Powerful show will dig deep into mining industry
capture a time in British history that is too easily forgotten. It is an attempt at keeping the memories of the mining industry alive, an industry that I believe shaped the fabric of our society and how we live our lives today. These communities are at the heart of COAL.”
COAL features 16 performers seven professional contemporary dancers including TC Howard, a live on stage brass quintet playing music originally devised for the internationally acclaimed Carlton Main Frickley Colliery Band and four local community women, specially recruited at every venue.
Gary is aiming to recruit local women for the show, in order to give each performance a greater relevance to where it is shown.
“It feels like it embeds us right into the community,” he said. “It means the show has a locality and a place.”
Gary’s own experiences in Grimethorpe feature deeply in the show, and he hopes that people in Stirling will also be able to connect with the story.
“It really was a vibrant village,” he said. “I remember it being really full of life, full of employment, vibrant and busy. Then the Miner’s Strike happened. Suddenly the village started to rapidly decline. It was troublesome to see some of the things that happened, not only around the village but across the country.”
Tickets are on sale now.