YOU were kind enough to run a review last week of our show Fran's War, a tough and gripping true-life drama of the Bosnian civil war, performed by a talented and committed cast of local young people.

You had run three previous press releases and several articles on our company over the preceding weeks and on the grant of money we had received for the show from the Arts Council. Posters were put up in town and leaflets distributed.

The play ran for three nights at Arrow Vale High School, where we had transformed the theatre with a professional quality set, full lighting and sound, original music and multi-media effects to underpin and strengthen the drama.

The young actors, aged from nine-19, wore authentic costumes, used realistic props and weapons to deliver an original script which was adapted from authentic eye-witness accounts of the horrors of war, as described in Sally Trench's novel Fran's War.

The company had rehearsed and perfected a near three-hour show dealing with events that would scar the lives of any who truly went through them.

It is to their credit they managed to convey the reality of these events with such conviction and professionalism, and without any hint of sentimentality.

Those who came to see the show were all stunned by the cast's maturity and several commented on how "real" it all had been. They could not have given higher praise.

The theatre holds nearly 200 seats yet we sold barely 150 of potentially 600 tickets, mostly to family and friends, and we were fortunate to have several local councillors attend, as well as Sally Trench herself.

So why do the people of this town so readily ignore the work of our young people? I can only speak of our company, knowing that we put on highly entertaining and professional show.

We are one of a number of local youth groups, many of whom report similar levels of apathy from the local community.

So what can we do to make local people realise what they are missing?

Tickets are very cheap, we are very local and we can guarantee high quality entertainment.

How can we get you to set your videos, postpone the soap/reality TV show you were going to watch and come and see some live theatre?

Jo and Barnaby Hiles

Break a Leg Theatre Company