Little Theatre presents Priestley classic

Woy Woy Little Theatre will open its latest play, the JB Priestley classic An Inspector Calls, at Peninsula Theatre on Friday, May 17, for a three-week season.

Set in an industrial city in the midlands of England in 1912, the play is one of the most widely performed of Priestley's works.

At the helm is director Ms Annie Bilton, whose last production for the group was Humble Boy in 2016.

"Of Priestley's 39 plays, my personal favourite is An Inspector Calls," Ms Bilton said.

"Priestley sets Inspector in 1912, when prosperous Britons are congratulating themselves on huge technological advances in industry and transport.

"The new class of industrial rich get richer while cities get filthier and factory workers struggle to survive on pitiful wages.

"Complacently prosperous Edwardian England turns a blind eye to social injustice and the threat of war with Germany.

"But the danger to industrialist Mr Birling and his family right now is not from looming international conflict it's much closer to home," Ms Bilton said.

"A surprise visit from Inspector Goole regarding the recent death of a young woman causes members of the Birling family to examine their behaviours and the effects of them.

"Since its English premiere at London's Old Vic in 1946, the play has continued to thrill audiences, in particular the extraordinary 1992 production by director Stephen Daldry, currently in revival internationally," Ms Bilton said.

"A 1954 film starred Alistair Sim and, in 2015, the BBC released a major production.

"The issues that concerned Priestley, social justice and responsibility towards others, resonate strongly with us still today, and it is with great pleasure that we bring you this fine classic: a powerful, timely but timeless whodunit," she said,

Ms Bilton has assembled a cast comprising Jessica Curtis, Sally Bartley, Stephen Pearson, Tullia Cairns, Miguel Cullen-Green, Ryan Amin and Aidan Cuddington.

With set design by Stephen Pembroke, costumes by Douglas Kent and lighting and sound by Penny Dilworth, Lloyd Grounds and Gregory Sale, the play is a visual delight, easily transporting audiences to the Britain of 1912.

Session times, ticket details and bookings are available at woywoylt.com SOURCE: Media release, 9 May 2019 Terry Collins, Woy Woy Little Theatre