Bendigo’s reputation for theatre and arts made it an ideal destination for youth program Theatrecraft.
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Theatrecraft sees a group of young actors work with directors over a week to put together two days of performances.
Project co-ordinator Joanne Watt said Theatrecraft has been running since 2008 and has ventured to central Victoria for the first time.
Theatrecraft is run in conjunction with Regional Arts Victoria and the Victorian Drama League.
“This is the first time we have visited regional areas. We used to be Melbourne based,” she said.
“Having been GIppsland based since 2016, we found we were not having a lot of contact with central Victoria and thought we could take a show there and try to involve those audiences and actors.”
This year’s Theatrecraft project see four directors produce 19 short scene with 17 actors.
The performance – titled The Places You’ll Go – are on at the Engine Room in View Street this weekend.
Ms Watt said the show has already be performed in Gippsland but is being reimagined with a new cast and new directors.
It means a scene that was performed in the Gippsland shows might be completely different in Bendigo depending on how the directors and actors interpret the script.
“It is interesting to see the influence of each director does what they think works and casts it to suit their idea,” Ms Watt said.
“A scene that might be one person can be turned into cast of 10. On page something might look fairly conversational but the scope of interpretation means it could be quite different.”
Performers in Bendigo have come from rural areas such as Echcua, Mildura and Cohuna to take part in the project.
“Some regional places are not well resourced like Bendigo is and there is limited opportunity for regional performers,” Ms Watt said.
“Some of the actors have taken a six or seven hour trip to work with us, which is a huge effort.
“The cast and directors all meet each other for the first time on Monday and spend the week working on scenes.
“In a week, they will do what community theatre groups might do over three or four months. It's amazing to see what people can do in a week.”
Theatrecraft’s The Places You’ll Go is at The Engine Room in View Street, Bendigo, on Saturday July 7 at and 8pm or Sunday, July 8, at 2pm.
Visit www.thecapital.com.au/Whats_On for more details or to book tickets.