Published at 11:08, Thursday, 18 October 2012

CUMBRIA is set to get an insight into the infamous Pendle witch trials that took place 400 years ago in Lancashire.

Infamous Tragedy: Cold Light Singing

Function Factory Theatre bring their acclaimed touring production Cold Light Singing – the Pendle Witches Story to Ireby, Bassenthwaite and Ravenglass. The shows form part of this season’s Arts Out West Rural Touring programme which brings arts to rural venues in West Cumbria.

Written by actress and playwright Yvonne Pinnington, Cold Light Singing has toured the country to critical acclaim. Yvonne, who was born in Milnthorpe, raised on Merseyside and now lives in Lancashire, is delighted to bring the play to Cumbria for the first time thanks to funding from Arts Council England.

“I am really excited that the play is coming to Cumbria,” she said, “especially to intimate venues where I feel it works best.

“The play is set entirely in the cells, and courtroom of Lancaster Castle and the drama is concentrated on just three of the accused. It is especially poignant as it is the 400th anniversary of when the real life events took place.”

As well as touring around the country, extracts of the play, together with an interview with Yvonne, have been featured on BBC Radio 4’s Woman’s Hour, and Cold Light Singing has even been performed, a number of times, at Lancaster Castle itself.

Yvonne added: “Performing the play in the place where the real life characters that we portray, met their fate, was an eerie experience for the entire cast.

“It reinforced my belief that as a writer and actress I wanted to be true to the memory of the people caught up in this tragedy, and although these events took place 400 years ago, the themes still have relevance for us today.”

Cold Light Singing can be seen at The Globe Hall, Ireby, on Friday (016973 71863), Bassenthwaite Parish Room on Saturday (017687 76675) and Muncaster Parish Hall, Ravenglass, on Sunday (01229 717656). All shows start at 7.30pm.

More information is available at www.functionfactorytheatre.com.

Published by http://www.whitehavennews.co.uk