YOUNG Coffs Coast residents can register for free acting and theatre making workshops for youth at the Jetty Theatre in December.

Full-On Theatre, based in the Northern Rivers near Mullumbimby, is back in Coffs Harbour with a cutting-edge new program for young people aspiring to the stage.

The company has show credits at the Melbourne Comedy Festival and Edinburgh Fringe Festival and is returning to Coffs Harbour after its success with ‘Stand Up Stand By’.

Stand Up Stand By was an anti-racism show developed with Orara High School students and performed by Orara High School and All One Under The Sun at the Jetty Theatre.

The show then went to Sydney and was performed at the Riverside Theatre in Parramatta.

‘RISING’ will bring the moving stories of climate-affected communities to the stage, with a show that’s written, developed and performed in collaboration with local youth.

Young people on the Coffs Coast are invited to immerse themselves in the creative process for the first event on Saturday, December 16, to tell stories of bushfires, floods and the climate emergency from those affected by them.

Exploring writing, creating and physical comedy, the workshops will be a great taster of what’s to come in 2024 with the RISING Coffs program taking up residence for four weeks to work with ten lucky young people.

Director Dave Houston from Full-On Theatre will be conducting the free workshops for youth aged thirteen to sixteen from 9:30 am to 12:30pm and for those aged seventeen to 25 from 1:30pm to 4:30pm at the Jetty Memorial Theatre
Mr Houston will also conduct workshops at local high schools before the schools finish this year.

Producer Joel Grimson said the program’s intention is to provide a space and a platform for local youth to “voice their concerns about climate change and associated disasters”.

“It provides them with opportunities to explore writing, creating and physical comedy and to work with professional actors and perform on the big stage at the Jetty Theatre,” Mr Grimson said.

More information and the link to sign up can be found on the Full On Theatre Facebook page.

By Andrew VIVIAN