Youth show inspired by wartime rescue

If you’ve ever heard someone say “nothing exciting ever happens in Sheringham” then a show by the town’s Little Theatre youth drama group has shot that down.

Pirate adventures, tipsy teenagers and lovelorn fishermen all featured in flashbacks to action from the past in the production called A Pint Sized Problem which was devised and performed by the Act One group for 12 to 18-year-olds.

Youth groups leader Ellen Waite said the original inspiration for the show was a real life Second World War story about the landlord at the Crown pub on the seafront peering through a polished glass and spotting a dinghy which contained Polish airmen in need of rescuing after their bomber ditched offshore.

The youngsters devised the fictional adventures to disprove “nothing ever happens” moan, but also related five stories of true lifeboat rescues in tribute to the Sheringham lifeboat as the Royal National Lifeboat Institution marks its 200th year.

Ellen praised the 16-strong cast who performed the show this week having been creating and rehearsing it since Easter.

“Some of them have combined this with studying for GCSE and mock exams but they pulled it out of the bag and put on a really great show, with really positive feedback.”

The Act One drama groups have a slightly different format when they restart in September. The youngest group is now for ages 8-11 (instead of 6-8) and there is a new Focus Group for 12 to 17-year-olds who want to take their acting more seriously. People will be selected by audition (preparing a 1-2 minute mini monologue) at the theatre on July 22 at 6pm. No booking necessary just turn up. For more information about youth and adult drama groups visit www.sheringhamlittletheatre.com under the Join Us tab or call the box office on 01263 822347.