Island theatre

Spring is nearly here – and so are lots of theatre treats for Island audiences.

South Wight Youth Theatre present a stage version of the well-loved book ‘Little Women’ at Bembridge Village Hall on March 19; keep an eye on their Facebook page for booking details.

Another talented group of young people, Curtain Call Creative, bring you ‘Made in Dagenham’ from March 25-27 at the Medina Theatre: tickets are available at medinatheatre.co.uk or call 823884. While on-line or on the phone to them, you can also book your tickets for TheatreTrain’s gruesomely hilarious stage show, ‘The Addams Family’, from April 12.

‘Orpheus Rocks … And More’ is the latest show staged by the ever-popular First Act: you can see it at Shanklin Theatre from March 28-29 – with an extra date now added on March 30! It’s great to see First Act back on stage, so get your tickets by calling 868000 or visiting shanklintheatre.com.

The Apollo Players are in rehearsal for ‘Doubt’ which opens on April 1. Set in St Nicholas Roman Catholic Church and School, the Bronx, New York, 1964, we meet several intriguing characters who have a few things in common: suspicion, certainty, judgement and doubt. Book your tickets from apollo-theatre.org.uk or by calling 210010.

Use the same number and web address to book tickets for Apollo Youth Theatre’s next show too. At the Apollo on April 15 and 16, ‘His Name is Zak’ explores love in its many guises – but does it come with conditions? Growing up and finding out who you are is hard enough for many teenagers, but for Zak, it was harder than most.

Finally, on April 10, Bembridge Village Hall hosts ‘An Evening With Judy Garland’, an intimate look at the star’s life, with songs from her films. If you have never seen the amazingly-talented Hanna Nixon as Judy before, here’s your chance. Audience members have been mesmerised by the way she captures the legendary singer’s voice and stage persona. There are still a few tickets left for this, so don’t miss out – call 07841 950261 to secure your seat.

That’s it for now – but look out for my column next month to find out about further treats in store for Islanders.

By Maureen Sullivan