Award-winning youth theatre company The Young Pretenders (TYP) are making their Exeter Phoenix debut this May with their brand new show Next Thing. Inspired by Yuval Noah Harari’s best-selling book Homo Deus: A Brief History of Tomorrow.
TYP have built a bold new production that places young people at the centre of contemporary conversations about the dilemmas of tomorrow. Fast-paced, risk taking, and unashamedly honest, Next Thing previews at the Phoenix in May before headlining TYPify Festival at Poltimore House in July. For the first time TYP have been granted funding from Arts Council England for their work in 2018, and are excited to utilise this funding to make their work even bigger, even brighter, and to accurately and creatively represent their young members even better.
TYP’s Artistic Director Lucy Hirst says, “TYP’s main mission is to give young voices big platforms, and that is exactly what we are doing with Next Thing. The show has been built over several months with our young cast, who range from age 11 to 17. In it, we celebrate their voices and strive to showcase their concerns using their own words and boundary-pushing physical theatre. We are so excited to be at the Phoenix – it is a big space which is perfect for a big show with big ideas. Our impressive young cast rival professional adult companies for their commitment and their talent; we can’t wait.”
As well as performing at the Phoenix in May, Next Thing will be back in July, heading TYP’s own dedicated youth arts festival, TYPify. Last year, in its first incarnation, this festival took Poltimore House by storm, involving over 100 young artists from across the South West, with poets from Bristol, youth theatre from Plymouth, Torbay and Dartmoor, and of course a whole host of local young artists from Exeter itself.
Utilising Poltimore House, one of Devon’s most beautiful and underrated heritage sites, TYP are giving the artists of tomorrow a chance to work on a professional platform, by encouraging them to consider their marketing and trading skills as well as their creative talent. Headlining all three evenings will be Next Thing’ and TYP are looking forward to welcoming local food and drinks vendors from across the city.
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Exeter Phoenix, 6th & 7th May 2018 and TYPify Festival, Poltimore House, 6th / 7th / 8th July 2018.
