“People are so fickle you see,
They only want what’s best for “me, me, me”.
Look at you, people don’t want to wear your sorrow,
Profit fits much better on a fellow.”
Radical Redruth: Pop-up Passmore Performance
This Summer a group of talented young people took to the stage, not in theatres, but in libraries, community spaces, and even on the streets.
Inspired by the incredible legacy of John Passmore Edwards, a Cornish philanthropist who built libraries, schools, and hospitals for those who needed them most. The Redruth Public Library he built is now home to the Ladder, so Radical Redruth aimed to honour his belief in the power of creativity, education, and community action.
Working in partnership with Hall for Cornwall, the project gave young people the chance to explore the issues they care about and turn their ideas into powerful, funny and original performance. Guided by director Anna Lovering and assistant director Max Morrison, the young people created a short, thought-provoking pop-up shows over 7 weeks of workshops at The Ladder.
And then, they took it on tour! They took the pop-up performance to Passmore Edward Libraries around Cornwall, from St Ives all the way to Liskeard, stopping at Redruth, Falmouth, Truro and Bodmin on the way.
The play they created was a funny, wacky and radical commentary on modern philanthropists, including a wide range of characters from a storytelling piskie to personification of privatised health care.
“You share the blood, but not the bond
A chance to join could make you strong.
If one builds up, the other falls.
The same gold given but divided calls.
A system will crush you with the power its holds,
Unless you stand together and break its mould.”
