A family, a year, a sink

Torquay Theatre Troupe is preparing to showcase its latest production The Kitchen Sink this May.

Written by playwright Tom Wells, the award-winning story centres a family in crisis.

Wells, who has been hailed as one of England’s most promising young writers, presents an irresistibly funny play about a working class family with “big dreams making small changes”.

Audiences are invited to share a year with a family – whose supposedly ordinary lives are rich with idiosyncrasies – as they struggle with their hang-ups, leaning on one another to get through tough times.

At the heart of the family is Kath, a mother coping with the rigours of managing a dysfunctional but loving family while attempting to update her culinary skills, at the same time dealing with a dysfunctional kitchen sink.

Amid the dreaming, the dramas and the dirty dishes, something has to give. Will it be Kath or the kitchen sink?

The play is set in Withernsea, Yorkshire, a small seaside town of about 7,000 people who are coming to terms with the recent opening of the new Tesco supermarket, an event which is having a disastrous effect on Martin’s milk delivery business.

Son Billy, a fervent Dolly Parton fan, has dreams of being accepted in arts school while his sister, Sophie, is struggling to achieve a black belt in jiu-jitsu. Sophie’s would-be boyfriend, Pete, is eager to develop a plumbing business through which he could take his “love of drains to the next level”.

Torquay Theatre Troupe’s portrayal will be directed by Michael Baker, who has chosen to set the play in 2005.

The cast includes TTT regulars Lisa Berry as Kath and Ethan Cook as Martin. New faces Lauren Atkin and Lachlan Steele-Holmes will play Sophie and Billy respectively.

The role of Pete was yet to be decided in time for print, but the theatre group has since announced it has been filled by young local Ben Batterbury.

The Kitchen Sink will open on Monday, May 11 at 16 Price Street, Torquay. Guests will enjoy a free glass of champagne upon entry.

Performances will be held on May 14, 15, 16, 21, 22 and 23 at 8pm. A matinee at 2pm on May 17 is also planned (free glass of sherry included).

Friday night audiences are invited to stay behind after the show to meet the cast and crew. Tickets sales open on March 6 via trybooking.com/BIMUN.

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