The theatre, plays and entertainment may be on lockdown, but Penrith Players are staying active. They have been using technology to keep in touch, using social platforms for play reading evenings and virtual meetings.
Last week they met on the internet to plan the rest of this season and the future. Everything of course is subject to change, but for the time being they have an interim plan.
The next scheduled play, The Hound of the Baskervilles, has been postponed either until autumn if enough restrictions are lifted in time, but more realistically till next summer. The August comedy, Bad Reception, has been set back a full year and October’s play Handbagged has been cancelled. It is hoped that the Christmas production, the ever-popular A Christmas Carol, will go ahead as planned to give both Players and audience a much-needed “lift of the spirits”.
An exciting season is already being planned for 2021. The first play will be The Mandrake that was postponed from this April, a sparkling comedy to start the year. The second play will be Shadowlands which was a very popular film and has been well received in other theatres.
In the meantime there are ideas for live streaming of productions to social media, so watch out for further details. The Junior section are hoping they can start to meet again in the autumn, but of course everything may change given the situation in the country.
Chair of theatre committee, Mike Head said: “Penrith Players is still alive and well despite the current problems. Not only are we planning for the future but there is a play reading every Tuesday which we do online. They have proved popular and there is room for more if people want to join. Contact details are on our Facebook page and web site.”