MALE pride and the stigma attached to acting has been blamed for a drop in the number of male actors at one of Darwen's top theatre groups.

The Darwen Library Players are suffering a male drought as a result of what chairman Craig Smytheman believes is the unwillingness of Darwen men to 'let go' and enjoy themselves.

According to Craig, stereotypical images of men in tights and associations with theatre being a largely female pursuit have put men off.

He said: "We hardly have any men in the group and we are desperately looking for more to join the ranks. A lot of the time there's a real stigma attached to acting and people think it's a really sissy thing to do, but in fact it's quite the opposite."

Out of the 22 actors in the company, only three are men.

Craig said: "It gets to the point where we have to choose our plays very carefully because we just don't have the men. What they don't seem to realise is that it's great fun.

"I joined the company in 1990 and vowed I would never go on the stage but I stood in for someone in 1995 in a production of Kindly Leave the Stage, and haven't looked back since.

"I'm quite a shy person but when you get on the stage you can do things you could never dream of doing in normal everyday life. You don't have to be an exhibitionist to do the stuff we do.

"We want people to just come along and enjoy themselves."

Steve Burch, Darwen Library Theatre manager, encourages said: "They are a thriving company and are really good for Darwen. I can only hope that more men go along to their rehearsals because the Players are an exciting group and it's a lot of fun to be involved."

Chloe Whitehead, co-director of Library Theatre-based Talia Theatre Company, said: "I think it's often a problem in amateur dramatics associations where men don't want to come forward because they are afraid it doesn't look masculine enough, but that's not right. Theatre has a lot to offer everyone."

Rehearsals for the Library Players take place each Monday and Wednesday at the old photography studios at 6b Market Street.

Sessions last from 8 to 10pm. If any men are interested in acting they should contact Craig on 01254 705850.