“There’s nothing wrong with sending a quick pic of urself to prove how much you love your boyfriend...” That’s ‘Lowri’s opinion, one of the four characters in Arad Goch’s hard hitting drama SXTO/ SEXTING, which tours schools, theatres and community venues from next Monday.
The production was nominated in the first Theatre Critics of Wales Awards in the category ‘Best production for young people’, and it responds to the ever increasing problem of SEXTING, sending sexual images via mobile phones. It’s illegal for anyone under the age of 18 to do this despite the claims that 49% of young people belive it’s normal and part of their daily life (South Wales Argus, October 15, 2014)
“Producing work that responds and reflects young people’s experiences is part of Arad Goch’s ethos, it’s important that we portray the reality facing young people in Wales today” Jeremy Turner, Artistic Director Cwmni Theatr Arad Goch.
The storyline is based on four secondary school friends, and it becomes apparent that Lowri’s decision to send a ‘sexy pic’ of herself to her boyfriend ends up in a complex web of conflict and emotions.
Background
In 2010 Cwmni Theatr Arad Goch was approached by Carmarthenshire County Council who wanted a theatrical performance to raise awareness about the dangers that can arise from SEXTING. Welsh author Bethan Gwanas and Director Angharad Lee were invited by Arad Goch to develop the script and stage production, both chosen due to their vast experience of working with young people.
“The first step was to talk to young people, to get their ideas to ensure I portrayed a realistic storyline” Bethan Gwanas
Following the discussions, Bethan produced a series of short scenes before passing on the script to Anharad Lee and the cast. The scenes were performed in a theatre forum style in secondary schools in Carmarthenshire, Ceredigion and Pembrokeshire.
“Theatre forum allowed the young people to react instantly to what they had just seen. It was an effective and exciting way of collecting more ideas for the final script” Angharad Lee
To ensure that all young people could be part of the research process, Arad Gohc filmed the scenes in a secondary school and posted them on an online blog where young people could leave anonymous comments and ideas.
The final step was writing and directing the final stage version. SXTO/ SEXTING first toured to theatres, community venues and secondary schools in 2011 with further tours in 2012 -13. The response was overwhelming!
“The pupils benefitted so much from the performance and many of them asked to see the second performance in the afternoon!” Ysgol Dyffryn Aman
“I have seen #SXTO in the theatre tonight, relavant, sensitive and worthwhile production @aradgoch” Twitter.
2014
Today, an article in the South Wales Argus revelas the reality about SEXTING amongst young people. According to a report young people feel that SEXTING is the norm, and part of their daily life. Having interviewed 2,732 young people between the ages of 13 – 15, the National anti bullying organisatio revelaed that 62% had been abused through their phone apps and 37% said they had sent naked pictures of themselves, the majority being girls.
One of the most shocking statistics is that 49% believed that SEXTING is simple harmless fun while 22% admit that they have turned to self-harming as a way of coping with the results. (www.southwalesargus.co.uk October 15, 2014)
Considering the situatuon facing young people today its no surprise that Ceredigion County Councils Child Protection Officer has approached Arad Goch to ask them to take the performance to all secondary schools throughout Ceredigion.
Bethan Gwanas has updated parts of the script to ensure it reacts to the current situation and the final rehearsals are now underway at Canolfan Arad Goch, Aberystwyth.
Next Monday, the 20th of October, Ceredigion’s Child Protection Officer, several headteachers and teachers will attend a special performance at Canolfan Arad Goch. They will also receive a presentation by Arad Gohc’s Actor Manager Mari Rhian Owen who will advise them on how to deal with the pupils questions and responses after seeing the performance at their school.
From next Tuesday the cast, Nia Ann, Lowri Sion, Endaf Eynon Davies and Dion Lloyd Jones will be on the road, performing at secondary schools throughout Ceredigion as well as some performances in other secondary schools, theatres and community venues. The tour will come to an end on the 20th of November at Theatr Gartholwg, Pontypridd. Mae Nia, sy’n chwarae cymeriad ‘Lowri’ yn edrych ymlaen yn fawr iawn at y daith;
Nia Ann who plays ‘Lowri’ is very excited about the tour;
“The production is great, it helps to raise awareness about this serious issue in a way whioch really seems to hit home. It proves that sending a quick picture message can lead to all sorts of dangerous scenarios and it makes you think how dangerous that ‘send’ button can be
Dion Lloyd Jones is the only member of the cast from North Wales. He can be seen in the feaure film ‘Pride’ in most cinemas at present, but he’s equally excited to step back into ‘Mike’s shoes in SEXTING
“Mike is a fun character to play, he’s cocky and confident with the girls and he’s also the captain of the football team – a cool guy! It’s a challenging role as the play is full of tensions and emotions but it’s also great fun and its so important to raise awareness about the dangers of the digital age we live in. A picture in the wrong hands can cause endless problems”
Want to see ths how? Tickets are available for the following performances;
17/11 @ 19:30 – Ysgol y Berwyn, Bala – 01970 617 998
18/11 @ 13:30 & 19:00 – Theatr Clwyd – 0845 330 3565
20/11 @ 11:00 & 13:00 – Theatr Gartholwg – 01443 219 589 |
