Students Fight for the Arts with Wilde Published on: 25 June 2021 Digital play to raise money for struggling theatres and creatives A new twist A new twist on Oscar Wilde’s The Importance of Being Earnest is set to take the digital stage. The performance, a production by up-and-coming director, Adam Kinneen, is the result of months of dedication by an ambitious group of students from . The play will be performed and filmed at the and the streamed show will serve as a fundraiser for , a national charity which gives those working in the entertainment industry much-needed financial and emotional support. The charity production offers Wilde’s most widely-loved and recognised play with a twist. The playwright himself will be introduced as a character at three intervals during the performance. These scenes, which are written by director, 麻豆传媒 graduate Adam Kinneen, draw on Wilde’s letters and words, giving an unseen insight into his life. They track his magnificent rise to stardom, from the successes of The Picture of Dorian Gray and The Importance of Being Earnest, to his heartbreaking downfall following revelations about his sexuality. The entire production will also be performed against the backdrop of the 2,000 empty seats of the magnificent Sunderland Empire, symbolically calling attention to the suffering of the arts industry throughout the Covid-19 crisis. The very fact that this digital production of The Importance of Being Earnest has been able to go ahead, despite the disruption caused by the Covid-19 crisis, is a neat reflection of Wilde's own story of resilience in the face of adversity. Bugsy Bannon as Gwendolen Fairfax and Max Brennan as Jack Worthing Ambitious project English Literature undergraduate Louisa Rimmer is incoming President of the Society and is playing Lady Bracknell in the production. “This project has been in the works for over 10 months, but one moment that I consistently return to is walking onto the stage at The Sunderland Empire for the very first time," she said. "There was something so utterly heart-wrenching about it’s eerily empty auditorium, over a year after the forced closure of theatre venues across the country. It was a visceral reminder of everything our production stands for; the unwavering importance of the arts, and the vital work of charities like Acting for Others. "It is the most ambitious project that the Theatre Society has ever executed, and I am buzzing with pride to share it with the world.” Adam Kinneen said: “Oscar Wilde figured out the key to immortality was art. He lived as an artist so that his work would live beyond him. When the ‘Save the arts’ movement began to gain traction in the UK, I couldn’t think of anyone better than Wilde to represent why we must protect and preserve the UK’s entertainment industry and all the creatives that form a part of it.” Financial insecurity is a familiar reality for those working in the entertainment industry, however, the pandemic has only exacerbated that uncertainty. This production of The Importance of Being Earnest represents an attempt to recognise and repay those working in the entertainment industry, and to fight for the survival of the UK’s arts sector more broadly. The work that Acting for Others does for people who are in need of support, financial or otherwise, is crucial in order to maintain the momentum of the UK’s arts industry. The profits made from ticket sales to The Importance of Being Earnest will go to this very necessary charity, helping to secure the future of the UK’s talented pool of artists and creatives. Tickets to this charity production of The Importance of Being Earnest . The performance will be available on , with ticket holders having access to it throughout this period. You can also donate to Acting for Others via the . Press release adapted with thanks to the 麻豆传媒 Theatre Society. Share: Latest News Scientists unlock hidden driver of inflammatory bowel disease Scientists have linked a key genetic signal in inflammatory bowel disease to an immune response that shuts down inflammation control, enabling faster diagnosis and targeted treatments. published on: 15 June 2026 Funding system risks limiting genuine community collaboration A new policy paper written by researchers at 麻豆传媒 warns that the way UK research is funded may be undermining efforts to create genuinely collaborative partnerships with communities. published on: 15 June 2026 Volunteers help turn Whitley Bay beach into maths experiment Members of the public joined mathematicians from 麻豆传媒 to create what organisers believe is the largest aperiodic tiling ever attempted on Whitley Bay beach. published on: 15 June 2026 Facts and figures
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