The Four Men

Sussex performers and playwright celebrate county’s treasured author with newly adapted play. Conn Artists Theatre Company visits the White Rock Theatre, Hastings on Wednesday 11 October 2017 with a newly adapted version of The Four Men by Hilaire Belloc which tours nationwide this autumn.

The Four Men follows one of Sussex’s greatest writers, Hilaire Belloc, as he takes a spur-of-the-moment Hallowe’en journey on foot across the breadth of Edwardian Sussex, from east to west, with three companions. During their four-day odyssey, they travel 92 miles, drink 300 pints of beer, quarrel, laugh and sing as they tell each other tall tales, recount the legends of the Downs, speak of their first loves and meet some remarkable characters as their adventure unfolds.

Producer Ross Muir, who also stars in the play, explains: “A quote from Bernard Smith in his book, Writers of Sussex, has remained our inspiration throughout; he wrote ‘Belloc loved Sussex as few other writers have loved her; he lived there for most of his 83 years, he tramped the length and breadth of the county, slept under her hedgerows, drank in her inns, sailed her coast and her rivers and wrote several incomparable books about her.’ We have created the play as a true testament to that love.”

The Four Men has been newly adapted for the stage by Sussex playwright Ann Feloy from Hilaire Belloc’s book of the same name. Originally created by Ann as a short, single-act piece which was nominated as one of the top ten plays at the Brighton Fringe Festival in 2010, the new two-act extended version has been re-written to include more of Belloc’s original text.

Here’s a trailer for The Four Men:

The Four Men is supported by the South Downs National Park Authority and Worthing Theatres.

Director Nick Young, who trained as a director with the Royal Shakespeare Company says: “The production is a cross between Larkrise to Candleford and Three Men in a Boat. It includes traditional folk songs alongside famous pieces of classical music by Sussex-inspired composers Vaughan Williams and Edward Elgar.

“The play celebrates a world in-part gone but from which the sights and sounds remain; the past is forever present to anyone who opens their eyes and ears, wishing to feel a part of Sussex and its countryside. This play is perfect for anyone who loves the great outdoors and the beauty of the English language.”

The Four Men
Date: Wednesday 11 October 2017
Times: 7:30pm
Venue: White Rock Theatre, White Rock, Hastings, East Sussex TN34 1JX
Price: £21.00, £20.00, Concessions £2.00 off, White Rock Friends £4.50 off. To book tickets, call 01424 462288 or go to White Rock Theatre. 

Hilaire Belloc

Hilaire Belloc (1870—1953) was an Anglo-French writer and historian. He was one of the most prolific writers in England during the early twentieth century alongside G.B. Shaw, G.K. Chesterton and H.G. Wells. In 1907, Belloc bought King’s Land (in Shipley, Sussex), 5 acres and a working windmill (the same one to be later used in the TV series Jonathan Creek) for £1000 and it was his home for the rest of his life.

Cast

Myself: Ross Muir

Grizzlebeard: David Stephens

Sailor: Lee Payne

Poet: Jake Snowdon

Actor 5: Karim Bedda

Total running time: 2 hours. A five man play in two acts. Act one is 50 minutes, Act two is 50 minutes. There will be an interval of 20 minutes. Suitable for all ages 12+ but not aimed at young children.

 

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