DOCTOR Dolittle really does talk to the animals in the case of the charitable actions of New Earswick Musicals.

"Each year we support a particular charity, and this year we wanted to bring something completely different to the York stage, so we introduced our season of musicals featuring animals," says chairman and leading man Steve Tearle. "Doctor Dolittle was the obvious choice, as it doesn't get performed much due to the complexity of the staging.

"Our thoughts then went to which charity could we adopt, and choosing the charity to support could not have been easier: RSPCA York was right at the top of our list. So, Gary Riley, from our central team at New Earswick Musicals, contacted the RSPCA's Angela Hunter to tell her we would like to donate a full page in our souvenir programme to RSPCA York."

Angela was "over the moon", says Steve. "Angela decided not only to promote the RSPCA but also to focus on Diamond, a dog that had been with the RSPCA for a long time. Gary also agreed with Angela that we would do a collection at the end of each show," he adds.

"The April 26 to 29 run really picked up as word of mouth got out and we ended up collecting an amazing £413. Angela told us this would pay for 1,239 meals for the animals or the purchase of 138 microchips or the neutering of 11 female cats. We're so happy that we could support RSPCA York in this way, and we'll continue our support of the RSPCA with their our next animal-themed production, The Lion, The Witch And The Wardrobe, at the Joseph Rowntree Theatre in November.

"We're super excited about our audition day for this amazing musical on Saturday, and anyone wanting an audition pack with more details should email secretary.NewEarswickMusicals@outlook.com. Why not audition for this great musical and let's support a great charity, RSPCA York."