Hastings challenge: stage Charlie and the Chocolate Factory in just ten days

A cast of 100 young local performers will take audiences to Roald Dahl’s whimsical world as Charlie Bucket and his golden ticket-winning companions explore the wonders of Willy Wonka’s Chocolate Factory in a full-scale musical production featuring an impressive set accompanied by a live band and colourful costumes. Tickets from £12 can be booked online at whiterocktheatre.org.uk or by calling the box office on 01424 462280.

The Summer Youth Project is now in its 21st year and offers youngsters aged eight-18 an artistic outlet during the summer holidays but just as importantly the experience of working in a venue under the direction of a professional creative team.

Directing the summer show for the sixth time this year is actor and director Ben Watson, best known for his regular starring roles in the White Rock’s annual panto – and once again, Ben is relishing the enormity of the challenge ahead.

“What happened was that in 2016 I was in the dressing room when we were doing Peter Pan last and our wardrobe mistress said ‘You direct, don’t you, Ben?’ I had directed some sketch shows and I had directed a show that had been in Edinburgh few years before. I was a fledgling director and she started to talk about the Summer Youth Project which is a ten-day intensive process with 100 participants, very much in the same mode as panto in that you do it completely from scratch very quickly

“And so I did it and the first one I did in 2017 was Oliver! and it went very, very well. It's a very intense experience and we were all tired but it was actually one of the most in rewarding jobs, actually one of the most rewarding experiences I've ever had in the theatre. The point is is that it is not just about you. It's about 100 other people's experiences as well. It's the dissolution of your ego! We all need ego to survive but you've got to keep it in check and this is all about looking after 100 people and making sure that they get the most out of it. It's the bigger picture and you know that it's something that they will take away with them for the rest of their lives. We've had participants that have gone on to now be working as creatives on the project and other participants who started at an early age and are now at drama school or even working in the profession.

“What we do is that we try to take it to the same level of production values as a panto and instil a professional experience in them all during the summer holidays. It is a great way to make friends and socialise but at the same time we treat them as young professionals and instil in them all those values.”

Helping Ben is that it is very much about collaboration: “I'm lucky enough to have people around me who've worked on this over many years. We have the same creative team and it's like we have a shorthand. We're able to finish each other sandwiches! But the other thing is that in order to make it as successful as possible, preparation is absolutely key. There are a lot of meetings and a lot of pre-planning. Preparation is key with costumes and sound and all the different departments knowing that once we get into the actual process that's when the real countdown begins and that's when we are on the rollercoaster.”