My Arms
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Five Reasons To See ... 24.7 Theatre Festival's My Arms

Date: 11 July 2012

It is soon time for Manchester's theatre scene to be delivered a ray of sunshine in amongst the rain. The ninth 24.7 Theatre Festival is soon upon us which gives new and emerging writers a chance to showcase their work. One of the plays - My Arms by James Leach is at Manchester's Three Minute Theatre later this month. We caught up with the producers to find out their five reasons why you should go along.

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2. The Play
Told in reverse order, My Arms is a play about the power of love and forgiveness. Inspired  by the effects of prison on an ordinary family, the story focuses on Colin and Helen, a married couple struggling to recover from a life-changing event. This important story and its intriguing structure offers the audience a new perspective and reveals the characters’ story backwards.
 
3. The Playwright
James Leach is an exciting, up-and-coming, award-winning playwright based in Manchester. Last year, he was part of the prestigious Young Writers programme at the Liverpool Everyman Theatre and works in the literary department at Bolton’s Octagon Theatre. He wrote his first play whilst studying at Manchester University, where he won the Judges’ Award for Innovation. One to watch, be sure to come along to this, his professional debut.
 
4. The actors
With a cast of just two, My Arms boasts some fine acting talent. Roberta Kerr, who plays Helen, has appeared in all the major TV soaps – from Coronation Street to Emmerdale, Eastenders to Brookside – not to mention theatre credits at Library Theatre, the Lowry, Oldham Coliseum and Bolton Octagon. Likewise, Josh Moran plays Colin and has a glittering CV that pairs prominent TV appearances (Shameless, Coronation Street, Emmerdale) with theatre productions at some major  Manchester institutions: Royal Exchange, Library Theatre and Opera House. Come see them create the roles in this new play!
 
5. Sound and vision
The production is not just a good story well told, but will incorporate video, music and soundscape. Director Adam Quayle is collaborating with video artist George Haydock from art collective Generic Greeting to create scene change montages. Original music is being specially composed by Chris Hope, a rising star solo artist, for an innovative sound design by Chris James (recently an Associate Sound Designer at the Old Vic Theatre in London). Expect a sensory experience embracing sound and vision!

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My Arms by James Leach appears at this year’s 24:7 Theatre Festival from 20-27 July at the Three Minute Theatre. For more details, visit the 24.7 Theatre Festival website.
 

- by Glenn Meads

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