CAST members of The Castle Players’ winter tour production are hoping for sweet success – thanks to help from a Barnard Castle business.
Rehearsals are progressing at pace for the Players’ version of Bernard Shaw’s most popular and successful play Pygmalion.
The play has enjoyed numerous revivals and is known to many as the basis for Lerner and Loewe’s ever-popular musical My Fair Lady.
The production, postponed from touring last winter, tells the story of phonetics professor Henry Higgins and cockney flower-girl Eliza Doolittle.
Accepting the challenge to pass Eliza off as a duchess, Higgins trains Eliza in his typically arrogant and soulless manner, showing concern for technique but not for Eliza’s developing emotional needs.
One of the key scenes sees Prof Higgins bribe Eliza with sweet treats – with Barnard Castle-based confectionary shop Chocolate Fayre stepping in to help. In fact, Pygmalion is the third players’ production to be sponsored by Chocolate Fayre. Laurence Sach, director of Pygmalion said: “We are enormously grateful to Chocolate Fayre for supporting our productions.
“It means a great deal to us and this time I think we can make a rather apt link. Professor Higgins bribes Eliza with chocolates and with Kennedy Page, our Eliza, being vegan, we had to search for suitable sweets.”
Happy to help, Kenny Walker, proprietor of Chocolate Fayre, said: “We’re keen to support local arts groups for what they bring, both to those creative people involved, as well as those who experience their work as members of the audience.
And the well established Castle Players really epitomise this community approach. Of course, on this occasion, the chocolate link is a lovely bonus. We wish the cast and crew all the very best for a successful and thoroughly enjoyable performance.”
Mr Sach said it was fingers firmly crossed that Covid does not interrupt the planned tour for a second time.
Pygmalion opens on Saturday, January 15, at The Witham, Barnard Castle before heading out on a tour of local venues until February 13.
Dates and details are:
Saturday, January 15, at 7.30pm, The Witham, Barnard Castle. Tickets £12/u16 £10. Contact 01833 631107 or go to www.thewitham.org.uk
Sunday, January 16, 3pm, Scarth Hall, Staindrop. Tickets £9/u16 £5 from Staindrop Post Office, or contact 01833 660203/07881 248478.
Friday, January 21, 7.30pm, Newsham Village Hall. Tickets £8, contact 01833 621019/ 01833 621300.
Saturday, January 22, 7.30pm, Mickleton Village Hall. Tickets: £8/children £3, contact 01833 640909.
Saturday, January 29, 7.30pm, All Saints and Salutation Church, Blackweel, Darlington. Tickets £5/children £3, contact 01325 281487.
Sunday, January 30, 3pm, St Cuthbert’s Centre, Crook. Tickets £7, contact: 01388 205001.
Friday, February 4, 7.30pm, St Mary’s Parish Hall, Barnard Castle. Tickets: £8/u16 £5, contact 07708 586676/01833 630102/01833 637433.
Sunday, February 6, 3pm, Whorlton Village Hall. Tickets £12/u16 £6, contact: 01833 627419.
Saturday, February 12, 7.30pm, Gainford Village Hall. Tickets £10, contact: 01325 730922.
Sunday, February 13, 3pm, Romaldkirk Reading Rooms. Tickets: £8/u16 £5, contact 01833 650271.
