Poignant tale of missing Luke wins Daily Mail’s drama prize
A SHOW about a missing person has won the Scottish Daily Mail’s prestigious drama award for newcomers.
The Edinburgh Festival Fringe Drama Award was presented to Missing, a play by students of a London drama school that features real-life accounts from the families of missing people in Britain.
A Scottish production, Freak Show, about the macabre performers of a Victorian circus, came third behind Outside on the Street, a German play dealing with the horrors of war.
The three winners get the chance to perform their work at the Edinburgh Festival Fringe in August.
The awards, created in collaboration with Drama UK and now in their third year, were set up to give a start to talented newcomers. Previous winning shows have gone on to transfer to London’s West End.
Missing, by the Engineer Theatre Collective, charts the disappearance of a young man called Luke, who vanishes after a night out.
It is based on the experience of relatives of some of the 275,000 people who go missing in Britain every year.
Judges unanimously chose it as the winner for its challenging and topical content.
The students, from the Royal Central School of Speech and Drama, will present the show at the Underbelly in Edinburgh’s Cowgate during the festival.
Invertigo Theatre Company, from Guildhall School of Music and Drama, won a commendation for Outside on the Street.
Written by former German prisoner of war Wolfgang Borchert, it tells his story and of his search for answers. It will be performed at the Pleasance theatre.
Freak Show is a story of performers at a Victorian sideshow, including a ‘half-lady’ and ‘Dan, the Unbreakable Abomination’.
It was awarded third place by a judging panel which included the Daily Mail’s drama critic and sketch writer Quentin Letts.
Drama UK champions theatre training in the UK and a spokesman said: ‘We are delighted to be working again with the Scottish Daily Mail this year and once more supporting students from Drama UK member schools, encouraging new and emerging talent.
‘The award has grown in stature, with an increased number of entries this year. Last year’s winner and the two commended entries were sell-outs, with two of them transferring to London. That i s exactly the kind of success which the award seeks to encourage and reward.’