St. Ives Youth Theatre - News Release
	Date:	21st May 2007
	Subject	St. Ives Youth Theatre is searching for the Brad Pitt of 2040 !
	Contacts	For press enquiries about St. Ives Youth Theatre, please contact Ian Lloyd on 07803 088185. More information about the St Ives Youth Theatre is available on www.siyt.co.uk

For this summer’s production, SIYT’s Artistic Director, Jonathan Salt, needs to cast three 4-6 year old boys to play alongside their older counterparts in the opening scenes of ‘Brother Jacques’ – a brilliant musical, set during the Napoleonic Wars, is the story of brothers, French Prisoners of War, separated when very young at their mother’s execution at the Bastille, their capture, imprisonment and parole.

“It’s a difficult piece of casting as the boys need to look like the actors we’ve already cast as the brothers in later life”, commented Jonathan Salt, “but we’re never put off by the production challenges set by any work.”  Which is just as well as the company faces one of their biggest technical challenges to date with a full size guillotine being used to behead a cast! “We gained a lot of experience with younger actors when casting the orphans for Korzcak” said Jonathan, “and of course they tend to steal the scenes too!”

Needless to say, there’s also a love story, several evil villains, cider drinking and a real guillotine thrown in for good measure. Scenes also take place in the court of King George III, Dartmoor Prison, a French Man O’War and Newport Docks. There’s also the prospect of brawling, battle and betrayal. What an evening out.

As well as developing stage and production skills amongst young people, St. Ives Youth Theatre also believes that each piece produced provides an opportunity for it’s members to understand and explore the issues at it’s core - the company will be visiting Dartmoor Prison in the coming weeks.

If you have a budding Leonardo di Caprio at home – one that looks even younger than Leo! – please contact Jonathan Salt on 07939-213771.

Brother Jacques will be performed at the Burgess Hall in St. Ives from 10th-14th July 2007.

More information about the St Ives Youth Theatre is available on www.siyt.co.uk 

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