Harrogate to host the finals of acting competition

Harrogate Theatre will host, the British Final of One-Act Plays, the 86th to be held since its inception in 1927, later this year.
Harrogate Theatre will host the finalsHarrogate Theatre will host the finals
Harrogate Theatre will host the finals

The event, which rotates around the home nations annually, stands at the apex of the drama festival seasons of the All-England Theatre Festival, the Association of Ulster Drama Festivals, the Drama Association of Wales and the Scottish Community Drama Association.

The national champions of each of these festivals compete, over two nights, for the coveted Howard de Walden Trophy, named after the first president of the pioneering British Drama League founded in 1919.

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The event will be held on Friday July 5 and Saturday July 6 with the English and Welsh champions performing on the Friday. Their identities will not be known until their national finals take place in early June

The Northern Ireland and Scottish champions will perform on the Saturday 6.

They are respectively Theatre 3 Newtownabbey who will perform A Bench at the Edge by Luigi Jannuzzi and Stromness Theatre Club from Mainland Orkney who will bring John Godber’s Shakers all the way from the Northern Isles to the playwright’s native Yorkshire.

The event, which will attract supporters from across the land, will be a celebration of the very best of British community drama. The opening ceremony will be graced by Harrogate Gilbert and Sullivan Society and the performances will be assessed by Robert Meadows, a distinguished member of the Guild of Drama Adjudicators.

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Next year the final moves on to Theatr Clwyd in North Wales and will not return to the north of England for another generation. This is, therefore, a unique opportunity for Harrogate theatregoers to enjoy the cream of British amateur festival drama performed to professional standards.

Both shows will start at 7pm and tickets are on sale at Harrogate Theatre box office on 01423 502116.