Having grown up in rural Pembrokeshire, playwright Gary Owen is no stranger to the creative pull and potency of the countryside.
So when Hampshire-based theatre company Forest Forge asked him to write a play that explored life in the New Forest, he jumped at the chance.
Free Folk, the dramatic thriller he created with the help of a rural community living in the New Forest, is going on a national tour which includes dates at Sherman Cymru in Cardiff and the Torch Theatre in Milford Haven.
Gary Owen. Photo: Kirsten McTernan
Despite the specific setting of the play, Gary believes it holds universal appeal for audiences everywhere.
He said: "I spent a week in the New Forest meeting some fascinating people. Everything that happened to me that week and the people I met are in the play.
"The story is about a group of strangers who get trapped when a storm comes upon them very quickly - something that frequently happens in the New Forest because many of the entrances and exits involve travelling through fords which flood instantly and become impassable by car.
"The five characters take shelter in the home of Pearl, a character based on an amazing lady I met who has lived in the same house in the forest her whole life and has watched many of the trees grow from seed.
Lee Rufford as Tim, Maggie Tagney as Pearl and Melody Brown as Karen. Photo: Lucy Sewill
"The forest naturally lends itself to a thriller because there is something so spooky about the landscape. There are moments that it seems so empty and you feel so alone and that you have been transported back in time.
"It will be so still and quiet and then suddenly a horse will gallop past or a campervan will shock you out of the stillness.
"It's something I was very sympathetic to, having had a rural background and my family being from Pembrokeshire."
Although Free Folk has all the chills of a typical thriller, Gary has created plenty of moments of comedy to provide a release from the tension.
The play was shortlisted for the John Whiting Award for New Writing and initially toured locally in the New Forest in 2010, but the theatre company felt it was important to share it with a wider audience.
Melody Brown and Tim Treslove in Free Folk. Photo: Lucy Sewill
Director Kirstie Davis said: "Free Folk was my first commissioned play at Forest Forge and it was special to me because it meant at last I could work with Gary Owen.
"Gary came to the New Forest and met many people and listened in on conversations on buses. He took away a very strong sense of place - indeed the sixth character of the play is the forest itself.
"The first draft came back to me and I was immediately transfixed - he brought together five brilliantly imagined characters into one space and allowed them to collide.
"It is all about what freedom means and how we know what home is. Each character goes through a moment of decision that changes their lives forever.
"Gary's writing goes between black comedy to poeticism to real thriller and suspense.
"The very first audience for this piece really took it to their hearts and I knew then that we had a special play on our hands and that it should have another life. I am so glad that we have enabled this to happen."
Melody Brown, Tim Trelove, Maggie Tagney, Charlotte Croft, Lee Rufford. Photo: Lucy Sewill
During his research Gary was keen to meet people of different generations who lived in the forest and find out what they felt about their home. And he believes many of those he spoke to have been to see the play already.
"I hope they feel it’s an affectionate piece and sheds light on their lives and experiences," he added.
"For me, the test of a piece of writing about a specific area is if an audience who have nothing to do with that area also enjoy it - then it's a good piece of writing, and not just a successful evocation of a place.
"Free Folk has passed that test and I’m delighted that the piece will now be seen by both rural and urban audiences across the UK."
Charlotte Croft as Hannah. Photo: Lucy Sewill
Alongside the play, Forest Forge are also running: an over 55s theatre group Act Your Age that will become a resident company; four open space forums for four different age groups that will explore the moments of change and decision at different stages of life; and What It Means To Be Free, an interactive digital platform for people to share their thoughts and memories about home.
The UK tour of Free Folk runs from 13 September to 26 October.
It will be at the Torch Theatre on 16 October and at Sherman Cymru on 17 and 18 October. Gary will also hold a post-show talk on 18 October.
For more information about the tour and the accompanying Creative Learning projects, visit www.forestforge.co.uk