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THE WHITE LIGHT THEATRE When was it established, who by, what for, who is it comprised of today?
BY SOPHIE CLIFTON-TUCKER
W
hat is the White Light Theatre?
White Light Theatre was originally known as 'Buds', a small afterschool drama club, founded by Jackie Villa back in 1994. Initially, they held weekly sessions in the small St Anne's school hall to learn drama techniques and skills in a fun setting, produced school plays and participated in the Gibraltar Drama Festival. After a period of dormancy (when Jackie was raising her children), it was revived in 2013 and classes resumed. The name change came later, in 2015, when she felt it was necessary to move away from a school-based club to cater for an increased membership. Jackie registered the group with GCS under its new name, and enlisted the help of Andrew Dark. Together, and with the support of the Ministry of Culture, they adapted Rebecca Faller's Civil Garrison, writing and publishing the award-winning historical drama Llévame Donde Nací, a play to commemorate the 75th Anniversary of the Evacuation. In 2018, once again 42
fully supported by GoG, they co-wrote and produced The Winds of Change, a play which outlined the events leading up to the 1967 Referendum. Both were performed to sold-out audiences. They were also the first theatre group to use the GADA Studio to produce a smaller, more intimate show with their adult actors in the Tony Award-winning Doubt by John Patrick Shanley.
White Light Theatre's motto is 'We produce to give back' Their youth group has participated in the Drama Festival many times, gathering much praise and nominations for their work from several adjudicators and picking up a few prizes to include Best Supporting Youth Actor (Michael Porter) and Adjudicator Award (for Hoodie). Their last production, Distorted, was devised and then performed by them. It ended up
being nominated for Best Original Play and Best Supporting Youth Actress (Jodie Ferrar). Encouraged to give back to the community, the group contributed to GCS' 2019 World Book Day, performing Harry Potter. For a couple of years, with the help of the Ministry of Culture and monies from their own fundraising events, Jackie has accompanied students to the prestigious West End Stage summer school to take part in a week of performing arts classes, culminating in a performance at Her Majesty's Theatre in Central London. Over the past few years, White Light Theatre has strived to create opportunities for actors to be challenged and learn new styles of theatre. They value and enjoy bringing both adult and youth actors on stage together, as in their Halloween 2019 The Children of Catalan Bay which was performed in the style of an old time Radio Show from the 1940s. Using local directors, actors, writers and technicians, they promote and teach both youth and adults in the dramatic arts. White Light Theatre's motto is 'We produce to GIBRALTAR MAGAZINE SEPTEMBER 2020
