Compton Players court thriller heads to Abingdon drama festival and Edinburgh Fringe

After their successful one-act play production of Evil Will Come in November, reviewed by @newburytoday reviewer Derek Ansell - “It was, as is usual with Compton Players, a smooth, well-paced production with a sting in the tail” – the amateur theatre company has entered it for the Abingdon drama festival of one-act plays on June 15.

It’s the same play and cast, but the title’s changed to In Her Defence.

Meanwhile the author Helen Saxton has made some changes and is taking it to the Edinburgh Fringe later this year with a cast of two instead of seven, her and Pete Watt, who will now play all the characters.

If you want to see how she’s done it, there is a one-night-only preview at Compton Village Hall on July14.

Booking opened yesterday (Wednesday) online www.comptonplayers.co.uk

London, 1947. Philip Mackinder is dead. His wife, Catherine, has shot him. As a court hears the evidence leading up to the murder, we witness the disintegration of the couple’s marriage and discover the real, surprising truth...

ODN Drama Festival runs from Monday June 13 - Saturday 18 at the Unicorn Theatre, Abingdon, two one-act plays per evening and three plays called back for Saturday Gala night.

The adjudicator for 2022 is Louise Manders, a member of GODA.

This is a friendly festival and our main aim is to bring people together, both in a celebration of theatre and as a learning experience.

A rare feature of the ODN drama festival is that after each adjudication, there is also a short workshop with the cast, if you wish to stay and watch.

The Edinburgh Fringe will take place from August 5 to 29.

The Compton Players have been producing plays since 1947, from Shakespeare to brand new contemporary work and anything in between. Be it a thriller, a high paced farce, a pantomime, tense drama, light comedy or a classic piece, they love a challenge.