Sophie @ Story City Festival

Story City is 'a festival to share stories in different forms including theatre, film, spoken word' and just about every method of entertaining and informing. The festival has been 'created by a group of local artists who want to promote new and emerging artists'. The festival contains upward of 19 performances in a variety of venues across Leicester city centre.

Tonight I was at Upstairs @ The Western to see a first public read through of Sophie, a story of abuse, loneliness and, appropriately for these troubled times, neglectful authorities. This piece has been created with the support of Off The Fence, The Western's theatre company in residence, who have provided space to work on the play and rehearse over this week.

Sophie is about many things, teen peer pressure, children having to grow up too fast and the dangers they can face at an ever younger age. Sophie is 13 years old, the precocious, street-wise child of a single parent family. Like all teenagers she alternates between being a know-it-all who has done everything and the child she still is. Her short life has forced her to face up to and deal with all sorts of adult issues, murder being one of them.

Sophie is the product of Thread Theatre company, founded by graduates of Loughborough University who strive to 'develop and produce new writing from young playwrights, concentrating on work with asocial conscience.'

It was fascinating to be sat in the audience of a work in progress . The Q&A session afterwards was very informative for both the cast and the audience. I look forward to seeing the finished work in due course.

Thread Theatre can be found on www.facebook.com/threadtheatrecompany
More can found about The Story City Festival on www.storycity.co.uk which runs til Sunday 12 July

First published in Western Gazette
© Paul Towers 10/7/2015