New show, The Devil Danced in Our Eyes, to open at Alnwick Playhouse

The Devil Danced in Our Eyes co-written and performed by Jonluke McKie comes to Alnwick Playhouse on Wednesday, November 30 and Thursday, December 1.

Audiences will be able to meet 15-year-old Jamie whose mum stopped coming out of her room when his Granda Frankie died. Left to his own devices Jamie’s been spending more and more time online - scrolling through the digital realm of pixels, kilobytes and the occasional adult chat room.

But when he meets ‘Windsor_56’ everything changes.

The show, which has been co-written with Allison Davies and directed by Amy Golding, moves on to Queen’s Hall Arts, Hexham, on Saturday, December 3.

Equipped with his guitar and loop pedal The Devil Danced in Our Eyes features the soulful vocals of Jonluke McKie alongside beautiful animations created and projected live each night by Simon Cole.

As Jonluke explains: “I’m a queer artist who grew up in a Benefit class home in Sheffield. The show is semi-autobiographical; I wanted to tell the story of a young person like me, growing up on the margins of society, exploring his sexuality on the internet, which is both liberating and ultimately unsafe.

"The end result is half gig, half play, and I’m delighted to be bringing it to theatre, music and community venues all over the region.”

To coincide with the production the team have been working with a group of 16 to 25-year-olds giving them the opportunity to take part in high-quality creative workshops including animation, songwriting, theatre-making and performance which are all key elements of the show. This activity has been supported by Live Theatre.

Tickets for The Devil Danced in Our Eyes are £15 to £7. The performance is suitable for people aged 16+ and includes descriptions of depression in a family, sexual content and sexual and homophobic violence towards a minor. To find out more visit www.jonlukemckie.com/devildanced.

The Devil Danced in Our Eyes has been made possible with funding from the National Lottery through Arts Council England and with kind support from Live Theatre, Curious Arts, CaroleW Productions, Gosforth Civic Theatre and Alphabetti Theatre.