Show Notes
Still We Sing by Martina Collender Directed by Anna Nugent
Ghent, 1956, autumn. The play opens to find a small group of actors in rehearsals for Romeo and Juliet. We discover these play-actors are being led Nickolas Locke and they are rehearsing the play in brutal conditions, against all odds.
We discover this group of people have been torn from their homes, their lives, the livelihood, the identity, there dignity has been torn from them. Everything they have ever known has been ripped from them. The reason for this is the colour of the skin, there accents, where they come from, who they are, crimes they are accused of committing, none of the reasons make sense. None of these reasons are good enough. They are deeply distressed and confused by the way they are treated by the soldiers, who have come and are forcing them to live in a segregated area. The area they are living is very small, there is three building with no toilet facilities and is expected to be the home for over 1,000 people. If they were to leave they would shot. If they were to escape there is nowhere to go. There is limited food and is rationed out. Every morning they must attend a meeting led by the Commander, a man who has been chosen by the soldiers to deliver news, at these meetings they are told of news about rations, of new people arriving, of certain people expected to leave. This a source of constant worry as they never know what they will be told or not.
The soldiers who man the area, carry guns, and have fists as strong as steel, they aren’t afraid to use.
They characters in the play range from a few weeks old to 50 years old, each passing moment is ticking clock on their lives, each breath they take is bated with fear, each day is a new treat and still, they insist on rehearsing the play, still, the battle on against all odds.
CAST:
Paul Nugent as NICKOLAS LOCKE
Fiana Toibin as KATHERINE LOCKE and NEWSREADER
Iva Kevra as GRACE LOCK and NEWSREADER
Mark Anthony O’Rielly as SAMUEL LOCKE
Tim Casey as JONATHAN ILIC and GENERAL JODI
Ryan Roy as STEPHEN PETROVIC and TOMMY LOCKE
Emmanuel Okoye as ANDREW PETROVIC
John J. O’Hagan as JACK VENEZIA
Made with the support of the Coimisiún na Meán’s Sound and Vision scheme through the Television License Fee.
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