Archive Hour: Bonhill youth speak out in hard-hitting show

TEENAGERS from Bonhill have performed a hard-hitting play inspired by their own experiences of drugs in their community.

Bonhill Youth Arts Group wanted to create a performance which showed how drug addiction not only affects the user, but their friends, family and the whole of society as well.

The 16-week venture was supported by community-arts project SPARC who worked with professionals from Bazooka Arts. The group of 14 to 16 year-olds were responsible for every aspect of the multi-media production from making the curtains and props to creating the characters and writing the script.

They wanted to knock down some of the negative stereotypes about young people and Zoe Lacey, 15, from Bonhill said: “The play shows that teenagers are not all bad like we are often made out to be. People think we are always hanging about, causing trouble and taking drugs but we have been working hard to put together this play and show we are not like that.”

The group are now hoping to raise funding to take the play to other communities.

Zoe Brook, drama worker with Bazooka Arts, added: “The whole process from making up their characters through to putting on the play is important because it shows those taking part that they can do anything by putting their mind to it.

“This age group are often regarded negatively by adults and this play shows their side of the story, that they aren’t all troublemakers or into drugs and they deserve to be treated with a bit of respect.”