Not seeing the sunny side of a mental health crisis
- Alan Hulme
- 1 day ago
- 1 min read
Four years in the making, Yorkshire-based dance-theatre company Northern Rascals combines theatre, contemporary dance and spoken word to explore the young modern male experience in Sunny Side. The show can be seen at Leeds Playhouse (June 12-13), and Dance City, Newcastle upon Tyne. on June 18.
Touring in partnership with Andy’s Man Club - a men’s suicide-prevention charity - the show raises awareness of the mental health crisis affecting young people. The work was developed using the real-life experiences of over 1,400, 14 to 30-year-olds from across the UK.
Co-artistic director Anna Holmes said: "Sunny Side is a response to our personal collective experiences of young people who have grown up in the Calder Valley and similar areas across the north.
"For more than four years we have worked with young people to question what home means and how our fostering environment impacts the path we can take and the future that seems available to us.
"What became apparent across our research is that our young people are anxious, trapped and overwhelmed by an ever-changing world in which our future seems difficult to place.
"The show prompts conversation on vital topics, questioning why is there a mental health epidemic in young people? Why is suicide the biggest killer of under-35s, particularly young men? Why does that seem even more apparent in a small Yorkshire town celebrated for its liberal and progressive environment? How can we fix it?"
More info and tickets here