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BEST-selling Donaghmore author Emma Heatherington is holding auditions later this month for her brand new musical.
‘Country Girl’ is, by Emma’s own admission, her most ambitious project to-date and is due to have its first staging at The Market Place Theatre in Armagh City in November of this year.
Emma is an international best-selling author of 15 novels, including the Amazon UK and USA Kindle hit, ‘The Legacy Of Lucy Harte’, ‘Secrets In The Snow’, ‘The Promise’, ‘One More Day’, and her newest release, ‘This Christmas’. Her novels are set in Ireland, where they intertwine life-affirming issues with heart-warming love stories.
The Donaghmore lady has previously collaborated with country superstars, Philomena Begley and Nathan Carter in writing their respective autobiographies, both of which were Irish Times bestsellers.
When discussing writing ‘Country Girl’, Emma shared that she has been a lifelong fan of both country music and musical theatre.
She grew up with the Bardic Theatre as a central part of her early years, often attending rehearsals of the Donaghmore venue’s earliest shows alongside her mother who was a singer and acted in many plays.
“I am so lucky to have grown up in Donaghmore and the Bardic Theatre is something that has always been a part of my life,” said Emma.
“I love country music and there has never really been an original play that has used Irish country songs throughout and as part of the narrative. I have written for the stage before creating a pantomime in 2008 and it lead me to begin work on this musical.”
Emma told the Tyrone Herald that she began working on this project eight years ago with the original plan to use music by other artists. However that all changed when she decided to create an original soundtrack and collaborate with local musicians to bring her lyrics to life.
