Echoes of Gonamena: a dramatic playreading - the arc

Saturday 18th July 2026, 2.30pm & 7.30pm

Book tickets here

Gonamena played to packed houses at Sterts Arts and Environmental Centre in East Cornwall throughout the summer of 2009. And on July 18 this year show will return to Sterts for two performances only – matinee and evening.

Written by Simon Parker, directed by Olivier Award-winning Kneehigh director Simon Harvey, and produced by Sarah Pym, the show’s newly-adapted script – renamed Echoes of Gonamena – will feature live performances by the acclaimed Boilerhouse choir.

Echoes of Gonamena is set in and around Minions in the mid-1800s and follows the fortunes of the Crago family as their farming life is quickly subsumed by industry centred on a huge copper boom. Inward migration tops three thousand within a few years, leading to the development of shanty towns, ale shops and whorehouses. The life of the miners and their families is tough and dangerous, while industry brings huge change for local people.

“The Cragos are a family divided,” said writer Simon Parker. “And the play asks the question: will the mines deliver opportunity or wreak destruction? It is a universal story of change, and our individual responses to that change. At its heart is a serious message, but there are lots of laughs along the way.

“The original production featured some 70 performers and musicians. This time around, the story will be told by a core cast of a dozen professional and community actors – no props, no set, no costumes, just words to ignite the imagination.”

Echoes of Gonamena is produced by East Cornwall-based production company, THE ARC (thearctheatre.com), which combines the talent and experience of professional and community artists with a professional production team. THE ARC has staged large-scale shows at The Minack, Theatre Royal Plymouth, and Sterts. Founded in 2009, its productions include Gonamena (2009), Third Light (2014 and 2018), Poltroon (2021) and The Last Shout (2024).

Producer Sarah Pym said: “The story of Gonamena is as fresh today as it was when we first staged it. The experience of boom and bust and how this impacts on everyday lives has such powerful echoes today. The promise of progress still provokes and divides families and communities. It certainly did for the Cragos of Gonamena.”

As part of the project, visual artist Gabby Schooling has been working with Year 5 pupils at Upton Cross primary school, making animated figures of miners and ‘‘knockers” which will be exhibited in Sterts’ Hall Gallery as part of a wider celebration to mark the 20th anniversary of Cornwall’s mining sites being granted UNESCO World Heritage status.

Echoes of Gonamena is supported by Cornish Mining World Heritage Site, Sterts Arts & Environmental Centre, o-region, Linkinhorne History Group, Linkinhorne Parish Council, St Cleer Parish Council, Liskeard Town Council, Cornwall Council Community Chest Fund.

This year marks Sterts’ 40th anniversary. Originally a pig farm, the four-acre site in the village of Upton Cross near Liskeard combines nature and creativity and is home to the Barn Theatre (400 seats), multi-purpose Sturrock Studio (50-70 seats) and Community Hub. Following a period of major redevelopment in 2024, the original amphitheatre is now covered by a solar powered barn, which is run solely off renewable energy. 

Echoes of Gonamena is at the Barn Theatre, Sterts Arts & Environmental Centre, Liskeard, PL14 5AZ on Saturday July 18, with shows at 2.30pm and 7.30pm. To book tickets, visit sterts.co.uk

NOTES TO EDITORS: For information contact Simon Parker (simoncharlesparker@btinternet.com).

PICTURE CAPTION: Elaine Humphries revives her role as Miriam Crago for Echoes of Gonamena.