Today, I’m delighted to welcome Rosie Travers to my blog to discuss the themes of The Theatre of Dreams – a fabulous novel that kept me entertained and entranced from beginning to end.
Over to you, Rosie…
The Theatre of Dreams
Kitty Keaton is determined to preserve her family’s seaside pavilion. She devises a convoluted scheme to defy the property developers who want to demolish the former theatre and recruits two co-conspirators, disgraced actress Tara and local architect Dominic, to help achieve her aim.
Motivation
One of the key themes in the book is what motivates us and how far we are prepared to go to fulfil our dreams.
Kitty is terminally ill and living on borrowed time. She can afford to be reckless. Her love for the theatre and her desire to leave a lasting memorial to her dead son, blinkers her to the illegalities of her scheme. She doesn’t see anything wrong with a little bit of ‘cheating’.
Tara sees the pavilion as the ideal location for her performing arts academy. If her part in Kitty’s plot is discovered, it would certainly mean the end of her career, not the start of a new one. Is it worth taking the risk to secure her future?
Dominic bears a personal grudge against the developers. His motivation for colluding with Kitty is partly based on revenge and partly on the need to reclaim his reputation as a professional conservationist. He needs Kitty’s plot to back up his own negotiations with the charitable trust who are interested in preserving the pavilion.
White lies, subterfuge, law breaking. How far would you go to get what you want? My characters have to make choices.
Resilience
Overcoming adversity is very much at the heart of this novel. Over the years Kitty has transformed the pavilion from its original use as a theatre to a ballroom, nightclub and dance school. She’s outlived three husbands and lost her only son. She’s a survivor. Likewise Tara has had to overcome personal tragedies to forge a career in show business. With that career almost over, she seizes the chance to make a fresh start until she realises the full extent of Kitty’s plan. Then she has to make a huge decision. Has she got the nerve and the skill to pull it off?
Salvation
All three characters see the pavilion as their salvation. For Tara and Dominic it represents an opportunity for a new start and the chance to ‘give something back’ to society. Kitty wants to make up for her past misdemeanours. She blatantly uses Tara, but as their relationship develops her respect for the young actress grows. Could Tara be a worthy candidate to continue Kitty’s legacy?
Bio
Rosie Travers grew up in Southampton and after initially training as a secretary, juggled a career in local government with raising her family. A move to Southern California in 2009 prompted Rosie to begin a blog about ex-pat life, which in turn rekindled a teenage desire to become a writer. She now lives back on the south coast of England and The Theatre of Dreams, her debut novel, was published by Crooked Cat books in August 2018.
The Theatre of Dreams
Official Blurb
Musical theatre actress Tara is down on her luck and in desperate need of a job. When terminally-ill octogenarian Kitty invites her to take over the running of her former dance academy in the old-fashioned resort of Hookes Bay, Tara thinks she’s found her guardian angel. But it soon becomes very clear Kitty is being far from benevolent. Too late, Tara realises helping Kitty will signal the end of an already tarnished career, unless she can pull off the performance of a life-time.
Universal buying link: mybook.to/theatreofdreams
Twitter: @RosieTravers
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