The Departure
Run Date: 6/11/23 - 8/11/23.
Venue: The King's Arms, Salford.
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Description:
2023 saw a massive growth for us as a company and as such we wanted to end the year on a high.
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The Departure was a concept created by Artistic Director, Adam Cachia, and Associate Director, Jessica Rose Renshall, to provide a platform to share short plays over the course of a three nights. The plays would range in theme and would also be a platform to connect emerging talent and established ones - this was seen across the board from writers to director to actors!
The evening saw 9 pieces in total performed. Some ranged from short 5 minute monologues to 20 minute pieces. Some were humorous, some were dramatic, but all were unique in their own way.
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Below are the details of the pieces as well as the company involved in them.
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Thank you again to our friends at SquadFour Productions for recording the final performance. A link of which you can watch for free can be found at the bottom of this page or on our Digital Hub.
The Gardener
Description: The Gardener is an extract from a play that explores what it means to own and consume. Can we really own anything when things live and die every day? When and how do we let go of things that we love? A gardener from the Lake District narrates this problem.
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Written by: Sebastian Gardiner.
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Performed by:
Leah Marks as 'The Gardener'.
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Directed by: Adam Cachia.
This is My Stop
Description: Jane has developed a phobia of buses. She’s determined to face her fear but wasn’t expecting a running commentary from her mother, who makes the journey all the more difficult. This is My Stop explores a daughter’s guilt and a mother’s worry as the two women, caught in a generational divide, reflect on recent events and life.
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Written by: Victoria Buse.
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Performed by:
Fiona Boylan as 'Jane'.
Isabel Ford as 'Julia'.
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Directed by: Jess Gough.
The Jag' Man
Description: On the night of his 60th birthday, Stevie, finally confronts the ghosts of his past. Jumping from the 1980's to now, Stevie tries to lay to rest the grief of his youth; the height of the AIDS pandemic, guilt, love, and long-lost friends.
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Written by: Joshua Lee.
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Performed by:
George Bellamy as 'Stevie'.
James Sprague as 'Melvin'.
John Joyce-O'Keeffe as 'Older Stevie'.
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Directed by: Adam Cachia.
Artist Unknown
Description: Do you know everything about your parents? Following their mother’s death, Nick and Grace uncover a shocking secret when they meet to tidy loose ends at the family home.
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Written by: Nicky Denovan.
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Performed by:
Megan Keaveny as 'Grace'.
Lewis Pugh as 'Nick'.
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Directed by: Ronan McGrath.
The Departure From My Body
Description: A woman sits on her day off, bombarded by texts from her manager, she mindlessly scrolls social media. Another name is trending, a stark reminder of her past.
The Departure From My Body explores celebrity sexual assault allegations and the ensuing social media response, inviting the audience to examine the impact these things have on the victims.
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Written by: Hannah MacDonald.
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Performed by:
Hannah MacDonald as 'The Woman'.
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Directed by: Jess Gough.
Pack It In
Description: In Pack It In we meet Mark a young man born in the South of England, as he packs up his bedroom getting ready to move, and deliberates over why Heathrow is the worst airport in the world.
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Written by: Will Bee.
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Performed by:
Will Bee as 'Mark'.
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Directed by: Arthur Loades.
Dolly DePart'n
Description: Max is a preteen with an unreliable gift for clairvoyance. Syd is a young foster carer with a saviour complex. When Max has a premonition about the death of country queen Dolly Parton, and the next week it comes true, Max begins to trust in his “gift” a little too heavily. After it conjures a premonition about Syd, he knows he needs to do everything he can to keep her safe.
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Written by: Frankie Lipman.
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Performed by:
Isaac Radmore as 'Max'.
Sophie Trueman as 'Syd'.
Amy Chung as 'Leigh'.
Leah Marks as 'Psychiatrist'.
Lauren Willis as 'Dolly'.
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Directed by: Adam Cachia.
Conjunction
Description: It doesn't matter what choices you make, so long as you make them.
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Written by: Nick Maynard.
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Performed by:
Callum Hall.
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Directed by: Adam Cachia.
Cannibals Anonymous
Description: Cannibals Anonymous is a deliciously dark comedy set during a self-help meeting for cannibals.
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Written by: Joe Henry-Evans.
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Performed by:
Joe Henry-Evans as 'Brenda Babcock'.
James Anthony-Boyce as 'John Pedalo'.
Leni Murphy as 'Rita Rimmer'.
Becky Kershaw as 'Maria Von Gak'.
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Directed by: George Bailey.
How to watch the Performance?
If you like to watch the performance, click on the poster where a new tab will open on our YouTube page.
