Thursday night at the Yard was a night to remember for several reasons. Firstly….the numbers….wow, the biggest house yet…38! Secondly…the weather must be changing because some of the side panels had been removed and we were open to the elements (we put them back in at the interval, bit chilly)…and thirdly, of course, we were joined by the wonderful Dave Tong and his fascinating piece, The Shaming of Agnes Leaman. We had heard Dave tell one story at our February evening and he made such an impression on audience members that I knew I had to book him for a whole session. He didn’t disapoint. The whole night was wonderful. A very carefully researched and crafted piece that was filled with a multitude of historical references that were mesmerising and made me want to Google when I got home to find out more…and delightful stories that gave us a real flavour of Tudor times, told in a refreshingly honest and untheatrical way that made me want to hear more. The stories were a great balance to some of the uncomfortable facts presented to us. Dave is a great ambasador for Norwich, painting a picture with images that conjured up the real place, warts and all. I do hope that Dave can get more people to hear this piece.
“A brilliant evening” said one audience member, “Can we have him back next year?”
What more can I say?