Tale of extraordinary lives

Pauline Grogan

Stamp, the performing arts programme designed to bring Aucklanders more live entertainment, is sending one of its most successful shows on a nationwide tour.

500 Letters, Pauline Grogan's one-woman play about her friendship with the country's longest-stay hospital in-patient, returns for encore performances at the Herald Theatre before shows in Nelson, Wellington, New Plymouth and Hamilton.

It is the first production developed by the Stamp programme to be performed outside Auckland.

"In my eight years working in a professional venue, I have never seen a performer build such a strong bond so quickly with their audience," producer and The Edge creative programmes manager Lauren Hughes says.

"Every night after the performance, the audience simply stayed in their seats as if they were waiting to take their newfound friend home. They all wanted to share their own stories with Pauline and thank her for her honesty."

This season also sees the introduction of a loyalty programme for regular attendees of Stamp productions.

Stamp is a collection of plays and dance performances at venues administered by The Edge including the Herald Theatre and the Auckland Town Hall Concert Chamber.

Since its start in 2004, the programme has helped more than 600 performances of 1000 different productions.

But its real significance is as a proving ground for emerging playwrights, production companies and performers.

Grogan's 500 Letters grew out of a book she wrote about her friendship with James Lynch, a severely disabled man who spent 44 years in Tauranga Hospital after an accident he had as a teenager.

Grogan interwove Lynch's tale with her own life story, which included a stint as a Catholic nun and an encounter with a priest which saw her expelled from the convent.

At age 29, she found herself on the streets with her belongings and nowhere to go. She married a year later and had four children in as many years. Her eldest child suffered a stroke aged 10 which led Grogan to study and research the effects of trauma on families.

500 Letters was the first time she had acted on stage and Grogan says she experienced a mixture of anxiety and extreme excitement.

"I feel I have made it my own because this time around I've learnt so much and can relax and concentrate on the performance. The fact it has had such an amazing reaction has also been a huge help."

* 500 Letters at the Herald Theatre on October 12 and 13