A hard-hitting piece of theatre, 'Blank' explores the stories of adults and children who are impacted by the criminal justice system. The script was originally workshopped by inmates from a women's prison before being performed by youth theatres up-and-down the country as part of the National Theatre 'Connections' festival. Each production of ‘Blank’ is unique, as the company choose the scenes which speak the most to them and tell the stories of how the justice system and the actions of others, and sometimes yourself, impact the lives of young people every single day.

 

Alice Birch, the writer, explained ‘I was interested in writing a piece of theatre that gives as much control over to companies as possible, whilst still remaining a robust piece of theatrical writing. I'm interested in the often cyclical nature of violence, of incarceration and particularly around women in prison, and children who are inevitably left behind - the unacknowledged victims of crime.’ 

 

Our Junior Youth Theatre group delivered a deeply emotive interpretation of the stories. After their 'home performance' in Aberdeen, Shazam's Junior Youth Theatre went on to travel to Eden Court in Inverness and perform alongside hundreds of other budding young performers from all around Scotland as part of the National Theatre 'Connections' festival.