---> 

https://www.ticketsource.co.uk/wigtontheatre/cumbria-crack/e-gkllxp 

2017

Play with a Poem

In 2016, North Cumbria Scriptwriters (NCS) launched a competition for thirty-minute plays by local writers, inspired by a poem of their choice.

The competition judge was Ian Forrest, then Artistic Director of Theatre by the Lake (TBTL).



The three winning entries were:

• All Quiet on the Family Front by Kevan France.
• Jerusalem by 
• She Can't Not Be Doing Something by Robin Acland.

The plays were performed in the Studio at TBTL on Friday, 7th April, an evening of thought provoking, emotional, and humorous entertainment.  The event was repeated at Penrith Playhouse on 8th April and the John Peel Theatre, Wigton on 20th April.

The result necessitated unprecedented cooperation between NCS and local theatre groups: Keswick Players, Penrith Players, Wigton Theatre Club and Workington Playgoers.

2014

On 17th January 2014, Rick Thomas’ play Death and Glory was performed, script in hand, by members of the cast of the TBTL's Christmas production of Swallows and Amazons.  It was followed by a post reading discussion and questions from the audience.  Death and Glory  tells the story of Arthur Ransome and was very well received.

BBC Radio Cumbria broadcast the following 5-minute plays written by our Members during the Christmas season:

• 20 Million Eggs by Robin Acland.
• Mam by Anne Ginty.
• The Memorial by Kevan France.
• Yellow for the Sunshine by Stephanie Robinson.

2013

Following on from her success in the 24:7 Theatre Festival, Sophia Atcha was approached to write a play in three days for the Manchester Library Theatre Company, New Script Night 2013.  Sophia accepted the challenge and wrote The Calling, which was selected for reading.  It was produced by Danny Stewart, directed by Martha Salmon and the actor was Feroza Shah.

BBC Radio Cumbria broadcast the following 5-minute plays written by our Members during the Christmas season:

• Send me a Postcard by Martin Chambers.
• Interpub Polevaulting Competition by Rachael Howard.
• Increase to 40 by Stephanie Robinson.
• ?Adam by Charlotte Coulthard.
• The Old Place by Robin Acland.

2012

NCS and Penrith Players had worked together successfully on several occasions and we were thrilled to be invited to take part in their Monologue Festival.  The plays, collectively entitled One Voice, were produced at Penrith Players' Theatre at the end of August and the festival was a great success.

Visit Penrith Players at: http://www.penrithplayers.co.uk

The market town of Wigton celebrated the 750th anniversary of the granting of its Market Charter in 2012.  Six of our members worked together on a script covering the major events in Wigton since 1262.  This was our first attempt at team writing, so we had lots to learn.  The project proved worthwhile and we were delighted to have our play, The Throstle's Nest, performed by Wigton Theatre Group at the John Peel Theatre, Wigton, in June.

Visit Wigton Theatre Group at: http://www.wigtontheatre.org

Share our experience at: http://conswords.blogspot.co.uk

BBC Radio Cumbria broadcast five 5-minute plays written by our Members during the Christmas season, including:

• Waiting at the Altar by Anne Ginty.

2010

BBC Radio Cumbria broadcast the following 5-minute radio plays written by our Members during the Christmas season:

• Dream Department Trainee by Martin Chambers.
• Top of the Tree, Bottom of the Garden by Rick Thomas.
• Winter Escape by Rachael Howard.
• Wordsworth Hearing by Connie Jensen.
• Howgill by Jen Mattinson.

2009

To mark our 10th Anniversary, we cooperated with BBC Radio Cumbria to broadcast five, five-minute radio plays.
We also held a public competition and the winner was Robert Armitage from Ambleside, with his piece, Cultivating Cumbria.  We recorded this piece with the help of Radio Cumbria for inclusion on a CD of our work.  Some of the pieces were selected for broadcast on Radio Cumbria during one week of the Christmas season, which became an annual event until 2014. We thank Radio Cumbria for the opportunity, and Rick Thomas for hosting the recordings.

In 2009 the five plays were:

• Crowned Heads by Martin Chambers.
• Eros and the Handbag by Julia Newsome.
• Fifth Dimension by Jenny Yates.
• The Last Pub in England by Rick Thomas.
• Supply Teacher by Carol Donockley.

2008

The Write Angles project, initiated in 2007, was funded by the Arts Council and Allerdale Council.  It was an exercise in developing a script with input from actors and directors.

Write Angles 1:  There was a public competition and the resulting winner and nine members of NCS had their pieces read and discussed in April 2008 in the Studio of TBTL.

Write Angles 2:  In June, four of the pieces, now 15 minutes long, were showcased in the Studio at TBTL:

• Paddling by Rachael Howard.
• The Person Without by Jenny Yates.
• Thanks to my Sister by Robin Acland.
• The Broken Bridge by Julia Newsome.

The directors of Write Angles 1 and 2 were Daniel Bye, Silvertongue Theatre in York and Ian Hinde, a professional member of NCS at the time.

Write Angles 3: In November, a further four pieces were showcased at the Penrith Playhouse:

• Spinning by Rick Thomas.
• Deadly Reflection by Liz Bell.
• The Volcano by Alan Partington.
• Ready for Strauss by Martin Chambers.

Our actors were, once again, local amateurs, many from Penrith Players, and the directors were Ian Hinde and Rick Thomas.  Our thanks to all involved.

We also held a script-writing workshop at the Bowness on Solway Literary Festival, on ways to extend a script.

Martin Chambers’ A Blessed Release was performed by the Black Sheep Theatre Group as part of the Cumbria Drama Festival 2008, on 15 March in Grange over Sands.

2003

Martin Chambers was commissioned by the Nation Trust to write a play about Hardewicke Drummond Rawnsley, one of the founders of the Nation Trust.  Mighty Oak was performed in the open air by the Keswick Theatre Club as part of the celebrations to mark the 100th anniversary of the acquisition by the Trust of Brandlehowe Park.

An Acting Workshop was led by Stefan Escreet in the Studio at Theatre by the Lake, with the aim of helping writers to write for performance.