THEATRICAL youngsters unfurled a giant red ribbon depicting the World Aids Day symbol to raise awareness of the region’s young HIV sufferers.
Members of the Bishop Auckland Theatre Hooligans (Bath) created the shape and performed a 15-minute play at The Sage music centre, Gateshead, yesterday to mark the event.
The 13 to 18-year-olds, based at King James I Community Arts College, in Bishop Auckland, performed an original drama on the building’s concourse, watched by venue staff, cafe customers and passers-by.
The performance aimed to educate the audience about the stigma surrounding HIV by portraying a young sufferer and how he deals with his condition.
Debbie Connell, from King James’ drama department, said: “It was excellent, the performance went down really well, and we had a good audience.
“The Bath group aims to raise awareness of issues, and has covered domestic violence and teenage pregnancy, but this was one we hadn’t covered before.”
An estimated 1,000 young people in the North-East are believed to be HIV positive.
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