A new comedy drama with original music about the great outdoors and the people who enjoy it will be coming to Keswick’s Theatre by the Lake next month.
Ladies That Dig is about friendship and green fingers, isolation and community, nature, nurture and ultimately what it means to ‘grow’…
It features a fertile blend of live music and inter-twining tales from women who are not afraid to get their hands dirty. Collected from interviews, the play is based on true life stories from allotmenteers, metal detectorists, archaeologists, grave diggers, forensic anthropologists and people who just love to garden.
Ladies That Dig uncovers stories where budding love blossoms, hidden roots are unearthed, buried secrets revealed and golden treasures discovered.
The play is the creation of the Ladies That… Company. Their previous production, Ladies That Bus, toured to sold out venues in 2020.
The company includes actor and composer Helen Longworth (Hannah Riley in Radio 4’s The Archers); director Kirstie Davis (Robin Hood, The Dukes, Lancaster); writer and actor Joyce Branagh (Boomtown Gals – winner Best Performance at Manchester Theatre awards); actor Lisa Howard (House With Chicken Legs and Les Enfants Terribles); and actor Riana Duce (Dracula: The Untold Story).
The play will be performed at the Theatre by the Lake on February 21 and the Rosehill Theatre, Whitehaven on February 28 and the Brewery Arts Centre, Kendal on March 8 and 9, with other rural touring dates to be announced.
Director Kirstie Davis said: “We were on Zoom during the pandemic and realised that everyone was finding the outside spaces in their lives more and more important – this sudden focus on being in nature and gardening made us want to explore the topic more.”
Actor Lisa Howard said: “Gardening and being outdoors are two of my favourite things.
“I find the act of sowing, tending and nurturing plants calming and full of hope (except when they die or some pest eats them all!). There’s nothing quite like eating the produce of your own hard work and care.”
Actor Riana Duce said: “What started as a conversation about how the great outdoors has saved us all these past couple of years, turned into a much deeper look at legacy and what we leave behind via the many ways a person can ‘dig’.
“I’m so excited to share the thoughts of all the brilliant people we met with our audiences!”
