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Mobile stage for student's play
Nick Ahad Arts reporter Visitors to York deciding to take in the delights of the city from the top deck of an open top bus got more than they bargained for yesterday.
For the vehicle was the setting for a unique piece of theatre.
After finding a script featuring the story of a tour guide, resourceful student Lucy Pearman hit on the idea of staging her play in an open top bus.
The 21-year-old student, originally from Chipping Norton in Oxfordshire, had to direct a play as part of a her final year acting course at the University of Leeds' Bretton Hall college. Miss Pearman is staging an adapted version of Topless, a play by Miles Tredinnick. It tells the story, through a monologue, of a tour bus guide Sandie, who is more preoccupied with lamenting her woes than providing a commentary to her passengers.
Miss Pearman said: "The play is originally set in London, but I had the idea of staging the play on an actual open top bus and the nearest place is York, so I have changed some of the play.
"There are also two other actors, as well as the one playing Sandie, playing different passengers who get on and off the bus." Miss Pearman admits that when she came up with the idea of staging the play in situ, she did not really know where to begin.
"I looked through the phone book and rang the first number I found for an open-top bus company," she said. The number was for Topline Travel, a company that provides sightseeing tours around York.
Managing director Peter Dew said: "We decided to do it because it's unusual and we thought it was a good idea – and she was the first.
"A few have asked since Lucy and I think this will be a one-off, but Lucy was the first so we said yes."
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Saturday 11 February 2012
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