DELIGHTED winners of the North-East round of a national drama competition are preparing to take on the opposition in the next round.

The Sedgefield Players' production of The Art of Remembering, by American writer Adina L Ruskin, took on a new meaning after the terrorist attacks on September 11 in the US.

Three actresses, Rosemary Jones, Jean Hewling and Sarah Atkinson, gave a compelling portrayal of three facets of the same woman, Rebecca, a New York Jew, as well as a multitude of other characters.

Sarah, who also won the award for best North-East performer, said: "The main message of the play is about honouring the dead and remembering the past, especially world-shattering events like the Holocaust and the building of the Berlin Wall."

Having won at the Sedgefield Drama festival in September, the play went on to win the North-East final of the All England Theatre Festival in York.

Sedgefield Players director Walter Howell said: "We are looking forward to taking our production to the Northern final at Ilkley Playhouse, West Yorkshire, where we will be in competition with old friends from Richmond and a drama club from Preston, Lancashire.

"Ours is a very powerful play, performed by three stunning actresses. We think it's a winner."

The next round, the northern area final, is being held in Ilkley on May 11.