Stage set for Mystery Play volunteers

THE organisers of the York Mystery Plays are hosting a number of drop-in events to attract more than 1,000 volunteers to help in what will be the biggest outdoor theatre production the city has ever seen.

Next year’s production – the first to be staged in the city’s Museum Gardens for more than two decades and set to attract more than 30,000 – will be in a purpose-built 1,500-seat outdoor theatre, with St Mary’s Abbey as a backdrop.

Organisers York Theatre Royal, the Riding Lights Theatre Company and the York Museums Trust, say they will need an army of volunteers to stage the production of the plays, which were first performed in the 14th century but were abandoned during the Reformation.

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They were revived in 1951 for the Festival of Britain and staged regularly until the early 1990s.

Performances for next year’s production are set to take place throughout August, while drop-in sessions are being held next month between November 12 and 19 for volunteers to get involved.

For more information on auditions, drop in venues and how to apply, visit www.yorkmysteryplays2012.com or telephone 01904 715454.