Teenagers in Portsmouth gave the audience plenty of food for thought as they put on a production about the consequences of criminal behaviour as part of an innovative new project created by The Southern Co-operative in partnership with the New Theatre Royal and youth organisations Catch22, Wessex Restorative Justice, Motiv8 and Respect Programme.

A group of 20 teenagers, ranging in age from 14-19, impressed an audience at the New Theatre Royal with their creative acting and singing interpretations of shop vandalism, theft and buying booze under-age.

The performance was the climax of a 6 week long project involving drama and dance workshops which aimed to engage young people in a positive activity, to promote the arts and to encourage people to think about the consequences of their actions. The participants also earned an Arts Award through building a portfolio of the new skills they had learnt.