Students from Southern Regional College’s (SRC) Performing Arts and Music Production courses toured secondary schools in the Armagh, Banbridge and Craigavon Borough Council with a week-long performance based on the true story, I Love You Mum – I Promise I Won’t Die” by Mark Wheeller.

The performances are a joint programme with the Policing and Community Safety Partnerships (PCSP), the Police Service of Northern Ireland (PSNI) and SRC to raise awareness of the impact of drug misuse. The play is based on actual words of friends and family of 16-year-old Daniel Spargo-Mabbs, a young person who died in 2014.

Daniel was the most unlikely of persons to die from drugs, having been his school’s prom king, recently acing his GCSE exams, and being actively involved in his school and local church community. His death shocked his fellow school pupils, teachers and local community with his tragic death inspiring the creation of “I Love You Mum – I Promise I Won’t Die”. A play taking 18 months to develop as it was based on a series of painstaking interviews from friends and family.

The play confronts the issue of drug misuse, which affects many young people and is an increasingly unavoidable part of the world they live in. Rehearsals for the play began in September with SRC’s students taking to the road from Tuesday 17th October to Friday 20th October stopping at New-Bridge Integrated College, Loughbrickland; The Royal School, Armagh; St Ronan’s College, Lurgan and Banbridge High School.

Performances targeted the 16 plus age group providing relevant information and challenging perceptions of substance use, risk and consequences, and understanding the role of peer influence. The shows have received amazing feedback providing students with cause for thought.

Students performing the play have been commended for their performances with Teresa McBride, Performing and Production Arts, Level 3 Extended Diploma Co-ordinator at Southern Regional College commenting:

“The students have been fantastic to work with. Their level of professionalism makes my job so much easier. They are working as a touring theatre in education company so the skills they are learning is invaluable and will stand to them in their future careers.

Our aim going into schools is to bring the message of Daniel. To make young people see the devastating consequences drugs can have on their family and friends. Daniel had so much to live for. He was the popular guy at school among staff and students. He had his whole life ahead of him and one moment, one bad decision took it all away in an instant.”

Gwen Bartley, PCSP Project Coordinator further commented:

It has been fantastic working with SRC Performing Arts and Music Production Students. The play shows the devastation in a family when a loved one dies after taking drugs, Daniel in the play is only 16 when he dies. Drama is an effective way of delivering this important message to young people and helps us to raise awareness on the dangers of taking drugs.

See an interview from the play’s cast members Mary-Kate Moore and Theo Papadopoulos who undertook the role of Daniels parents, providing an insight into this sensitive and impactful storyline here.

Read more about the Level 3 Performing and Production Arts Extended Diploma here.