Players set for national finals

THE Thurso cast of a Shakespeare-inspired play are hoping it can make as much of an impact on the national stage as it has already made in the Highlands.

Thurso Players will be competing against the best amateur drama talent in Scotland when they battle it out in the national final of the SCDA festival of one-act plays in Stirling at the end of the month.

The two-man production of I am Hamlet, directed by Audrey O’Brien and starring Andrew Crawford and Ken Murphy, grabbed the attention of theatre-goers in the Far North when it won the Caithness heats in February.

It qualified for last month’s Highland divisional finals and took runner-up spot behind Dingwall Players’ production of Green Forms, by Alan Bennett.

By finishing in the top two, Thurso Players have qualified for the Scottish finals at the MacRobert Theatre.

Mrs O’Brien told the John O’Groat Journal she is thrilled to have reached the finals and is looking forward to the big night.

"The Thurso Players have a long record of reaching the national finals of the SCDA and we are proud to carry on this tradition," she said.

"I was looking for a one-act play to enter in this year’s festival and I thought that Richard James’s play was perfect.

"I enjoyed the twist in the tale at the end as I never saw it coming the first time I read it and I liked the idea of using Hamlet’s speeches in a modern play as well."

The play focuses on Simon Prentice, played by Crawford, who turns up to an empty theatre to meet director Tom Grainger (Murphy) to audition for the role of Hamlet.

It begins as a light-hearted comedy when the two men squabble over how the role should be played.

But, as it goes on, it takes on a darker twist when it is revealed that the real reason Simon turned up was to meet the man who had an affair with his mother, which led to his father committing suicide.

In revenge, he pours poison into Tom’s mug of coffee similar to how Hamlet died in the Shakespearean classic.

I am Hamlet will be the first play staged during the three-night final which begins on Thursday, April 26, with the winner being announced on the Saturday night.

Mrs O’Brien does not see this as a disadvantage and said all the crew wants to do is put on a show for the audience.

"We’re not that concerned about winning, but we’re definitely looking forward to performing on such a large stage.

"The theatre is so much bigger than what I’m used to – although the cast have appeared at the national finals before.

"All we want to do is put on a great performance and get some positive feedback from the adjudicator."

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