Student Theatre Critics (STC)

Babergh District Council is working with the New Wolsey Theatre in Ipswich and Hadleigh High School to give three students an opportunity to both review and promote theatre performances within their school.

Following on from the first pilot partnership with the Theatre, it was agreed the project would focus on one school each year and Hadleigh High School has been chosen for 2005/06.  The new project requires the selected students to be studying arts and drama and have an interest in journalism. They also need to be committed and enthusiastic both in the reviewing and promotion of theatre productions.

Kirsty Farthing, Naomi Webb and Hadley French-Gerrard are the lucky students who will be the reviewers this year. They are all in Year 10 and aged between 14 and 15. Their first review will be of the rock and roll pantomime Sleeping Beauty and will take place on Friday 2^nd December. The production runs from 1^st December until 21^st January at the New Wolsey Theatre.

Susie Tyrrell, Babergh District Council’s Arts and Community Development Officer and Jill Barton, Corporate Support Officer, are promoting the scheme at Babergh.  Susie commented: “This is a superb project which focuses on young people developing their creative skills and potential and gives them inside knowledge of the theatre world which may inspire them in finding their future career.  Both the New Wolsey Theatre and Babergh District Council are keen to get young people into the theatre and our budding promoters and critics are just the people to do it!”                                                           

Andrew Burton, Head of Marketing at the New Wolsey Theatre added:  “We are very pleased to be working so closely with Babergh District Council on this scheme.

It provides an unusual opportunity for three committed students to develop their critical/analytical writing skills whilst simultaneously helping the theatre gets its message across to young people at Hadleigh High School and beyond.”

For further information about the show, visit

http://www.wolseytheatre.co.uk/ or call the Box Office on 01473 295900.