New Vic Borderlines will premiere a new play inspired by the experiences and ongoing action of North Staffs Miners’ Wives Association Group (NSMWAG) and its Chair, Rose Hunter.
On stage today, 26 July and tomorrow, Saturday 27 July, the the play will mark the 40th anniversary of the 1984 Miners’ Strike.
And tickets for the four performances this weekend can be booked for free via the New Vic website.
The Miner Birds is written by award-winning local writer and Keele University academic Lisa Blower, with contributions from NSMWAG, and celebrates the voices of women mobilised during the miners’ strike and their determination to continue fighting for their communities to this day.
The Miner Birds is a pun on the idea of ‘myna birds’ who are known for their pestering and being heavily territorial. The production is a montage of female voices performed by three actors who, through song, storytelling and poetry, breathe life into the experiences of miners’ wives past, present and looking to the future.
The 45-minute play will be performed in the New Vic Theatre’s outdoor woodland performance space at 2pm and 5pm on Friday 26 and Saturday 27 July.
New Vic Borderlines Director Susan Moffat said: “New Vic Borderlines are delighted to have been awarded funding from Keele Institute for Social Inclusion to explore the experiences of local miners’ wives and their families during the 1984 miners’ strike, in particular how they organised and supported each other, leading to the formation of the North Staffs Miners Wives Action Group.
“We have been privileged to work with Rose Hunter chair of NSMWAG and writer Lisa Blower who has drawn on extensive conversations with Rose and NSMWAG archive material to write The Miner Birds. We want the voices of these women and their determination to continue to fight for social justice, and their communities to inspire girls and women today to find their own voices and ability to make a difference.”
Earlier this year, in May, Borderlines’ Young People’s Theatre Company performed a different documentary piece inspired by the miners’ wives fight, The Solidarity March, at the Potteries Museum and Art Gallery. New Vic Borderlines will now stage their next production marking the 40th anniversary of the strike.
The Miner Birds is free to attend but must be booked in advance. Secure your place in the audience online here or call the New Vic Box Office on 01782 717962. Please bring appropriate clothing for an outdoor performance.
