ZA and IF wrote: “Shooting Truth is a play that had been circulating within the Young Wick for a few years now, and we are very proud to have finally put it on as a comeback performance on the Barn stage. This last year has been an exciting challenge for all of us involved beginning with the short production of 15 Minute Hamlet at the Shoreham Wordfest in September 2013 and taking us back to our spiritual home in the Barn Theatre today. The Youth has brought with it a wealth of ideas coming from not only the production team, but also the cast, aiding with variety of creative input into the production.
Shooting Truth has been an incredible challenge in all senses of the word. As our directorial debut, we have been frequently overwhelmed with how much really goes into these shows and will certainly have a new appreciation for all the hard work our previous directors and teams have put into them.
‘Thank you’ is not nearly enough for all the support we’ve received; as it’s made this wonderful performance possible.”
Review #1: Shooting Truth
Publication: Shoreham Herald
Publication Data: April 10 2014 issue – page 16
Reviewer: Elaine Hammond
Text Header: “Company’s comeback shows great promise”
Text: Content
YOUNG actors showed great promise in their comeback performance at the Barn Theatre in Southwick. Returning to the stage for the first time in several years, Young Wick Theatre Company performed Shooting Truth on Thursday and Friday.
Originally written for the National Theatre connections festival in 2011, the play combines past and present in a story of witchcraft and practical jokes gone wrong. It gave the company the chance to showcase a large amount of talent, with a total of 16 characters to portray. Among these were some promising performances and, hopefully, these young actors will be given the chance to develop into the main company.
Amie Sutton, playing ‘witch’ Freya, particularly stood out. She was part of the group from the 17th century, tormented by her peers and desperate to defend herself. Alice Bennett also performed well as Feya’s equal in the 21st century, Alice, a girl who finds it difficult to fit in and becomes the target through jealousy. Others worthy of note included the film crew, Luke Mepham as Liam and Matthew Rouse as Jake. Luke had it just right as a young man determined to produce a film worthy of note and being single-minded in that process. Courtney Everett as Leanne, the girl who wanted to be a star of the show also impressed, using both actions and words to get her character across.
It may have been nerves, or it may have been to do with the modern way of speaking, but the cast were all talking a little too fast at the start. It made it slightly difficult to catch all the words, but on the other hand it does seem to be the way young people speak these days. Things settled down though and confidence grew, so the second half was much stronger and well timed, with the groups from each of the two centuries on stage at the same time as the action switched between the two time frames. Indeed, when poor old Freya was thrown down the well, it was done so effectively, a woman near me actually gasped!
Directors Isabelle Fink and Zoey Attree acknowledged the play had been an incredible challenge, overwhelming at times, but they produced a piece to be proud of.
Review #2: Shooting Truth
Publication: Brighton Argus
Publication Data: April 4 2014
Reviewer: Barrie Jerram
Text: Content
It was good to see the resurrection of Young Wick after a period of dormancy. Their choice of play was an interesting one that involved two time zones, with present day children shooting a film of a local legend from four centuries earlier. The action crisscrossed with the enactment of that legend, involving a girl thought to be a witch and the persecution from her peers.
The quality of acting was of a good standard with some notable performances. Amie Sutton captured well the various emotions of Freya, the bullied girl accused of witchcraft and she was matched by Alice Bennett as her present day counterpart. Luke Mepham gave a strong performance as the would-be film director who gets carried away. He gets excellent support from Matthew Rouse as his side-kick. Great comedy came from Archie Deaves, especially when he had to act as Freya’s Gran and from Courtney Evans as a wannabe actress – her ham acting was hilarious.
The numerous short scenes the script required meant that momentum and suspense were lost through slow transitions and delayed blackouts. However, the lighting and staging for the final tableau created a moment of great beauty.
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