THIS month Wotton Dramatic Society will be staging a rehearsed reading of Holding The Line at Under The Edge Arts.

The play, written by Mark Pasco, was originally performed by the Dramatic Society in 2000 and is based on a series of letters written by Sidney Cornock, a resident of Wotton-Under-Edge, to his family during the First World War while he was fighting in the trenches. Mark was originally inspired to write the play in 1997 when contemplating the names on the roll of honour in Wotton Town Hall and, realising that few people in the town could have remained untouched by the conflict, decided to do some further research in to the Cornock family. When originally writing the play Mark sought permission from Sidney Cornock’s family to use the letters, which had been discovered by a retired teacher from Katherine Lady Berkeley School, while also doing further research in partnership with the Heritage Centre and by speaking to older members of the local community in order to ensure the play’s authenticity.

When the play was last performed in Wotton-Under-Edge in 2000, it went on to sweep the boards at the Gloucestershire Drama Association’s awards ceremony the following year, picking up the Best Actor, Best Supporting Actress, Best Youth Performance, Best Set and the ‘Champagne Moment’ Awards. Several of the original cast and production team will be involved in the staging of the production this time around as well as new members of the society including some of the junior members.

The performance will be a ‘one off’ rehearsed reading with music and lighting designed to enhance the drama of the production and will be staged at Under The Edge Arts in Wotton Under Edge on the evening of October 31. There will be a fully licensed bar available at the interval and tickets are now on sale from The Cotswold Book Room, Long Street, Wotton Under Edge priced £5.

The Dramatic Society welcomes new members, young and old, so if you want tread the boards or simply help out behind the scenes or front of house please do contact us. Contact details are available on the ‘members’ page on the website wottondrama.co.uk