Shorts by Not Long at Stockroom

Looking for something a little unexpected? Shorts might just be the ticket. Taking over Stockport’s newly opened Stockroom for one night only, this offbeat showcase of new writing serves up three punchy short plays, one director, four actors – and a post-show party (at nearby Bruk) thrown in for good measure.

This pilot event from Not Long, a new artist-led network championing Northern writers and fresh theatrical voices, is exactly the kind of night that makes you feel like you’ve stumbled across something special – part scratch night, part social, part celebration of storytelling in all its raw, funny and surprising forms.

The evening features three brand-new short plays by emerging writers Charles Abbott, Sadie Pearson and Harvey Weedon – each bringing a sharp, distinct voice to the stage. Abbott, a Burnley-born creative with a background in screenwriting, writes with wit and warmth about the people and places he grew up around. Pearson, an award-winning Mancunian playwright and co-founder of Full Frontal Theatre, has already made waves with critically acclaimed work on UK stages. Weedon, a queer British-Irish creative, has cut his teeth as a poet and playwright on Manchester’s fringe scene since graduating from Manchester School of Theatre in 2023. Together, the trio offer a line-up that’s fresh, bold and full of theatrical spark. Expect “funny, dark, episodic stories of death and dating, the paranormal, and the meta.”

All three plays are directed by Tom Ferguson, a Stockport-based theatre-maker passionate about telling authentic, working-class stories. The cast – Dylan Morris, Stewie McGrath, Connor Darren-James, and Paddy Stafford – are diamonds of Northern stages, and bring serious energy and versatility to the night. It’s an ensemble packed with charisma, ready to bring each new story to life.

The shows are staged at Stockroom, the £14.5m creative space that’s quietly transforming Merseyway into a cultural hub. Performances take place in the intimate upstairs space, before the action spills over to nearby Bruk for drinks and DJ sets on the Underbanks – a laid-back end to an evening all about championing new work and bringing the northern creative community together.

For audiences, Shorts is a low-commitment, high-reward kind of night: three stories, no interval, and a built-in afterparty. For artists, it’s a chance to test bold ideas in front of a live crowd. And for Stockport, it’s proof that Greater Manchester’s creative energy doesn’t stop at the city centre.