Dear Drama folks,
These are some short texts which were written by Playwriting students for listening to in Hoopern Valley.
They were written as one of their weekly exercises, so were not originally intended to be shared, but we thought you might enjoy them in this beautiful place.
If you don’t know the valley, well, it is hidden in plain sight. The gate at the bottom of Prince of Wales Road, near the traffic lights, is locked. But it is easy to climb over and no one will stop you. If you prefer to go in without the scramble, there is a stile, more or less opposite the Roborough. It can also be accessed through a gate off the path that runs along behind Danes Road and Horseguards (the path coming out opposite Lafrowda). It is probably not that accessible if you have mobility problems (or are isolating, of course), but you might enjoy the texts anyway. You can also see into the valley from Thornlea studios.
Vicky Whitehead’s text is intended to be read out loud by three people, so I have placed it here.
There may be more later so check for updates.
Narissa Birtwhistle’s Hoopern Valley text file won’t upload but if you are a student or staff at the University of Exeter, you can listen here.
Ellen Ranebo’s ‘The Valley’ can be found here.