A READING of a new play on a legendary Kidderminster dance club takes place next week.

Local playwright Caroline Jester has centred the work on Frank and Wynn Freeman, who ran ‘The Dancing Club’ from 1956 to 2003, attracting some of the biggest names in music.

Kidderminster rock icon Robert Plant was a keen follower of the club’s music scene, which also welcomed artists including Tyrannosaurus Rex, Fleetwood Mac and Captain Beefheart.

Ms Jester has spent the last three months interviewing local residents about their experiences at ‘The Dancing Club’, hearing tales of Marc Bolan walking through the Horsefair and musicians who toured the world after being so close to bands.

The story starts before the 60s as audiences hear how Frank returned from the war and brought the town alive by teaching everyone to dance – all this in a room above a butcher’s shop.

The reading of the play will be read by actors on Thursday, August 23, at 7pm, at La Brasserie, which is the space where Frank Freeman’s Dancing Club used to be.

Actors include Dan Hagley who played Darrell Makepeace in The Archers, Ali Belbin, BBC award-winning actor Samuel Phoneix and Kidderminster’s own Robyn Cohen.

The free play is part of Kidderminster Arts Festival and is funded by Arts Council England and Worcestershire County Council in partnership with Wyre Forest District Council.