A COUNTY actress is returning back to where it all began this week as she produces and stars in Skylight at the Swan Theatre’s Vesta Tilley studio.
After first taking to the stage in local amateur groups, Katherine Parker-Jones from Kidderminster had her first job at the Swan Theatre.
From there she acted in many Swan Theatre summer shows and her company, Aspect Theatre, grew out of production first staged in Worcester.
Having fallen in love with theatre at a young age, she began an apprenticeship at the Swan Theatre Worcester in 2007, working both front of house and behind the scenes, as well as appearing in many of the summer productions at The Commandry, including Midsummer Night’s Dream, Taming of the Shrew, and Much Ado About Nothing.
Since then Katherine has worked in theatres across the Midlands while returning to the Swan stage in productions such as Separate Tables, Blithe Spirit and Abigail’s Party.
Katherine currently works at The RSC in Stratford, but since 2019 she has run her own theatre company, Aspect Theatre, with the goal of bringing affordable, quality theatre to intimate venues across the Midlands.
Aspect Theatre’s first production, Duet for One in May 2019, was performed at The Attic Theatre in Stratford, but grew out of an earlier production of that play, put on at the Vesta Tilley studio in 2017.
Following this success, Aspect Theatre staged After Miss Julie in November 2019, again to rave reviews.
Now Katherine returns to the venue that was so instrumental in cementing her love for the theatre with Aspect’s production of Skylight which began on Tuesday (April 12) and runs until Saturday (April 16).
This powerful piece by David Hare concerns Kyra, a teacher in a rough inner-city school, who receives an unexpected visit from her wealthy former lover, Tom.
Written as Thatcher’s decade gave way to Cool Britannia, this explosive play examines the timeless issues of sex, wealth, and politics, and is still as relevant today as it was when written in 1995.
As well as acting in the play as Kyra, Katherine is also the creative producer, sourcing pieces for the set and costumes locally, in keeping with Aspect Theatre’s ethos of sustainability.
Also starring in the production are Ben Armitage, who recently graduated from the Royal Birmingham Conservatoire and is making his Aspect Theatre debut, and John Lines who returns after appearing in Aspect Theatre’s production of After Miss Julie.
The play is directed by artistic director Marc Dugmore, who has directed all of Aspect Theatre’s productions, and who also began his professional career at The Swan Theatre in the 1980s.
Visit www.worcestertheatres.co.uk/swan-theatre/whats-on/skylight or call 01905 611427 for more.
