Tickets on sale for Wizard of Oz in January
Friday, Saturday, Sunday 7-9 January 2022
Illustration by Naomi Oppenheim
“If this is the ‘Wizard of Oz’ then who is the old lady in the Hampshire care home, and why are we moving from 2022, to 1970 and 1898? As memories fade and the mind plays its tricks, is someone confusing reality with childhood stories or Hollywood movies?
“I should have never trusted that damned-fool Baum man, shifty. Took everything I said and wrote it right down, in black and white. Not an original thought under his hat. And don’t get me started on that darned film! Ruby shoes indeed! The shoes were silver, the most beautiful things I ever saw. Silver…I should know…I wore them.’
Yes, there is a cowardly lion, confused scarecrow and a tin man searching for a heart – but this is Blue Apple Theatre taking on a classic, so expect the unexpected and be prepared to see the familiar from a fresh perspective.”
Performances at Theatre Royal Winchester
Friday 7 January 2022 7.30pm / Saturday 8 January 2022 7.30pm / Sunday 9 January 3.30pm
Ticket prices: Full price £15 / Family (any group of 4+) £12 / Play to the Crowd Members £12
Book at: https://www.theatreroyalwinchester.co.uk/whats-on/blue-apples-wizard-oz
Livestream webcast performances
Saturday 8 January 2022 7.30pm / Sunday 9 January 3.30pm / Ticket price: £10
Book at: https://www.theatreroyalwinchester.co.uk/whats-on/blue-apples-wizard-oz-live-online
New online dance and exercise classes
Blue Apple and Winchester Go LD have teamed up with Louisa Church from Collective Motion Dance to offer new online dance and exercise sessions on Mondays 1-2pm up to 20 December. A pilot session was very successful and performers found it great fun. The sessions are accessible and Makaton friendly.
Find out more and book places here.
Double Premiere for Blue Apple Theatre and Theatre Royal Winchester
On Thursday 21 October 2021 a small group of Blue Apple performers stood on stage at Theatre Royal Winchester to talk about a very important film called See No Evil. Those performers all starred in a film designed to help people spot hate crime and protect vulnerable people from being exploited through a process known as ‘cuckooing’. This is when dealers convince a vulnerable person to let their home be used for drug dealing. They are often urban gangs who are involved in county lines drug trafficking. The film was premiered in the beautiful heritage theatre auditorium at Theatre Royal Winchester via their new surround sound cinema screen which has been recently installed thanks to generous support from the Garfield Weston Foundation. This was the first film to be screened on the new equipment that will in future enable Theatre Royal Winchester to not only host live performance but also to screen films and live-streamed performances from theatres from around the country and beyond.
On stage to explain the key themes of the film were Anna Brisbane, James Elsworthy and Tommy Jessop alongside outgoing Chair of Trustees Georgiana Robertson. Co-performer James Benfield was unable to attend the premiere.
Photos by Mike Hall.
The part-animated video, created in collaboration with Cass Productions, features four of Blue Apple’s actors who all have learning disabilities, as well as real-life police officers. See No Evil was developed with the Hampshire Police Crime Commissioner and Hampshire County Council. Speaking before the film was shown to invited guests from local organisations, Deputy Police and Crime Commissioner, Councillor Luke Stubbs talked about the critical importance of crime prevention in the role of policing.
The film is designed for viewing alongside an educational workshop that includes drama and discussion activities, co-facilitated by members of Blue Apple Theatre. Free educational resources and the film can be accessed via Blue Apple's website at blueappletheatre.com/seenoevil
Ambassadors
Lawrie and Anna at the Winchester Rotary Club event in August 2021
Blue Apple performers Anna Brisbane and Lawrie Morris were invited to attend a very special and select event at the Sir John Soane's Museum in London in September. ‘Keats by Candlelight’ comprised a selection of the poet's writings performed in the stunning surroundings of The Soane at Lincoln's Inn Fields. They attended to raise the profile of their recent production of ‘Frankenstein’ in order to garner support for a possible future international tour of the piece which was premiered in July at the Theatre Royal Winchester.
Lawrie and Anna also accompanied Chair of Trustees Georgiana Robertson to a Winchester Rotary meeting in August to give an inspiring presentation on Blue Apple’s successes and future plans!
Performers Lawrie Morris and Anna Brisbane outside the Sir John Soane’s Museum