Islington Tribune - by PETER GRUNER Published: 17 October 2008
A scene from Fleeto
On stage… the teenagers who live with knife crime
Extras enlisted from estate for play that rejects hand-wringing
YOUNG people from an estate in Canonbury are appearing as extras in a hard-hitting play about knife crime being staged in London for the first time tonight (Friday) and tomorrow.
The play, Fleeto, which recently won rave reviews in Scotland, opens at The Nave Theatre in St Paul’s Road, Canonbury, at 8pm.
As part of the production, author-director Paddy Cunneen staged a drama workshop on knife crime with 18 young people from the nearby Marquis estate this week. Six were chosen as extras for the on-stage action.
Nave director Tom Hope said: “This play isn’t meant to be a hand-wringing exercise. It’s for people who have to live with these issues day to day, so it makes sense to have those same people on stage, helping Paddy and the cast understand what knife crime really means for people living in Islington.”
The two-night run of Fleeto is supported by a Forgiveness Project exhibition exploring conflict resolution through real-life human experience.
Marina Cantacuzino, who runs the project, said: “We support any initiative which helps people think through the consequences of actions they may live to regret for the rest of their lives – actions which cannot easily be forgiven, by their victims or by themselves.”
Sergeant Mark Rutherford, from Islington Police’s Safer Neighbourhoods Canonbury team, said: “Knife crime is not something that is just going to go away unless the whole community gets involved. “We welcome initiatives like Fleeto to foster constructive debate and make real change possible.”
Tickets at £10 and £5 are available from 020 7704 2158.
