Drama challenging domestic abuse
For three decades, Certain Curtain Theatre has used powerful storytelling to confront domestic abuse and inspire difficult conversations across Lancashire.
“Honest storytelling helps audiences recognise abuse and begin difficult conversations.”
For 36 years, Certain Curtain Theatre has used powerful storytelling to confront domestic abuse, challenge stigma and inspire difficult conversations across Lancashire.
When John Woudberg and Claire Moore founded Certain Curtain Theatre in 1989, they believed theatre could do far more than entertain. From their base in Preston, the pair set out to tell emotionally honest stories that explored society’s most difficult and often hidden realities.
That mission recently reached local audiences through a series of screenings of THE KNOT held across Lancashire during May, including at the Artz Centre. For many audience members, the film’s themes of family pressure, silence and emotional abuse reflected struggles experienced within ordinary communities, making the post-screening Q&A sessions especially powerful and personal.
Over the decades, Certain Curtain Theatre’s productions have tackled issues including gun crime, trauma and social injustice, but domestic abuse has remained one of the company’s most powerful and enduring themes. Their award-winning play THE KNOT, first written in 1995, exposed the devastating effects of coercive control, manipulation and emotional abuse long before those conversations became more widely understood.
The production toured for 12 years and left a profound impact on audiences. Many people stayed behind after performances to disclose abuse for the first time, while others recognised harmful behaviours, they had never previously identified.
Claire Moore believes drama is uniquely effective because it allows audiences to emotionally experience situations rather than simply hear statistics. In Lancashire, where many incidents of abuse still go unreported, she says storytelling can help break down shame, fear and misunderstanding.
Moore hopes THE KNOT continues encouraging compassion, awareness and conversations that could ultimately help change lives.