To celebrate the 250th anniversary of The Leeds Library, Leeds Playhouse in partnership with The Leeds Library and Leeds Libraries are to present a unique new performance which explores the relevance of the library in contemporary society. The production will be performed at The Leeds Library from Tuesday 6 to Saturday 17 November, ahead of a tour of libraries throughout the city.
Founded in 1768, The Leeds Library located in Leeds city centre, is the oldest surviving subscription library of its kind. The library hosts historical collections from popular novels and children’s books and Civil War pamphlets and Reformation Tracts alongside new books and audio/visual items.
Emma Adams said: “I wanted to write this play because The Leeds Library’s 250th anniversary gives a wonderful reason to stop and celebrate people and books. I wanted to write about the things that threaten libraries; to acknowledge that these amazing spaces are at a turning point. As the internet brings in new ways of capturing knowledge, and spending cuts dig deeper and deeper, libraries have a question mark over their heads. The play asks about whether we’re happy that these secular cathedrals are becoming endangered species.”
Director Tess Seddon adds: “Libraries are the perfect place for huge discoveries, new encounters and rethinking everything you ever thought about the world. Emma’s wickedly surprising, heart-warming play is a powerful celebration of this amazing space and its visitors. I can’t wait to help bring it alive in the magical settings of real libraries.”
The Things We Wouldn’t Otherwise Find is at The Leeds Library, 18 Commercial Street, Leeds, LS1 6AL, from Tue 6 – Sat 17 November 2018. Book online at leedsplayhouse.org.uk or call the Box Office 0113 213 7700.
