WE ARE THREE SISTERS – WORLD PREMIERE TOUR VISITS THE LOWRY
PRESS RELEASE | BILL ELMS ASSOCIATES on behalf of THE LOWRY
WE ARE THREE SISTERS – WORLD PREMIERE TOUR VISITS THE LOWRY
NORTHERN BROADSIDES TO STAGE NEW BLAKE MORRISON PLAY
Northern Broadsides and the celebrated playwright, novelist and poet Blake Morrison are set to put a Yorkshire spin on Chekhov’s Three Sisters this autumn when they stage the World premiere of the new play We are Three Sisters. This exciting new production, directed by Northern Broadsides artistic director Barrie Rutter, will be at The Lowry, Salford Quays from 20 – 24 September.
Against the backdrop of a dark, remote northern town, three remarkable young women live their lives brightly.
Haworth 1840s; in a gloomy parsonage where there are neither curtains nor comforts, Charlotte, Anne and Emily Bronte light up their world with outspoken wit, aspirations, dreams and ideas. And throughout their confined lives intensely lived…. they write.
Anyone who has read a Bronte novel cannot fail to be stirred by their overwhelming humanity, charged emotion and brooding, prescient unease with the status quo.
With exquisitely drawn characterizations, a nod to Chekhov and a touch of poetic license, We Are Three Sisters, is a pearl of a play which evokes with piercing clarity the life and distinct personalities of these three spirited individuals.
A great supporter of the work of Northern Broadsides, Blake Morrison has translated and adapted five hugely successful plays which were all commissioned and performed by Northern Broadsides Theatre Company: The Cracked Pot in 1996 (an adaptation of Heinrich von Kleist’s Der Zerbrochene Krug); Sophocles’ Oedipus in 2001 and Antigone in 2003; The Man with Two Gaffers (a version of Carlo Goldoni’s comedy The Servant of Two Masters) in 2005; and in 2007 Lisa's Sex Strike, based on Lysistrata.
As well as being Professor of Creative and Life Writing at Goldsmiths, London, Blake is a poet, novelist and journalist, best known for two family memoirs and a study of the Bulger case. His publications have included And When Did You Last See Your Father? (Which was also made into a film), As If, Selected Poems, The Justification of Johann Gutenberg, and Things My Mother Never Told Me. His latest book is The Last Weekend.
We are Three Sisters’ excellent cast features Sophia Di Martino who is best known to television audiences for playing Polly Emmerson in Casualty, Becky Hindley (the stalker Charlotte Hoyle in Coronation Street), the much loved comedian and actor Duggie Brown, Rebecca Hutchinson, Catherine Kinsella, Barrie Rutter, John Branwell, Marc Parry, Gareth Cassidy and Eileen O’Brien.
PERFORMANCE INFORMATION
WE ARE THREE SISTERS
The Lowry
Tue 20 – Sat 24 September
Times: Tue – Sat eves 8pm, Wed and Sat matinees, 2.30pm
Tickets: £16 - £18
How to Book: In person from The Lowry, Pier 8, Salford Quays, M50 3AZ, call 0843 2086005 or go online www.thelowry.com
For more information, images, interview and competition requests or review tickets, please contact John Bridge at Bill Elms Associates on 0151 245 0136 | 07792463135 | john@billelms.com
Press Performance: Tue 20 September 8pm
Interviews with Barrie Rutter and Blake Morrison are available now.
Interviews with the cast are available from 15 August.
Image Gallery
For images, please go to The Lowry’s image library www.thelowryimages.com. New users need to register by clicking on ‘register’ on the left hand side of the page, fill in the required information (which includes creating your own password) and click ‘create account’. You will then have access to images via the log-in page by clicking on Images Available > Theatres >Drama> We Are Three Sisters
Notes to Editors
CAST & CREATIVES
Blake Morrison Writer
Barrie Rutter Director
Jessica Worrall Designer
Tim Skelly Lighting
Kraig Winterbottom Sound
John Branwell John, the doctor
Duggie Brown Patrick Bronte
Gareth Cassidy Branwell Bronte
Becky Hindley Lydia Robinson
Rebecca Hutchinson Anne Bronte
Catherine Kinsella Charlotte Bronte
Sophia Di Martino Emily Bronte
Eileen O’Brien Tabby, the housekeeper
Marc Parry William, the curate
Barrie Rutter Arthur, the teacher
Blake Morrison – acclaimed playwright, novelist and poet. A great supporter of the work of Northern Broadsides, Blake Morrison has translated and adapted five hugely successful plays which were all commissioned and performed by Northern Broadsides Theatre Company: The Cracked Pot in 1996 (an adaptation of Heinrich von Kleist’s Der Zerbrochene Krug); Sophocles’ Oedipus in 2001 and Antigone in 2003; The Man with Two Gaffers (a version of Carlo Goldoni’s comedy The Servant of Two Masters) in 2005; and in 2007 Lisa's Sex Strike, based on Lysistrata.
As well as being Professor of Creative and Life Writing at Goldsmiths, London, Blake is a poet, novelist and journalist, best known for two family memoirs and a study of the Bulger case. His publications have included And When Did You Last See Your Father? (which was also made into a film starring Oscar winner Colin Firth), As If, Selected Poems, The Justification of Johann Gutenberg, and Things My Mother Never Told Me. His latest book is last year’s The Last Weekend.
Director - Barrie Rutter (also playing The Teacher) – Northern Broadsides founder and artistic director. Born in Hull and since leaving school in 1964 his acting career has stretched from Hamburg to Helsinki, Bradford to Beijing and includes film, television and radio. His theatre work includes: for the Royal Shakespeare Company, Henry IV, Henry V, Coriolanus and The Taming of the Shrew; for the Royal National Theatre, The Mysteries, The Crucible, Guys and Dolls, The Oresteia, The Rivals, Animal Farm, Martine and The Trackers of Oxyrhynchus and Barrie was a regular in the hit ITV series “ Fat Friends”
Sophia Di Martino (Emily Bronte) played Polly Emmerson in BBC1's Casualty from 2009-2011. She also appeared in the BAFTA award winning BBC 4 Play “Corrie: The Road to Coronation Street.
Duggie Brown (Patrick Bronte) -Granada Television's 1970s series "The Comedians" established Duggie as a national entertainment figure, although he was already well known throughout the UK with his successful cabaret act. In the early seventies, Duggie moved into the drama field, beginning with an appearance in the film "Kes". Numerous roles followed including "Another Sunday and Sweet FA", "Rank and File", "The Price of Coal,” for the BBC and "The Hard Word" for ITV. He was then to star in the Shelagh Delaney BBC Series "The House That Jack Built" followed by the BBC detective series "The Enigma Files". Moving back to Granada TV in 1980, he starred in the situation comedies” Take My Wife" and "The Glamour Girls". He was also the "Captain" of the Saturday morning children's series "The Mersey Pirate". Duggie played the Fool to Barrie Rutter’s Lear in the Broadsides production of King Lear in 1999.
Becky Hindley (Lydia Robinson) is best known as the stalker Charlotte Hoyle in Coronation Street. Becky also appeared in the title role of Lisa in the Northern Broadsides production of the critically acclaimed Lisa’s Sex Strike & Hamlet. She has also appeared regularly at New Vic and Stephen Joseph Theatre.
Rebecca Hutchinson (Anne Bronte) – Much acclaimed for playing the title role in the Dukes Lancaster production of The Rise and Fall of Little Voice.
Catherine Kinsella (Charlotte Bronte) was Nominated for Best Actress in a Supporting Role - "Martha, Josie and the Chinese Elvis" Manchester Evening News Awards 2009 Nominated for Best Actress in a Supporting Role - "Merchant of Venice" Manchester Evening News Awards 2008
Eileen O’Brien (Tabby) has just finished working in the Liverpool Playhouse production of Macbeth with David Morrisey. She has also appeared recently in Death of a Salesman at York Theatre Royal, and regularly at the Royal Exchange Manchester and West Yorkshire Playhouse. She also appeared in the films A Private Function and Fanny and Elvis. She was also a regular in Brookside as Gladys Charlton.
NORTHERN BROADSIDES – a Regional Company With An International Reputation
Northern Broadsides’ repertoire consists mainly of Shakespeare and classical texts. These plays possess a timeless resonance and their universal explorations of the human condition have currency in any day and age, appealing directly to the soul, the emotions and the imagination.
For 19 years, the company has toured the UK and the world with their highly distinctive performance style, including India; Brazil, the USA, China, Greece, Cyprus, Poland, Germany, Austria and Denmark.
Barrie Rutter’s distinctive approach to theatre is fuelled by his passion for language and his unceasing celebration of the richness and muscularity of the Northern voice.
Northern Broadsides is a company of Northern actors who perform in their natural voices and have an indisputable command of the languageand poetry of classic drama. The result is performance that has a directness and immediacy which is liberating and invigorating, breaking the southern stranglehold on classical performance and making the audience hear the words afresh.
Posted on Thursday, 04 August 2011 under News Press Theatre Press