THE 2018 York Mystery Plays still need to raise " a few thousand" towards their £5,000 Crowdfunding target by August 31 to help the wagon wheels to roll out on September 9, 12 and 16.

After Arts Council funding was not forthcoming, the York Festival Trust and York Guilds decided to go down the Crowdfunding route as "a last little push" from the community to boost next month's performances of 11 plays from the York Cycle of Mystery Plays.

York Festival Trust has staged the Mystery Plays on the city streets on behalf of York’s historic Guilds every four years since 1998 and is the only organisation at present doing large-scale productions on a regular basis.

Tom Straszewski, Pageant Master and artistic director of the 2018 plays, says: "The production will go ahead, come what may, but raising the last few thousand pounds will assist with the infrastructure of mounting the plays."

The street plays are being presented on a bigger scale than previous productions over the past 20 years, he suggests. "The Mysteries are a vital part of York's heritage, but they're not a museum piece, and they demand to be performed. We've got a huge range of people involved: butchers, builders, schoolchildren, students, even a whole company of accountants," he says.

"They've found something in the plays that they connect to: a push for freedom, the temptation of glory or worldly wealth, or even just the chance to dance and sing. I hope the audiences will respond just as heartily to their enthusiasm and talent, but to get there we need a last bit of funding.

"It'll go towards stewards and signage, on props and costumes, on public lectures and workshops, and ensuring that each play is the best it can be. And for those further afield, it's the chance to be a vital part of the production, helping to create another historic year for the York Mysteries.”

To back the project with a Crowdfunding donation, go to spacehive.com/yorkmysteryplays?searchText=york%20mystery%20plays.