We came, we played, we offended.

Back in August I told you about preparations for 'Speechless: the musical' and the amazing journey we've made with the project since that first read through at the Hackney Empire early in 2015.

Well after a weeks worth of intensive rehearsals we got our baby on its feet and opened to a full house in Leeds on 12th September as part of Communication Matters 30th anniversary conference.

This was a new challenge for me. I've worked in theatre a lot but this time, I was not only an actor but also the composer of the shows original score and spent rehearsal week working on my own part as well as acting as musical director for the company.

It was a tiring week but, like anything you put the hard work into, it paid us dividends when we finally opened the show.

The feedback we received from our audience and the conference officials was better than we could have ever hoped for.

Knowing we touched on real issues for individuals without speech made the whole project completely worth all the blood, sweat and tears.

This was our first live performance of this one act musical, but after its success in Leeds, we're taking it back to the drawing board to develop 'Speechless' further into a full length stage musical within the next 2 years.

Exciting times. There will be more. Watch this space.

*For more information on 'Speechless' and the Unspoken Project visit www.theunspokenprojectcic.com

To read more about the great work that Communication Matters does check out http://www.communicationmatters.org.uk