Young and Hungry's 14th annual season offers a line-up of three new kiwi scripts developed and performed by enthusiastic and talented youth with a hunger for the arts.

Young and Hungry's 14th annual season offers a line-up of three new kiwi scripts developed and performed by enthusiastic and talented youth with a hunger for the arts. Young and Hungry Festival, at BATS Theatre from June 20 to July 5, places young people with respected practitioners in a professional venue for a collaboration that creates vital new work and offers a breeding ground for New Zealand's creative communities.

Mentors this year include Gil Eva Craig (Sound), Daniel Williams & Bekky Campbell (Costume/Set), Glenn Ashworth (Lighting), Corrine Simpson (Stage Management) and Brianne Kerr (Publicity). "After the sell-out success of 2007's season we're back with award-winning playwrights and the hottest new talent off and on stage in Wellington," says producer Sally Richards.

Yolk By Arthur Meek | Directed by Celia Nicholson A sharp comedy about relationships, choices and . . . sex in a tent! Ever pondered what choices you may have made differently had you been aware of their outcome? Every person is bound to choice-making. Some choices are insignificant while others take on unexpected monumental importance. For some, making imperative judgments doesn't start till we are adults, for others, making decisions begins early on. Flip Porter is a high-school girl, living a 'normal' life that shifts dramatically in a short period of time when her mother falls ill. Her embryo of a world is in jeopardy and as events culminate into a single night of choices, her life irrevocably takes on a different shape. From the mind of Lonesome Buckwhips affiliate Arthur Meek (The Hollow Men, On the Conditions and Possibilities of Helen Clark Taking Me As Her Young Lover) and directed by Celia Nicholson (?) Yolk is a tender comedy not to be missed!

Swan Song By Branwen Millar | Directed by Willem Wassenaar A magical, mysterious rollercoaster about how much it would suck to die at 17! There's an ancient belief that the mute swan sings a heartbreakingly beautiful song just before it dies. If you had to perform your own swan song, what would you sing about? For seventeen-year-old Ashley, the question isn't hypothetical. Torn between the life she never had and the life she's leaving behind, Ashley has to make sense of not just her story thus far, but all the questionable encounters with lecturers, visits from giant sperm, and life saving action from bear men that could potentially have occurred as well. Written by award-winning playwright Branwen Millar (Noisy Shadows, Armslength), and directed by the 2007 Chapman Tripp Award recipient for Most Promising New Director, Willem Wassenaar (Angels in America Part 1, A Streetcar Named Desire), Swan Song is a magical and sometimes surreal look at what we end up finding when we search for the meaning in our lives."

RPM By Dave Armstrong | Directed by Leo Gene Peters A racy dramatic-comedy about hormone fuelled teens and the cars they drive. A play centred around six petrol-fuelled teens on a Friday night. Instead of celebrating her two-year anniversary with boyfriend Luke, girl racer Justine has to babysit fifteen-year-old Vanessa. Too cool to check out the latest chick flick, they drive around town, meeting up with Rose, loyal friend of Justine whilst bumping into Vanessa's boyfriend Sam along the way. However, things don't all go to plan when Justine catches Luke doing more than his 'assignment', Rose shows Sam more than her CD collection on a hill in Brooklyn, and Luke finds out the real reason his best mate Phil is fixing the pillar rust on Justine's car. Directed by Leo Gene Peters (Strange Resting Places, Settling) and written by Dave Armstrong (Where We Once Belonged, King and Country, Niu Sila), RPM is a humorous, high-octane drama about love, relationships and fast cars. A show not to be missed!

Young and Hungry 20 June - 5 July BATS Theatre 6.30pm, 8.00pm & 9.30pm Bookings: 04 802 4175 or book@bats.co.nz Tickets: $16/12 or a three show season pass $38/24 04/06/08