THINGS TO COME - MERRY IT WAS TO LAUGH THERE

Mercury Theatre hosts poignant performance marking the 100^th anniversary of World War I

Jubilant Productions present Merry It Was To Laugh There, an evocative reflection on WWI, using poetry and diaries written during the global conflict.

Thursday 11 – Friday 12 September

Weaving together poetry, music and diaries with archive imagery and pertinent facts about the lives of the men who were fighting and the women waiting for their return, Merry It Was To Laugh There is a newly devised, moving reflection of World War I.

Performed by two actors of great experience and depth, Christine Absalom (Radio 4, The Rivals, Under Milk Wood, David Copperfield - Mercury Theatre Colchester) and Tim Freeman (Arsenic and Old Lace, Journey’s End, Of Mice and Men – Mercury Theatre), Merry It Was is a must for all lovers of poetry, students of history and those who wish to learn from the past.

A devised piece, it captures the realities of war reminding us of the universal and enduring nature of the emotions expressed whilst acknowledging the unique and unimaginable conditions and situations of that time.

Merry It Was To Laugh There moves from the poetry of the early war and the poet soldiers such as Wilfred Owen, to the words of the soldier poets such as Woodbine Willy writing Trench poetry. It draws on the diaries of a serving soldier and gives a voice to those poems written by women who were finding a new role to play in the world while their men were fighting at the Front. It is an evocative, moving, and at times funny, at times tragic, depiction of real life experiences of the war to end all wars.

I was lucky enough to see it earlier in the tour - my 5* review here.

Merry It Was To Laugh There will play at the Mercury Theatre Colchester from Thursday, September 11 until Friday, September 12  at 7:45pm. Tickets are £12.50, with concessions available.

For more information, including performance times and to purchase tickets, visit www.mercurytheatre.co.uk or call 01206 573948.