Marking the Centenary of WW1

Not About Heroes

Wed 10 Sep 2014

Throughout the country, events, projects and ceremonies have been taking place to mark the Centenary of the First World War, and Derby LIVE is no exception. Our Autumn season is full of WW1 related theatre, music and story-telling.

We're kicking off October with the eight Derby Folk Festival which includes two commerative pieces; In Flanders Field from Coope, Boyes and Simpson and All Quiet on the Western Front, with readings by students from Chellaston School and music from Aftermath.

Shortly after, the songs and stories of WW1 are recalled in Music Hall and will include all the best known and well-loved of the war songs - so you can really get into the spirit and sing along to all your favourites!

Towards the end of October we're welcoming Feelgood Theatre and their play Not About Heroes which focuses on the relationship between war poets Siegfried Sassoon and Wilfred Owen.

Then, in November, aclaimed story tellers and musicians will tell the story of the 'war to end all wars' through the families of one Lincolnshire village in Barbed Wire for Kisses.

Below you can find some more information on the shows and events taking place at Derby LIVE to commemorate the centenary of the First World War.

Derby Folk Festival - Coope, Boyes and Simpson: In Flanders Field

Sat 4 Oct afternoon session: 12noon – 1.20pm

City Marquee – Day & Evening tickets £36, concessions available for Students and under 16s

In Flanders Fields takes its name from the poem written by John McCrae who was killed near Yprès in the First War.  Written and compiled by Coope, Boyes and Simpson, the production is a tribute to lives caught up in the War to end all Wars and marks 100 years since the outbreak of the First World War.

Derby Folk Festival - All Quiet on the Western Front

Sat 4 Oct evening session: 6pm – 7.15pm

Guildhall Theatre – evening only tickets £25, concessions available for Students and under 16s

Short passages of text from Erich Maria Remarque’s anti-war classic will be read by students from Chellaston School, interwoven with narrative extracts from Mick Jones’ play The Soldiers Have Taken Our Horses Away.

Thanks for the Memory present Music Hall – In the Shadow of WW1

Sun 12 Oct, 2.30pm & 7pm

Guildhall Theatre - £9, concessions available

Local amateur group Thanks for the Memory commemorate the centenary of the outbreak of WW1; from the humour of the home front to the trauma of trench life they recall, in song and story, the so called “war to end all wars.” Join them to listen or sing-along to favourites including; Pack Up Your Troubles, Keep The Home Fires Burning, They Didn’t Believe Me, Roses Of Picardy and Land Of Hope And Glory.

Feelgood Theatre Productions present Not About Heroes

Tue 21 – Sat 25 Oct, see website for times

Guildhall Theatre - £9.25 - £22.25, concessions, group and school tickets available

During the First World War, two of England’s greatest twentieth century war poets met at CraiglockhartWarHospital,Edinburgh. Siegfried Sassoon was a decorated war hero hospitalised after protesting against the continuing war. Wilfred Owen was a victim of shell shock and accused of cowardice. Returning to the front, Sassoon was shot in the head but survived. Owen went on to win the military cross, die in the trenches seven days before Armistice Day and receive posthumous fame as England’s greatest war poet.

Weaving their great poetry including: Anthem for Doomed Youth, Mental Cases, Strange Meeting, Exposure and The Dead Beat this emotionally powerful and often witty play tells the moving story of the friendship that transformed them both.

“…see it for poetry in action and you will not be disappointed” The Guardian, 2007 tour.

Suitable for all audiences (11 +) and inspirational for those studying Drama, IWW poetry, Literature, History and Performing Arts.

On Sat 25 Oct, there will be a poetry workshop in the Guildhall Bar from 11am until 12:30pm. The workshop will be run by the Feelgood Theatre Company along with one of the actors, who will facilitate a poetry writing workshop based on the themes of Not About Heroes and the inspiration of World War I Poetry, in particular Wilfred Owen and Siegfried Sassoon. Suitable for ages 14+ and available to book for just £4.

Hugh Lupton, Nick Hennessey, John Dipper and James Patterson

Barbed Wire for Kisses – A Village at War

Sat 1 Nov, 7.30pm

Guildhall Theatre, £11.25, concessions available

Barbed Wire for Kisses includes personal accounts of life and death and the memories of families at home open a deeply human window onto the trauma that shaped the 20th Century.

Nick Hennessey and Hugh Lupton delved into the Lincolnshire Archives to research real stories of Lincolnshire residents during the First World War. They weave a series of verbatim extracts from letters through the performance, which blends historical fact with empathetic invention. James Patterson and John Dipper blend classic folk songs with newly composed music.