Reproduced with permission from the Craven Herald, www.cravenherald.co.uk

Sheep Town Theatre Company is swapping Bethlehem for Skipton in its latest production.

The group has written and devised A Yorkshire Nativity alongside Craven College BTEC performing arts students.

The play, to be staged at the Mart Theatre, Skipton, is a modern-day twist on the traditional nativity story.

It features a Skipton mum instead of the Virgin Mary and replaces wise men with business moguls and shepherds with local farmers.

Sheep Town founder Thomas Aldersley said: "The play is ideal for families and will take the audience on an interactive tour of the auction mart space.

"Given that the original nativity is set in a manger filled with cattle, we could not think of a more appropriate location to perform the play than at the mart.

 "We jumped at the chance of working with the Craven College students. Sheep Town actors Kenan Ally and Matt Lanigan have been staging workshops with them and have been impressed with their ideas and imagination."

Sheep Town is the resident company at the Mart Theatre, on Gargrave Road, and is committed to producing new plays based on local themes and stories. A Yorkshire Nativity is being performed on Friday December 7 and Saturday December 8 at 7.30pm. Tickets are £3 and £1 for children and can be obtained from the box office on 01756 791411.