Newport Playgoers Society
will be commemorating the centenary of World War One with a unique performance
of ‘Words from the Great War’ at the Dolman Studio on Remembrance Sunday 9 November.
The event, which has been researched and compiled by Playgoers
veterans John Sheen and Eileen Symonds, will feature many of the society’s
actors and singers of all ages performing some of the stirring poems that were
inspired by the fierce warfare, as well as popular love-songs and military
melodies of the time.
Local flavour will be provided by a selection of humorous tales
found in editions of the South Wales Argus from 1914 to 1918.
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In the
powerful anti-war play ‘For Services Rendered’
Nicola Jones as Eva berates her
father (Peter Bourne)
for being oblivious to the terrible aftermath of the
Great War.
PHOTO: PHIL MANSELL)
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“It is fascinating to compare the quirky events that were happening
on the streets of Newport with the horrendous experiences that the troops were
enduring on the Western Front,” says John Sheen, who is directing the
performance.
“Almost two thousand citizens of Newport sacrificed their lives
during WW1, and we will remember them in an emotional recitation of names
selected from the Roll of Honour held at Newport Library”.
Tickets for ‘Words from the Great War’, which begins at 7.15pm on
Sunday 9 November, are available from 01633 263670.
Playgoers will also be
presenting a trilogy of World War One plays during their current season,
commencing with Somerset Maugham’s classic anti-war drama ‘For Services Rendered’ which is on from 12
- 15 November and the stage version of the evocative TV series 'Blackadder Goes Forth in May.
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In ‘For Services Rendered’, unmarried
sister Eva (Nicola Jones)
is driven to despair caring for her blind brother.
(PHOTO: PHIL MANSELL)
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