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Oh! Oh! Antonioby Stephen J Preston
Oh! Oh! Antonio is a warm, humorous, and emotionally rich family drama set in a Welsh mining community shortly after the First World War. Blending English and Welsh dialogue, the play explores grief, faith, politics, social change, love, and the healing power of family.
The story centres on the Jenkins family. George Jenkins is a socialist miner who has lost much of his faith after the death of his young son. His wife Gwen remains deeply religious and works tirelessly to hold the family together. Living with them is George’s older brother Charles, a witty, hard-drinking veteran of the Boer War whose humour masks profound emotional wounds.
Their daughters bring the play’s central conflicts into focus. Annie returns home from Cardiff after losing her position in domestic service. She is desperately worried about her fiancé Antonio, an Italian-Welsh soldier who has stopped writing from the front. Meanwhile, her sister Alice is recovering from illness caused by her wartime work in a munitions factory and is passionate about women’s rights and social reform.
The family’s everyday life is filled with lively arguments about politics, religion, women’s suffrage, class, war, and morality. Yet beneath these debates lie deeper wounds: George’s unresolved grief, Gwen’s fears for her family, and Charles’s trauma from his military service.
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Event venue
Canolfan a Theatr Soar, Pontmorlais,Merthyr Tydfil, United Kingdom
Tickets
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