Covid-19 update – Sadly, the planned live performances detailed below have been cancelled due to second national lockdown. Plans are developing to film a performance for a digital stream later in November.
Residents of Byker will have front row seats for a new play – and anyone with Facebook can enjoy it too. Sam Wonfor gets up to speed with The Kids Are Alright.
The Kids Are Alright by Lee Mattinson will be performed outdoors in Byker in November
While Covid continues to present massive challenges for indoor stages across the North East, we’re delighted to keep hearing stories of theatre makers who are finding ways to tell stories regardless.
The Kids Are Alright offers the latest of these beacons.
Originally created for the stage, writer Lee Mattinson’s play has been adapted and then some to become an accessible outdoor performance for socially distanced audiences in housing estates in Newcastle and London.
Dealing with the unimaginable grief of losing a child, the play comes at a time when many are struggling along spectrums of loss, anxiety and anguish. Those behind The Kids Are Alright are hoping to offer somewhere to safely explore these feelings with lightness and humour.
The free performances, which will take place on November 9 and 10 and will also be digitally streamed, were devised following a series of successful pop-up outdoor performances from Northern Stage on the iconic Grade II* Listed Byker Estate in Newcastle during the summer.
Byker Wall Estate residents enjoyed a series of pop up performances in the summer
The story, characters and visual world will be centred on the estates where the audience lives.
The show will be performed at various locations around the Byker Estate for residents to experience from their homes, balconies or gardens while listening on headphones.
The play will also be filmed with mobile phones and broadcast directly through Facebook.
Writer Lee Mattinson said, “Having worked in Byker over the last two years I’ve really got to know residents, so I can’t wait to bring The Kids Are Alright to its streets.
Writer Lee Mattinson
“To reimagine the show for a community I’ve come to feel so at home in is a joy. Not only does this new site-specific version dance the same dotted line between comedy and tragedy as the original stage production, but there’s something delicious in creating a live performance exclusively for residents on the Estate.”
Northern Stage has a long term commitment to working in Byker. The company’s main rehearsal space is next to Byker Primary School and Northern Stage plays a lead role in the Byker Children and Young People’s Partnership (BCYPP).
When the UK went into lockdown earlier this year, the Northern Stage team helped deliver food parcels and activity packs as well as regularly engaging with isolated members of the local community, including through the Doorstep Music project, which saw 48 pop up performances take place.
Northern Stage Participation Director Jill Adamson said, “We’ve been working in Byker for three years now, and although it’s been a difficult year for everyone, having to adapt what we do and think differently has given us the chance to really get to know local residents.
“We’ve cooked and shared food together, danced on doorsteps together and created new work together so we’re really excited to share this new site-specific show from Fuel and Encounter with the Byker community.”
Co-commissioned by Fuel and The Place and produced in partnership with The Albany, Lewisham Homes, Camden People’s Theatre, Northern Stage and Byker Community Trust, Byker residents can watch The Kids Are Alright – at 5pm and 8pm on Monday November 9 and Tuesday November 10. The event is free and headphones will be given out prior to each performance along with hot food provided by Food Nation. The free livestream will be available to watch at 5pm on 10 November via Facebook