- Hi, I'm Alex Young and welcome to
‘Standing at the Sky's Edge’ at the National Theatre.
A brand new musical, which is a heartfelt love letter to the city of Sheffield,
featuring the music of Richard Hawley and written by Chris Bush.
The production takes place over three decades
the 1960s, the 1980s and the late 2010s.
Rose and Harry want the new life they've been promised.
Joy and Jimmy want to spend the rest of their lives together.
And Poppy wants to escape her old life in London.
Expect a night of song and dance
as we watch our characters lives unfold in the gorgeous Olivier theatre.
There will be scenes of romance, heartache,
all on the backdrop of the iconic Park Hill Flats.
This is Rose and her new husband, Harry.
They are amongst the first people to move into Park Hill
in the 1960s.
Here we have Joy, a Liberian refugee who moves to Park Hill
in the 1980s and becomes fast friends with Jimmy.
And I play Poppy,
who moves to Sheffield from London in 2015
and has a turbulent relationship with her ex-fiancée, Nikki.
The estate agent, Connie, narrates our story
alongside a host of other characters who help illustrate the tapestry
of life in Park Hill over the decades.
The main characters
live in this Park Hill flat.
You can see a kitchen with a freestanding fridge,
a sofa and armchair.
Finally, you can see a dining table with six chairs surrounding it.
On the balcony above is where the band will play
the show's musical arrangements.
We are here to warmly welcome you to the National Theatre
and provide a seamless experience getting to and navigating the theatre.
The National Theatre is on the South Bank in London.
You can get here easily by public transport.
If you're getting here by car,
the entrance to the National Theatre car park is on Upper Ground by Theatre Avenue
the road between the National Theatre and the BFI.
This is available from 6am
till midnight on weekdays and
7am till midnight at the weekend.
There are access parking bays.
These are free of charge for Blue Badge holders
attending a performance or eating at one of our restaurants.
Just show your Blue Badge and car park ticket along with your theatre ticket
or restaurant receipt to the ground floor Box Office for validation.
prior to leaving. Car park discounts are available
to non-Blue Badge holders.
Please check the National Theatre website for rates available to you.
Just across from the access parking bays is a
ramped entrance with power assisted doors.
Through these doors, you will find lifts to the theatre.
The different floors are signposted inside the lift.
This is the main entrance of the National Theatre.
Members of staff will be carrying out
security checks, such as asking to see your bag.
This will be contact free.
On the ground floor,
there is a bookshop,
several cafés, a cloakroom and disabled toilets.
To get to the Olivier theatre, you can take stairs or lifts.
Welcome to the Olivier theatre foyer.
Smart captioning glasses and hearing enhancement headsets will be available
to collect in the Olivier theatre foyer from 30 minutes before the show.
Pre-booking is encouraged.
Here is the entrance to the Olivier theatre stalls.
Aisle numbers are printed on your tickets
and are marked next to the doors.
Accessible toilets are situated
down the corridor to the left.
This is the Olivier theatre,
the largest theatre at the National.
It's based on a Greek amphitheatre and seats over 1000 people
At our dementia friendly performance of ‘Standing at the Sky's Edge’,
Customer Service Assistants will be on hand to help,
as well as an open door policy to come in and out of the theatre as you please.
The show will contain adult themes
and strong language, including some scenes depicting physical violence,
alcohol abuse and death.
There will also be flashing lights, haze
and loud sound effects.
The show will run for approximately 2 hours 50 minutes,
including a 20 minute interval.
For further information or to book tickets
for this performance on the 11 March at 2pm, please visit
Hopefully I'll see you soon.