One of the highlights of the island’s theatrical calendar takes place later this month.

The Easter Festival of Plays, organised by the Manx Amateur Dramatic Federation, will feature seven very different, full length plays, performed by visiting theatre groups over seven nights at the Gaiety Theatre, between Saturday, March 31 and Friday, April 6.

Featuring this year are three teams of performers who are travelling from Europe to take part.

Returning this year are last year’s winners, the University Players, from Hamburg.

They will perform a dramatic version of the story of Joan of Arc.

Also returning is last year’s winning director, Nigel Harvey, who directed The University Player’s production of ’Frankenstein’.

This year he directs Upstart Entertainment, from Basel, in Switzerland, who will perform ’The Vandal’, a story of three lonely people whose lives intertwine.

The London Stockholm Players open the festival with ’The Missing Links’.

Again, this year’s entry from the White Cobra theatre group is eagerly anticipated.

The former winners of the British All Winners festival of plays are regular visitors to the Manx festival, and this year they are to bring their version of the story of the world’s worst opera singer to the island on Sunday, April 1.

’Glorious’ tells the story of Florence Foster Jenkins, a New York heiress who dreamt of being an opera singer, despite being unable to sing a note.

Clare Austen, chairman of the Easter Festival of Plays, said that attracting such a varied and international line-up is a sign of how well the festival is considered overseas.

’A lot of the teams love to come here for the festival, because they treat it like a holiday,’ said Clare.

’The University Players from Hamburg had an absolute ball when they were here last year.

’There were around 18 of them, and they stayed for most of the festival week, and ventured all over the island.

’It is the same with our regular teams, who come here most years, such as the teams from Wellington and the Bejou theatre group.

’They have been coming for years, and they all see it as a holiday,’ she said.

’That creates a wonderful happy atmosphere for the festival, and that is why it is always such an enjoyable event to be part of.’

’It takes a lot of organising, and awful lot of work goes in by the volunteers,’ Clare continued.

’But when the festival takes place, we see it as a fitting and fantastic finale to all the hard work.’Tickets for the festival are £13 per night, or £56 for a week pass, available from the Villa Marina Box Office.

More details and a full running order for the seven-day festival can be found on madf.im

by Mike Wade

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