ESK Valley Theatre has picked Willy Russell's One For The Road as the Yorkshire moorland company's tenth anniversary production.

Past shows invariably have been restricted by financial constraints to a cast of two, but director Mark Stratton and producer Sheila Carter are pushing the boat out for the anniversary by employing four.

Laura Bonnah and David Smith are joined by Andrew Cryer, fresh from The Last Train To Scarborough at the Stephen Joseph Theatre, and York actress Joanne Heywood, who appeared in three roles in Neil Simon's Last Of The Red Hot Lovers for Esk Valley last summer.

Designer Lucy Campbell-Skelling and lighting designer Graham Kirk complete the production team for a play that will opening next Thursday (Aug 7) at the Robinson Institute in Glaisdale, near Whitby.

One For The Road is set in the mid-1980s in the lounge of Dennis and Pauline Cain's new dormer bungalow on the fictional northern housing estate of Castlehills. Their friends Roger and Jane Fuller arrive to celebrate Dennis’s birthday , but as they wait for his parents to turn up, Dennis's mid-life crisis kicks in. He wants to escape, but will he ever leave Castlehills and will his parents ever find their way in?

Bonnah and Smith play the Cains and Cryer and Heywood team up as the Fullers in a play that Mark Stratton describes as "observant, witty and full of social comment". "We think One For The Road has got somewhat overlooked in recent years, and yet is perhaps more relevant than when it was written. See what you think," he says.

Reflecting on Esk Valley Theatre's first decade, Mark and Sheila comment in their programme note: Ten years ago, our company took its first tentative steps, and in what seems the blink of an eye, a decade is behind us. The company has survived thanks to support from audiences, company members, volunteers, sponsors, funding bodies, and many others too numerous to mention. So if you have supported Esk Valley Theatre, we hope you feel proud to have done so. It is after all your theatre.

"It's heart-warming that a professional company thrives in Glaisdale and it affirms our belief that in this high-tech age, there's still an important role for theatre to play. A forum for debate, a place to learn about the human condition, a social opportunity to share laughter and to be taken on great emotional journeys. This is what we want Esk Valley Theatre to be and as long as you want it too, then we’ll ford rivers and cross-moors to provide it."

The company has received welcome financial support from Scarborough Borough Council and Create for 2014. "They've shown a great commitment to our work and have this year awarded the company a small but significant Arts Development Grant. Fantastic considering the financial pressure that many councils are under," say Mark and Sheila.

They remain as upbeat as ever about sustaining a professional company at one of the most remote locations on Yorkshire's theatre map. "Thanks for the last ten years," they say. "Here’s to the next ten!"

Esk Valley Theatre presents One For The Road at the Robinson Institute, Glaisdale, near Whitby, from August 7 to 30. Bookings and information: 01947 897587 or at eskvalleytheatre.co.uk