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HashtagPublicEnemy

The opening of a coastal eco-village is interrupted because of toxic waste in the water supply. An original play by Steve Waters, based on Ibsen鈥檚 Enemy of the People.

鈥淭he Haven鈥 is a Norfolk eco-village on the cusp of a grand opening, which is jeopardised by the discovery of toxic waste in the water table. Based on Henrik Ibsen鈥檚 tragi-comedy about a whistle-blower, An Enemy of the People, Steve Waters鈥 original play HashtagPublicEnemy brings Ibsen鈥檚 themes into the 21st Century to explore colliding pressures around the economy, ecology, cancel-culture, corruption and popularism.

Dr Tom Stockman has returned from a medical career in Uganda to his birthplace, Branwich, on the Norfolk coast. The town is governed by his sister Penny, a dynamic politician seeking to restore its fortunes with The Haven, a state-of-the art eco-village including holiday homes and an aqua-park. Having joined the executive team as an adviser, Tom realises that The Haven sits on a landfill site. Rising sea levels have caused toxins to enter the water table, threatening a tender ecosystem which risks undermining the idyllic vision, and economic promise of The Haven. When Tom breaks the unwelcome news he finds himself at the heart of a spiral of media interest.

Tom Stockman ..... Joseph Millson
Penny Stockman ..... Alexandra Gilbreath
Petra ..... Norah Lopez Holden
Maggie Killingworth ..... Anna Savva
Conor Houston ..... Carl Prekopp
Millie Goff ..... Silvia Presente
Ajay Charkraborti ..... Sartaj Garewal

Writer: Steve Waters
Sound design: Alisdair McGregor
Producer and director: Jeremy Mortimer
Executive Producer: Joby Waldman
A Reduced Listening production for 麻豆官网首页入口 Radio 3

This is the latest ecologically-minded fictional work by Steve Waters following The Contingency Plan, a diptych of plays about climate change, and his role as co-convenor of the Writing and Science Project at UEA. He returned to environmental themes with his solo show 'In a vulnerable place' performed in 2014-2015 and is currently working on an AHRC Leadership Fellowship funded project 'The Song of the Reeds: Dramatising Conservation', an 18-month long collaboration with Wicken Fen and Strumpshaw Fen nature reserves, which has led to a series of acclaimed Radio 4 audio dramas.

1 hour, 29 minutes

Last on

Sun 8 Jan 2023 19:30

Broadcast

  • Sun 8 Jan 2023 19:30