Contrasts: 3 plays on Love, Life and Death
Written by local author Ken Purdham
May 2012
Thu 10 • Fri 11 • Sat 12 at 8pm
Sun 13 at 2.30pm
Fri 18 at 8pm
Sat 19 at 2.30pm and 8pm
Tickets: At the door and online Adult $22, conc $20, groups of 6 or more $18 per ticket.
David Greenaway here.
I would just like to remind you of the ticket deals that we have for Contrasts which is opening this week.
Opening night - Thursday May 10th 8pm
Proceeds go towards a new firetruck at Macclesfield CFA.
Put in code CFA when booking on-line and your ticket will go to this cause.
Mother's day - Sunday May 13th 2.30pm
Take mum to the show and buy her a half price ticket .... make sure you buy hers separately after yours and enter MUM in the code. One mother only!! We will have a flower for mum that afternoon and serve devonshire tea after the show.
THIS OFFER IS PRE-BOOKED ONLY ... OFFER EXTENDED UNTIL MAY 13TH!!
GEMCO Members Special
Thursday 10th 8pm, Friday 11th 8pm, Saturday 12th 8pm, Sunday 13th 2.30pm
the 2 for 1 members deal, enter the code MEM. One per individual member. 2 per family member.
Early Bird Special
The problem with the special Early Bird offer has been solved ... this is now valid till Tuesday 8th. Enter code FAN
The Cast can claim their special until the 16th May.
We strongly advise you to book your tickets online as our theate is of boutique size, seating an exclusive 85, and we don't want you to be turned away at the door.
BOOK ONLINE NOW Enquiries: 0411 723 530
Ken talks to David Greenaway about Contrasts.
Three fantastic plays in one evening (and two intervals!)
- A Rose of No-man's Land
- A soldier and a nurse lay in a trench half a world away while back in Australia their parents read their letters and contemplate their return. The story parallels the tragedy of those at war and those who await their return.
- Starring:
- Camilla Sullivan
- John Sheills
- Paul Holmes
- Tracey Elliott
- The Real Robbie Williams
- Robbie is a street cleaner who has found his place in life in the environment of the alley he cleans and in the people who inhabit it. His simple outlook on life endears him to all and he has become so much an icon that the business residents of the alley have pressured the council to rename the alley after him. But something happens to move Robbie from being the safest inhabitant of the underworld to be the most vulnerable. While Robbie has a simple innocence about him he also has a streetwise astuteness that few appreciate.
- Starring:
- Holly DeMaria
- Sally Cruickshank
- Alysia Silvagni
- Mat Greenaway
- Bookends
- Henry Tudor rings up the other woman to tell her that the coast is clear and that his wife Catherine is no longer a problem. But she has other ideas as she appears by his side complete with an axe buried in her head. Although Henry can’t see her he very soon feels the effect of her presence.
- Starring:
- Lisa Pond
- Carol McCoy
- John Piggott
- Elliot Murphy
- Brenna Dixon
Article written after an interview with Ken Purdham at the Gem on 7th April 2012
Love, life and death. These are the themes running through the next season of Ken Purdham plays at the GEM. The playwright has created a trilogy that takes the audience into the desolation of World War 1, the brilliance of the ‘not-quite-normal’ and an uproarious twist of the history of Henry the Eighth.
Ken, originally from the north of England, is a well-established playwright and historian. In gathering material for his WW1 play, he travelled to France to see the battlefields and discover the graves of members of the Electrical Trades Union of which he is official historian. The play which arose from his research is called “The Rose of No-man’s Land”. Letters that are read in the play are based on real letters from the front.
Second on the bill is “The Real Robbie Williams”, is touching and thoughtful exploration of the world of one who appears limited and isolated but shows us how limited we ‘normals’ are in depth and comprehension.
The third play, “Bookends” takes us to a time when Catherine, as a poltergeist, comes back to give Henry a bit of well-deserved mayhem, she, of course, observes the rules – no speech, no being seen – just move things about. But how she moves the comedy on!
When Ken began playwriting in the early 90’s, “Bookends” was performed in the first One-act Play Festival by Gemco Players. Since that time, Ken has offered each play he writes to Gemco for performance and they have been highly successful.
Ken has worked with young people and was prime mover of Little Gems, the Gemco 10 minute play Festival which encourages by providing, not only a performance, but publication of the top 10 of the 50 or 60 plays regularly submitted. For a budding playwright, there can be no experience more valuable than the chance to see your play on stage and then to see it in book form accompanying its peers.
Ken has a stringent work ethic. Every morning he takes coffee at the bakery and writes for one or two hours. He then goes off to his job and later writes again for one or two hours before returning home. Once home, of course, he writes …
Ken has a profound belief that plays will live longer than other literature because they take on a new life every performance and with every Director and group of actors. Historical, authenticated plays such as The Rose Of No-man’s Land will always be able to evoke our troubled past, our steadfastness under trial and the message of hope that some good can come from the most appalling circumstances as long as we retain our humanity.
***SPECIAL SEASON TICKET AVAILABLE for next 3 shows
*Choose your SAME seats for ALL SHOWS
ONLY $50 saving $16
Shows included: CONTRASTS - MAY 2012
CRUCIBLE - AUGUST 2012
GUARDS, GUARDS - NOV 2012