Work Experience - The Truth!

24 04 2012

Students living in North Tyneside are currently working along side professional actors at Gibber, delivering a dynamic tobacco education programme to pupils across the borough funded by the North Tyneside Anti-Tobacco Alliance.

Former Whitley Bay High School pupil Jack Robertson (16) and Katie Powell (18) of Longbenton are both currently studying Performing Arts at Gateshead College and hope to make a career for themselves as performers when they graduate. When she was given the opportunity to audition for  Gibber Katie jumped at the chance; “I’d never had a professional audition before so I was really nervous at first but the directors at Gibber made us feel relaxed and gave us a few tips on what to do and now I’m really excited to be working with them”

Gibber's Creative Director, Vicky Blackburn put the young cast through their paces during an intensive rehearsal period over the Easter holidays.“We wanted the work experience to be as realistic as possible and there’s a big difference between working on a college project over a number of weeks and rehearsing a piece of professional theatre over a week and getting it to the standard Gibber are renowned for but the students have worked exceptionally hard and are a credit to their lecturers at Gateshead College” The team of 5, which also includes Northumbria University graduate Zoe Hakin who is making her professional debut with Gibber will take The Truth to 10 North Tyneside schools, performing to year 7 pupils and finishing on 11th May 2012.

Research highlights that the health impact alone is ineffective in deterring young people from starting to smoke or seek help to quit once addicted. As a consequence  The Truth was developed to explore the tobacco industry and the tactics it uses to recruit and retain young smokers and in particular young females to use its products. This interactive multi media performance encourages pupils to develop their enquiry skills and question what influences are all around them, highlighting how plain packaging can reduce the number of young people who start smoking.

Nobody likes to feel that someone has “got one over on them” least of all young people and that in itself is proving to be motivation enough to deter them from even trying cigarettes in the first place.

For more information on The Truth please click here.

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