JACK the Treacle Eater, one of Yeovil’s legendary characters, is famed for running long distances at high speed and fuelling himself with treacle.

But in the Yeovil College end of year show for performing arts students, that fuel was friendship.

It must have been a horrendous year for students, with classes happening and then not happening, on line and occasionally in person, and missing out on the social life that college means. When Nick White, a former YC student and now director of Wassail Theatre, was asked to take on the course, he decided to feed off what HE learned at the College. Calling in professional colleagues to oversee aerialism, choreography and music, he gave the students a project and encouraged them to make new work and own it.

The result was The Name is Jack, set in 1989 and telling the story of a boy who has just moved to South Somerset and joined a school in Yeovil.

With a soundtrack of pop from the era and a couple of new songs, Jack tries to make friends in a hostile environment. Rebecca thinks she’s so much better than everyone else, Isaac is a diffident loner, Tom is a big sports fan, Lucy is battling with a new step family ….. all of them putting up a supposedly brave but actually confrontational face.

Jack  learns to make friends by helping the others – literally running their errands and messages – until they all realise what they are doing.  The hated Yeovil becomes their home.

In around 40 minutes the story  unfolds in a show that gives everyone a chance to do their thing.

Well done Joe Bunting, and Ruby Coleman, Taylor Collicutt, Josie Farrant, Adam Holehouse, Serena Shutt, Lauren Stuckey, Kenza Tetali-Talibart, Owen Thompson, Keda Walbridge, Harrison Waterhouse and Emma Woodford.

Here’s looking forward to the next show, and a much easier but equally exciting remainder of course for all of you.

GP-W