LOCAL HERO Book by David Greig, Music & Lyrics by Mark Knopfler Based on the Bill Forsyth film
WELCOME
KATHY BOURNE AND DANIEL EVANS PHOTOGRAPH BY SEAMUS RYAN
FESTIVAL 2022
Welcome to this performance. It’s a huge pleasure to bring you this new musical version of Local Hero, with book by David Greig and music and lyrics by legendary Mark Knopfler, based on Bill Forsyth’s iconic film. The Royal Lyceum Theatre, Edinburgh – where the great David Greig is Artistic Director – staged a first production of Local Hero in 2019. We’re delighted to offer an entirely new production for Chichester audiences, complete with several new songs. Mark’s extraordinary versatility is showcased to great effect in the beautiful music he has composed for this score, with influences ranging from rock and jazz to folk and, of course, Celtic music. We hope you’ll enjoy it as much as the company have loved creating it – whether you’re a fan of Bill Forsyth’s beloved film or are coming fresh to this funny and enchanting story.
Talking of the company, we are fortunate to have a superb ensemble. Among them, Tony Award-winner and Broadway star Gabriel Ebert makes his UK stage debut as Mac; Lillie Flynn, Hilton McRae and Jay Villiers are making welcome returns to our stage; while Paul Higgins makes a long overdue Chichester debut. Nurturing new British musicals and bringing them to a wider audience is always a joyful challenge; Local Hero joins others including Tim Firth’s This Is My Family, and Richard Taylor and Rachel Wagstaff’s Flowers for Mrs Harris presented in Chichester over the past few years. It will be followed by another brand new British musical: The Famous Five, our co-production with Theatr Clwyd, with music and lyrics by Theo Jamieson and book by Elinor Cook, which will be the final production of Festival 2022 in the Festival Theatre. We hope to see you again then.
Executive Director Kathy Bourne
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Artistic Director Daniel Evans
F E S T I VA L 2 0 2 2
Music & Lyrics by Theo Jamieson, Book by Elinor Cook Based on books by Enid Blyton The Famous Five go on a daring mission with the future of the planet at stake! An exciting and heart-warming treat celebrating adventure, bravery and friendship, directed by Tamara Harvey. A co-production with Theatr Clwyd
FESTIVAL THEATRE 21 October – 12 November #FamousFive
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WINTER 2022 - 23
‘NOT TO BE MISSED’ SUNDAY EXPRESS
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THE TIMES
DAILY TELEGRAPH
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SUNDAY EXPRESS
THE OBSERVER
FINANCIAL TIMES
GIRL FROM THE NORTH COUNTRY Written and directed by Conor McPherson Music and lyrics by Bob Dylan
The double Olivier and Tony Award-winning West End and Broadway hit; an uplifting and universal story of family and love, boldly reimagining the legendary songs of Bob Dylan as you’ve never heard them before.
FESTIVAL THEATRE 24 – 28 January
#GirlFromTheNorthCountry
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CFYT Celebrates! was a fundraising concert on Sunday 31 July 2022, designed to showcase the very best of the talent it has produced over many years. But this hugely emotional event – which brought the audience to their feet not once but many times throughout the performance – reminded us of the huge debt we all owe to Chichester Festival Youth Theatre and to the simply extraordinary Dale Rooks who has been the modest and self-deprecating life force behind it. Through personal testimonies on stage, amazing performances, and filmed commentary from past members, we saw how thousands of young lives have been transformed by their experiences. We heard how CFYT had given them confidence, self-assurance, friendship, the ability to communicate, and the power
to be their best – while entertaining some 20,000 people every Christmas with their spectacular shows. These festive events which elsewhere might be simply an excuse for friends and family to buy tickets have become both a tradition and an institution here in our city of Chichester. Some of those young people have gone on to achieve spectacularly in the world of arts – while others have embraced their transferable skills to become everything from graphic artists to paramedics and teachers of distinction. But in a closing, unscripted piece of film there was one thing they all wanted to say. ‘Thank you.’ And they said it to one person in particular, Dale Rooks, who I know from personal experience has fought with every fibre of her being for every single person
CELEBRATING
CHICHESTER FESTIVAL YOUTH THEATRE By Gary Shipton Director and Editor in Chief of Sussex World and the Chichester Observer
who has ever trod the Youth Theatre boards. The concert itself featured a host of alumni performers. Let me mention a few of the stand-outs. Bradley Trevethan, Sam O’Hanlon, Megan O’Hanlon, Alice O’Hanlon. There was a sumptuous ‘Somewhere Over The Rainbow’ sung by Polly Maltby and Ella O’Keeffe – who alternated the Dorothy role in The Wizard of Oz in 2019. Anna Foye’s ‘La Vie En Rose’ brought a tear to the eye such was its emotional power and subtlety while Nick Howard Brown exacted every nuance of humour from his pitch perfect and utterly delightful ‘Reviewing the Situation’ from Oliver! – aided by the enormously talented Katy Ellis on violin. No wonder Felix Mosse has gone on to enjoy such incredible success given his spine tingling ‘Empty Chairs’ from Les Misérables.
The hosts [CFT Trustees and CFYT alumni] Gi Liley and Holly Mirams carried the show with personality and panache. But, of course, the one person everyone wanted on stage was Dale herself. She was completely overwhelmed by the standing ovation she received before she had even spoken a word. “I’ve had the great privilege of working with hundreds, no thousands of young people in the Youth Theatre over the past twenty plus years. You are everywhere. You are in London, you are in cities across the UK, you’re overseas. Some of you are married, some of you have children, and those children are back in the Youth Theatre which is really lovely to come full circle. And of course we must pay tribute to those young people who sadly have passed way too prematurely. “You are the most extraordinary group of people. Your energy, enthusiasm and positivity is infectious and I am really, really proud of all of you wherever you are.
“The Youth Theatre has gone on an incredible journey. It started in the 1980s in the theatre tent with story-telling sessions. And here today we have over 750 members and seven satellite locations across the county. “As Daniel [Evans, Artistic Director] said, we want this programme of work to continue way into the future beyond the next 60 years because it does have great impact and the power to change and transform lives. “The encouragement and support comes from the top of the theatre, from Daniel and Kathy [Bourne, Executive Director], the Board of Trustees and it filters right the way through the organisation. We are so lucky and grateful we are celebrated in this way.” She gave a special shout-out to Hannah Hogg, the co-director of the concert and she thanked the anonymous supporters who had offered to double the first £10,000 of donations. It costs more than £350,000 to run CFYT
each year and there is a plea for as much financial support as possible. Daniel Evans led the singing of the final song of the show ‘You’ll Never Walk Alone’ from Carousel, which encapsulated everything the Youth Theatre represents. He said to the audience: “I can’t tell you how inordinately proud we are of our Youth Theatre which make us the envy of many theatres around the country. “There are also two groups of young people that aren’t represented here today – but they are core to us. The first is a group of young carers – some as young as five – who have serious, sometimes onerous responsibilities looking after their siblings or their parents. They are able to come to the theatre in an inclusive, safe environment and have fun and focus on themselves for a change. “The second group is young, unaccompanied asylum seekers – who often come from very challenging war-torn areas
around the globe. They are able to learn some new skills, socialise together and be in a safe place and crucially a place that allows them to be themselves. “We have recently included both Syrian and Ukrainian refugees. Chichester was recently named as the city in the UK that’s taken in more Ukrainian refugees than any other. As a city and a theatre we are openarmed, and we are welcoming people in times of need.” Everyone in Chichester should share in his pride. The Youth Theatre here is simply the best in class. We salute everyone involved, especially the young people themselves who have, through all their hard work, transformed not just their lives – but all of ours as well. This review appeared on sussexworld.co.uk on 1 August 2022 and is reprinted with their kind permission.
To donate to the work of CFYT, visit cft.org.uk/birthdayappeal
Former and current members of Chiches reflect on what CFYT means to them. Lives changed, careers made and a family forged. Daniel Hill, Theatre Maker and Videographer (CFYT 1998-2003)
I’ve definitely taken lots of transferable skills into my profession. Commitment and communication are key in the role I do in the ambulance service. Katie Finch, Paramedic (CFYT 2007-2009)
It was the first time that I saw a creative theatrical process from beginning to end, and what’s brilliant about the Youth Theatre is that it involves its young people in every stage of that. It’s meant that I feel more prepared to do my job as a director. Not only that, the Youth Theatre is a really kind and nurturing environment and I aspire to create that environment in my own rehearsal rooms.
When I was 18, I had quite a difficult experience – my dad passed away and my grandma passed away, and I had a really, really tough time with mental health as a result. And I have never been so grateful to an organisation as I was at that period of time as a family network and support. They put a smile on my face at a time when nothing else really did. I really wouldn’t be where I am today if I didn’t have the support of CFT.
Lucy Betts, Theatre Director (CFYT 1993-2006)
Twyla Doone, Communications Strategist (CFYT 2008-2014)
It’s hard to put into words exactly what impact CFYT has had on my life, because every aspect of what I want to do in my career has come from the passion in theatre that Chichester Festival Youth Theatre gave me. Caleb Barron, Theatre Writer/Director (CFYT 2009-2017)
It inspired me to make sure that I’m doing something that I’m enthusiastic about every day and that I work really hard to do that. Olivia Rose, Theatre Maker & Mental Health Co-Ordinator (CFYT 1997-2005)
ster Festival Youth Theatre
Working in a business, you have to sell your work to a client, and you have to present in front of the whole business, you’re putting on a performance. So those skills I learnt at Youth Theatre have been so transferable. Kassy Bull, Graphic Designer (CFYT 2007-2013)
CURRENT CFYT MEMBERS The thing about CFYT is that you’re celebrated for the things that are different about you and make you unique. Priya Uddin, aged 19
It’s really improved my confidence – it’s helped me with conversation, it’s helped me with doing stuff I wouldn’t normally expect me to do. Dominic Lacey, aged 14
The Youth Theatre introduced me to puppetry. I would not be here without Chichester. They were my training for my whole career. Romina Hytten, pictured with Fred Davis, Actor Puppeteers and winners of a 2022 Laurence Olivier Award as members of the puppetry team on The Life of Pi in the West End (CFYT 2009-16)
It’s about building resilience and growing as a person, not just the acting. I think anybody could benefit from what we do. It could prepare you for anything. Paige Fitzsimmons, aged 17
It’s for everyone and it’s always a good time. No matter what happens in the session, you will leave with a smiling face. MJ (Jacinta) McKenzie, aged 14
FOOD AND DRINK Enjoy delicious food and drink at Chichester Festival Theatre. Whether you’re having a meal before the show, simply relaxing with a coffee or powering up using our free Wi-Fi, we can’t wait to welcome you.
ENJOY A DRINK BEFORE THE SHOW
GREAT COFFEE IN A GREAT LOCATION
The Minerva Bar & Grill has a great range of local gins and spirits, beers and wines.
A great spot for barista coffee, freshly made sandwiches, delicious cakes and a range of drinks. Our Café on the Park offers indoor and outdoor seating overlooking Oaklands Park and family friendly areas in our spacious foyer.
A contemporary British menu is available in our stylish restaurant, The Brasserie.
Open Monday to Friday from 10am and from 9am on Saturday so ParkRunners can stop by for much needed refreshment.
Visit cft.org.uk/eat, call 01243 782219 or email dining@cft.org.uk for opening times, reservations, menus and more.
LOCAL HERO Book by David Greig, Music & Lyrics by Mark Knopfler Based on the Bill Forsyth film
In the mid-1970s Shetland was gripped by oil fever. Several huge flnds in the North Sea were flnally ready for exploitation and it was starting to dawn that the UK was on the verge of becoming a major oil producer. Shetland, like Aberdeen, was soon to become the focus of the UK's fiedgling oil industry, and everyone wanted a slice of the action – as these extracts from archive newspaper articles testify.
SUNRISE OVER SULLOM VOE, SHETLAND ISLANDS
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The Herald, 12 June 2005 Drive north from Lerwick, the Shetlandic capital, for a little under 30 miles and the flare stack illuminating the leaden skies announces the source of Shetland’s oil wealth. Here, sprawling over an entire headland like some benign giant, lies Sullom Voe, a £1,175 million industrial complex of immense pipes, valves and giant holding tanks dug into the natural landscape; one of Europe’s largest oil terminals crammed with all the equipment necessary to handle the crude which keeps the world running. With its flare stack roaring, the complex
DAVID AND
OLIATH appears like an apocalyptic citadel at the ends of a ravaged earth, or some vast futuristic city half buried in the peat – which in a way it is. Sullom Voe boasts its own airfield, weather station, pollution monitoring and port operation, security guards and power station. At the peak of construction, in November 1980, more than 7,200 people were on the Sullom Voe payroll. By the time the terminal was opened by the Queen, in May 1981, some 12 million cubic metres of rock and peat had been removed from the land, an entire hill levelled to construct the complex.