This summer, Young Everyman Playhouse present two weeks of events and performances for and by young people that includes a return to Croxteth Hall with a production of Alice in Wonderland. YEP performances will form a major part of the city-wide youth festival, Flux Liverpool, and the company will also be working in partnership with a number of other local companies including Young DaDaFest, Merseyside Youth Theatre Forum, Showrunners, Kuumba Imani, 20 Stories High, Hope St Ltd and the Bluecoat.
Since spring 2012 Young Everyman Playhouse (YEP) have put on a series of ambitious projects, from Intimate at Camp and Furnace to The Grid at the Everyman. This summer sees them showcase their talents with a series of events throughout the city with the first YEP Fest from 17th July to 2nd August.
From Friday 25th to Sunday 27th July a company of 50 young people will take on Alice in Wonderland at Croxteth Hall following the success of The Wind in the Willows last year. Lewis Carroll’s story of a young girl who falls down a rabbit hole into a fantasy world populated by peculiar characters will be given a twist in YEP’s production as their Alice emerges from her tent on the fourth day of the Glastonbury Festival. The play will include live music and D.J.s as the promenade piece roams the grounds of Croxteth Hall.
YEP’s Young Producers, who inaugurated Scene Change last year, take the leap from the Playhouse Studio to the Everyman main stage with their biggest event to date. Taking place on 24th and 25th July, the producers continue the festival vibe with jugglers, magicians and artists joining the mix of performance pieces being given short showcases by YEP’s young actors, directors and collaborators from around the city.
YEP Young Writers will present the Time and Space Plays, a series of 10 minutes works, performed in the Everyman theatre bar on 31st July. These plays, along with Alice in Wonderland and Scene Change form the Everyman and Playhouse’s contribution to Flux Liverpool. Flux is a pioneering arts festival engineered by young people, created for everyone that will take place in Liverpool for the first time this summer. The Flux festival is a celebration of young people’s creativity and entrepreneurialism being held form 17th July to 2nd August 2014.
Matt Rutter, Director of Young Everyman Playhouse, said, “YEP Fest this summer represents our biggest series of events yet and it’s exciting to see so many of the different elements of YEP coming together to create theatre. It is fantastic to be part of Flux Liverpool, to be able to share what YEP is about and supporting other young people from the city.”
YEP will also be collaborating on a number of projects with other Liverpool arts organisations as part of YEP Fest and Flux. On 17th July Young DaDa Festival will showcase their work with young disabled and deaf artists on the Everyman main stage, while Showrunners will present their work with young people on 22nd July. YEP Fest will be closed by long time collaborators 20 Stories High who return with their latest production, Tales From the MP3, at the Everyman on 1st and 2nd August.
The theatres will also be working with Merseyside Youth Theatre Development Forum who will present The Big Event at the Everyman and Unity Theatre from 18th to 20th July, with Hope Street Ltd on Sense and Sustainability at the Bluecoat on 19 July and Kuumba Imani Millennium Centre on A Decade of Dedication at the Everyman on 23rd July.
Tickets for Alice In Wonderland at Croxteth Hall are available to purchase from the Everyman or Playhouse Theatres, online at www.everymanplayhouse.com or by telephone on 0151 7094776.