Inevitable?
You’re 17. You arrive on the threshold. Some of you are fearful, some of you are hopeful, some livid, some oblivious, and some raring to go. You stand amongst strangers, anticipating what comes next.
Mortal Fools Ensemble Young Company returned to the stage in Spring 2024 with a brand new contemporary theatre show, devised and performed by a group of Northumberland young people - showcasing an original soundtrack, bold set design, and their incredible talent, insights, and lived experiences.
This show was for teenagers, young people, parents/carers, and folks that support and work with teenagers. It was an exploration of the phenomenon of growing up that was honest, hopeful, empowering, and poignant.
Across March and April, our Mortal Fools Ensemble Young Company brought Inevitable? to venues across the North in a highly anticipated Spring 2024 tour, delighting audiences and selling out performances.
Nearly 350 audience members joined us to watch the show, exploring a very universal part of life: becoming an adult. Inevitable? toured to YMCA Northumberland, Gosforth Civic Theatre, Burnley Youth Theatre, and Theatre Porto. Big shout out to those venues for having us!
Mortal Fools Ensemble Young Company returned to the stage in Spring 2024 with a brand new contemporary theatre show, devised and performed by a group of Northumberland young people - showcasing an original soundtrack, bold set design, and their incredible talent, insights, and lived experiences.
This show was for teenagers, young people, parents/carers, and folks that support and work with teenagers. It was an exploration of the phenomenon of growing up that was honest, hopeful, empowering, and poignant.
Across March and April, our Mortal Fools Ensemble Young Company brought Inevitable? to venues across the North in a highly anticipated Spring 2024 tour, delighting audiences and selling out performances.
Nearly 350 audience members joined us to watch the show, exploring a very universal part of life: becoming an adult. Inevitable? toured to YMCA Northumberland, Gosforth Civic Theatre, Burnley Youth Theatre, and Theatre Porto. Big shout out to those venues for having us!
“Northumberland is one of Arts Council England’s Levelling Up for Culture areas, meaning that the county is recognised as having a significantly lower level of arts and culture activities available for people to take part in than the national average.
Mortal Fools’ work has always been focused on Northumberland and gives exciting artistic opportunities to the young people who live there. Inevitable? gave our Ensemble Young Company members the chance to make a high-quality original theatre show, through a process of deep collaboration with a range of professional artists, to showcase their work and voices to public audiences and as a beacon for change.”
- Kiz Crosbie, Mortal Fools Artistic Director and CEO
Inevitable Overview
Check out our overview of the Inevitable? project, filled with fantastic reviews from our audiences and advocates, and insights from our Ensemble Young Company cast and staff team:
Continue to read on this page for more information about the Inevitable? project, find out about the Grow Up national exchange of youth theatres and meet the Ensemble Young Company cast...
"What a show! Unexpected and intriguing premise, and the ensemble worked really well together, complimenting each other in a diverse and convincing cast of characters. I had a lot of fun and felt I better understood young people's experiences going into adulthood."
- Inevitable? Audience Member
"Inevitable really made me smile and cry. The characters were so relatable and the topics and subjects they went through really helped me prepare and know what to expect in the future. Every character had their own sparkle and their own aspect of the show that really gave it life. Would watch it again 100%." |
"The quality of the whole production was exceptional. The themes explored were relevant and current. The skills on display by the young people were highly developed and it is evident that time has been spent to develop their stage craft. The technical aspects of the show were seamlessly executed." |
Meet the Inevitable? Cast
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“The show is a rollercoaster of emotions; you will laugh, cry, and develop a real connection with each character. We want young people in the audience to remember that no one can be fully prepared for adulthood and to have fun with the characters as they figure that out.” |
Find out more about the Inevitable? tour:
Looking for more ways to experience our work?
Live performances, theatre tours, digital showcases, films, immersive sound pieces, choose your own adventure games, and so much more! There are always lots of opportunities to experience the work of Mortal Fools.
Click here to find out more.
Click here to find out more.
The Grow Up Project
Inevitable? was part of the national Grow Up! project - created and co-led by Beyond Face, Company Three, Mortal Fools, and Prime Theatre. Headed up by Company Three, Grow Up was underpinned by the belief that youth theatre can create radical, transformative change for young people across the country.
Grow Up did just that!
Grow Up did just that!
Since July 2023, we worked together with Company Three, Beyond Face, and Prime Theatre as creative organisations, to develop the foundations for the Grow Up project and learn from each other.
September 2023 saw the beginnings of four groups of young people and their practitioners - from Northumberland, Swindon, Plymouth, and London - working together collaboratively, whilst devising new work.
Across Autumn 2023 and Spring 2024, we met regularly as leaders and facilitators to share practice, knowledge, and material. We watched each other’s work - cheerleading and supporting each other.
September 2023 saw the beginnings of four groups of young people and their practitioners - from Northumberland, Swindon, Plymouth, and London - working together collaboratively, whilst devising new work.
Across Autumn 2023 and Spring 2024, we met regularly as leaders and facilitators to share practice, knowledge, and material. We watched each other’s work - cheerleading and supporting each other.
“The devising process brought everyone closer together and it’s been fun exploring different lived experiences of growing up. I’ve enjoyed working with the other theatre companies and their young people across the UK via the ‘Grow Up’ project – we’ve learnt a lot from each other.”
-Connor, Mortal Fools Ensemble Young Company Member
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“The Grow Up project is an exciting opportunity for our artists and young artists to directly co-create and collaborate with those at Company 3, Prime Theatre, and Beyond Face. This project enables us to broaden young people’s experiences; like meeting and working with other young people and artists, participating in more arts experiences, and taking them to new places.”
- Helen Ferguson, Mortal Fools Creative Producer
Company Three, Beyond Face, Prime Theatre, and Mortal Fools all started with the same starting point during the devising process, and set out with the intention to create four different full-length plays. Each company shared their Grow Up creative output across February-April 2024. Each theatre show was very different - representative of young peoples’ diverse lived experience - and had moments of real connection.
The springboard for this project and our devising process was the words ‘Grow Up’. Teenagers are told to do this all the time but are rarely given any space to do so. Across the creative process, we explored what our young people think and feel about growing up in the world today.
The springboard for this project and our devising process was the words ‘Grow Up’. Teenagers are told to do this all the time but are rarely given any space to do so. Across the creative process, we explored what our young people think and feel about growing up in the world today.
Meet the Grow Up Youth Theatres
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BEYOND FACEBeyond Face provides opportunities for artists of the Global Majority to live, work, and thrive in the South West theatre sector. Founded in 2015 by Alix Harris, alongside creating their own productions, Beyond Face works with local global majority artists and young people to help them to build their own creative work and sense of community. Throughout their Regional Voices programme, Beyond Face connects with local people who currently have little to no engagement or experience with the theatre industry, investigating how people who don't work in the arts sector can engage with arts as a creative outlet.
“We are super excited about meeting and making new connections with the other groups, especially the residential. We are excited to see how each group will interpret Grow Up, and how our different locations will influence this.” |
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COMPANY THREECompany Three is a leading force for change for teenagers, in our local community and around the world. They are a theatre company led by the ideas of 75 members aged 11-19. They recruit members through deep-rooted relationships locally and share practice globally to impact teenagers everywhere.
Working in Islington, North London, they make transformative theatre through long-term collaboration between young people and professional theatre-makers. Their plays have been performed at the National Theatre, Battersea Arts Centre, the Royal Exchange Theatre, the Yard Theatre, and on the BBC. |
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PRIME THEATREPrime Theatre has been creating theatre for young people, by young people, since 1986. Prime has a large education and outreach programme which includes Prime Youth Theatre and is resident in 7 schools across Swindon. We develop young actors, writers, and technicians aged 5+ through regular workshops, projects, and performances. Recent productions include This is Our Town (a Lottery Funded production performed at STEAM museum), Punk Rock (with a live band and fully integrated British Sign Language), 2046 (a commission which featured Sherlock and Dr Who star Mark Gatiss), and The Odyssey in a new adaptation by young writers.
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