Plays help teens think about drink, drugs and sex

The project involved working with Teenage Kicks, the city council's teenage pregnancy team, and the arts development team to create the interactive play.

Audience members were allowed to take control of the drama throughout by going onstage to take over from actors or suggest what the actor could do next. This meant the play could change direction and have different endings.

Afterwards, a workshop was held to discuss issues arising from the play and to allow young people to meet with local sexual health workers.

Clara Shield, team leader of Teenage Kicks, said: "This project is all about giving young people the information to make the right choices. The link between substance abuse and risk-taking sexual behaviour is something we've been working on during our sessions. However, we wanted to give this topic special focus for a one-day event."

Alison Flanagan Wood, arts development officer at the city council, said that if the play was successful it would be rolled out to other youth groups across the city.