Find Me! – Bootham Drama Production

When Head of Drama, Andy Quarrell announced the summer production, I must admit I had not heard of the play ‘Find Me’ by Olwen Wymark. Based on a true story that follows the challenges of a young girl growing up in the 1960’s with undiagnosed learning and mental health needs. It exposes the truth about the hardships of life when living with a neurodivergent child at a time when medical staff did not completely understand how to deal with neurodevelopmental differences. Wymark was one of the first female writers to tackle mental health issues and Find Me became and remains one of her most successful plays.

Having neurodivergent children myself, seeing the struggles/stigma that still exist, I was very much looking forward to seeing the play, and wasn’t disappointed.  I was blown away by the depth of acting from such a small and young cast, covering a hard hitting subject that in parts is still sadly very relevant today. The opening sequence tells the story of Verity Taylor (not her real name) who, at the age of 20, was charged with burning a chair in the locked ward of a mental hospital where she was a patient. She was remanded in custody for 3 months and, after a trial at Canterbury Crown Court, she was admitted to Broadmoor, a high security psychiatric hospital. The play throughout is seen via the eyes of Verity as a girl who couldn’t be contained and who was very much misunderstood, it was sad, funny and very thought provoking throughout.

A challenging topic, which all the cast approached with sensitivity and real passion.

Well done to all involved!

Fay Stephenson

Marketing Officer

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