Charles Dickens’
Hard Times
Friday 19 May – Saturday 3 June 2017
An Oldham Coliseum Theatre Production
Adapted for the stage by Stephen Jeffreys
Directed by Chris Lawson
Designed by Samantha Dowson
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Press Night: Friday 19 May, 7.30pm
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Oldham Coliseum Theatre’s forthcoming production of Hard Times draws parallels between
Charles Dickens’ themes and the 19th century and the present day.
First published in 1854 as a series in Dickens’ weekly magazine, Household Words, Hard Times
uses its characters and stories to expose issues of class divides, politics and education. Set in a
fictional northern mill-town, it was the only of Dickens’ novels that had no scenes in London.
Chris Lawson, Associate Director, Oldham Coliseum Theatre, commented: “Many of the
themes explored in Hard Times are relevant today - the story could easily be set in present-day
Oldham in one of the town’s now derelict factories. Our production is visually inspired by the red
brick architecture around Oldham and nearby Manchester’s Northern Quarter and Ancoats. Old
disused mills still remain, others have been reborn as modern-day places of commerce, where
people still work for a minimum wage. The issues of low wages and ‘just about managing families’
are as current today as they were in the 1850s. The position of the arts in education continues to
face challenges and conflict between facts and imagination remains. It is 2017 and yet Dickens is
still relevant in our world where capitalism is in crisis and democracy hard to sustain.”
Hard Times is the story of fact-obsessed schoolmaster and politician, Mr Gradgrind, mill owner
and banker, Josiah Bounderby, and their impact on the community of Coketown.
When a travelling circus comes to Coketown Gradgrind is obliged to admit a young girl whose
father has abandoned her to his school. Sissy Jupe becomes a companion to his daughter,
Louisa, who marries Bounderby, whilst Gradgrind’s son, Tom, gains employment at Bounderby’s
bank. Problems escalate when, trapped in a loveless marriage, Louisa is tempted by an affair and
there’s a robbery at the bank. A looming feud between the mill workers and their employers leads
to an unexpected death.
Oldham Coliseum Theatre’s production of Hard Times will feature a cast of seven actors playing
19 characters. The cast includes: William Travis, as Josiah Bounderby, who played the role of
Mr Squires in the This Is England series and Cliff Burnett as Mr Gradgrind, who last appeared in
Oldham in the Coliseum’s Manchester Theatre Award nominated production of The Pitmen
Painters.
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Hard Times runs at Oldham Coliseum Theatre from Friday 19 May – Saturday 3 June 2017
Tickets can be booked on 0161 624 2829 or at www.coliseum.org.uk
Link to production page: http://www.coliseum.org.uk/plays/hard-times/
For further press information, please contact Shelly Ramsdale on 0161 785 7012 or
[email protected]
Oldham Coliseum Theatre is a cultural and educational charity that works with over 150,000 individuals
per year.
The Coliseum has a rich history in Greater Manchester dating back to 1885. It provides a wide variety of
distinctive theatre performances and participatory activities for people from all communities in Oldham,
Greater Manchester and beyond. It creates eight original productions each year, of which up to half are
newly-commissioned work, which are presented at the Coliseum and on tour. Intrinsic to the town’s ongoing regeneration, the theatre works with its local communities and young people to develop creative
programmes to facilitate learning, engagement and community cohesion. The Coliseum is actively
engaged with Oldham Council and Arts Council England to deliver a new theatre in the town by 2020.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------Images:
A high-resolution JPEG of the artwork for Oldham Coliseum Theatre’s production of Hard Times is
available to download from Dropbox via:
https://www.dropbox.com/s/q4ig9oulc2se8j7/Hard%20Times.jpg?dl=0
Rehearsal photographs will be available from Wednesday 10 May 2017
Production photographs will be available from Friday 19 May 2017
Cast:
Tom Michael Blyth
- Stephen Blackpool
Cliff Burnett
- Mr Gradgrind
Isabel Ford
- Mrs Sparsit
Verity Henry
- Louisa Bounderby
Samuel Holland
- Tom Gradgrind
Felicity Houlbrooke
- Sissy Jupe
Production Team:
Chris Lawson - Director
Samantha Dowson - Designer
Alexandra Stafford - Lighting Designer
Lorna Munden - Sound Designer
William Travis
- Josiah Bounderby