The Bush Theatre today announced a new season of work continuing its commitment to braiding new writing with the local community of which it is at the heart.
Throughout the pandemic, the Bush has continued to make work thanks to donations by the ‘Write the Bush’s Future’ supporters and the Government's Cultural Recovery Fund. They made headlines with Protest - a reaction to the murder of George Floyd, reached international audiences with the online broadcast of Travis Alabanza’s Overflow, supported three new freelance designers with Project 2036, and produced both a critically acclaimed BBC film and live stage production of Phoebe Eclair Powell’s Harm, whilst continuing to produce work online and in the local community.
With the venue fully open again, Artistic Director Lynette Linton said, ‘We’re beyond excited to welcome our Bush family back into the building. We reopened our doors for our local community on 6 August and, throughout the pandemic, we’ve been producing work in person, online, and within the community. But this launch marks a significant return to the live work that’s so important to us, a season of stories that reflect the community on our doorstep and will help audiences understand the world around them. We’re also thrilled to launch the Bush Theatre’s first-ever young company with live performances in August as well as announcing the live broadcast of Holloway Theatre shows this season (dates TBC)’.
Main House productions in the Holloway Theatre
Bush Theatre presents
Lava
By Benedict Lombe
Directed by Anthony Simpson-Pike
Designed by Jasmine Swan
Lighting Design by Jai Morjaria
Sound Design by Josh Anio Grigg
Video Design by Gino Green
Movement Director DK Fashola
Dialect Coach Esi Acquaah-Harrison
Composer Andrew Wildgoose
Casting by Chandra Ruegg
Performed by Ronkẹ Adékoluẹjo
9 July - 7 August
Press Night – 14 July at 7 pm
Captioned performance - 22 July at 7.30 pm
Audio-described performance - 29 July at 7.30 pm
Lava will be broadcast online 16 - 21 August
Show image and rehearsal images here
The world premiere of Lava by Congolese-British writer Benedict Lombe opens at the Bush Theatre on 9 July (press night 14 July). It will also be available for viewing online 16 - 21 August.
Lava started life in 2020 as part of the Bush Theatre's Protest Series, a digital artistic response to the murder of George Floyd. It has now been re-imagined as a full-length play for the stage, which ‘Could become our era’s equivalent of Athol Fugard’s Sizwe Bansi Is Dead’ - Independent.
This is nice, init? I like it. Good little set-up to tell you the story of my name. The story of my true name.
When a woman receives an unexpected letter from the British Passport Office, she is forced to confront an old mystery: why does her South African passport not carry her first name? Armed with the wisdom of favourite 90s TV shows, she sets out on a journey that will take her back to the turmoil of Mobutu’s Congo, growing up in post-Apartheid South Africa, moving to Ireland, and finding love in a hostile England.
As her journey becomes inextricably linked with the tides of global history, how far will she go to unravel the truth? By turns wickedly funny and strikingly lyrical, Benedict Lombe’s Lava is an explosive debut that will turn the way you see the world on its axis.
Lava is performed by Ronkẹ Adékoluẹjo. Her previous theatre work includes Three Sisters (National Theatre, for which she won 3rd prize Ian Charleson Award), Cyprus Avenue (Royal Court, Abbey, Dublin and Public, New York), Hole and Bad Roads (Royal Court), The Mountaintop (Young Vic), Twelfth Night (Filter and on USA and India tour), The Oresteia (HOME Manchester), Pride and Prejudice (Sheffield Crucible), The House That Will Not Stand and The Colby Sisters of Pittsburgh Pennsylvania (Kiln), Anon (Theatre Royal Plymouth) and Random (Crooked Path). Ronkẹ plays the series regular of Jack Starbright in Alex Rider (Amazon Prime). She also appeared in Cuckoo, Doctor Who, NW, Cold Feet, Sick Note, Josh, Chewing Gum, Suspects and, The Forgiving Earth. Her film credits include Ear for Eye, Christopher Robin, Been So Long, Ready Player One, One Crazy Thing, Lascivious Grace, The forgotten C, Broken and, The Big Other.
Benedict Lombe is a Congolese-British writer and theatre-maker based in London. She has been on attachment at The Bush Theatre and has been on a residency at Theatre503 as one of their five writers for 2019/2020. She has produced digital work for the Bush as part of The Protest season, Papatango Theatre Company as part of their Isolated But Open series, and a site-specific piece as part of Damsel Productions’ Outdoors season. She has been part of the BBC Writersroom cohort, has been shortlisted for the Papatango Playwriting Award and the Royal Court & Kudos TV Fellowship, amongst others. Lava will be her London theatre debut. She is currently working on developing original TV projects, with a focus on boldly reclaiming diasporic stories that were never allowed to be told, with the full shades of nuance and truth they always deserved.
Anthony Simpson-Pike is a director, dramaturg, and writer whose work has been staged in theatres including The Gate, The Young Vic and, The Royal Court. He is currently Associate Director at The Yard Theatre, was previously the resident director at Theatre Peckham, and associate director at The Gate Theatre. Anthony is also a facilitator, working with young people and communities, having worked at The Gate, The Royal Court, The Young Vic and The Globe, and National Theatre in this capacity.
In addition to theatre, Anthony has worked with Tamasha Theatre company to make audio dramas including collaborations with the National Archives on projects such as Loyalty & Dissent and Once British, Always British and enjoys working across different media including film, having worked on ear for eye by debbie tucker green for BBC Films and BFI. He is passionate about international work having received a British Council bursary to visit the Informal European Theatre Meeting in Brussels, as well as being selected by the British Council to attend DirectorsLab North in Toronto. In 2019, he was invited to be a visiting guest artist for the Banff Playwrights Lab. He is also working on the international project for the Royal Court in Jamaica and Barbados.
Anthony’s recent directorial work includes The Ridiculous Darkness by Wolfram Lotz at The Gate, which received 5-star reviews, ‘stunning and subversive’ (The Stage), ‘you’d be sorely pressed to find anything more riveting or stupendous’ (WhatsOnStage).
Tickets priced from £20 (concessions available) can be booked at bushtheatre.co.uk or at the Box Office on 020 8743 5050
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Bush Theatre presents
Keep a Light on For Those Who Are Lost - A Neighbourhood Company production
Lead Artist / Director - Abigail Graham
Written by Titas Halder
Sound Design - Anna Clock
Digital Artist - Melanie Francis
Lighting Design - Jai Morjaria
Photographer - Isha Shah
Performed by The Neighbourhood Company and Cayvan Coates
Exhibition - 1 July at 3pm, 5pm & 7pm and 2 July at 1 pm, 3 pm, 5 pm & 7 pm
Online - 1 - 15 July
Show image here
Keep a Light On For Those Who Are Lost, is a dark fairytale inspired by experiences of the past year, the importance of rituals, and the desire to reach out to the ones we love.
Since October 2020, Bush Theatre's resident adult company, the Neighbourhood Company, has been working online with director Abigail Graham and writer Titas Halder. Sady it hasn’t been possible to create a play for live performance, however wishing to still find a way to reach out with a piece of storytelling, we have created an audio-visual installation in our building which will also be available for viewing online.
We hope you enjoy your journey through the forest.
Abigail Graham’s future work includes Aladdin (Lyric Hammersmith), MUM (Plymouth Drum/Soho Theatre). From 2013-2017 she was the founding Artistic Director of OpenWorks Theatre, an organisation dedicated to changing who goes to the theatre by changing who makes it. Theatre work as a Director includes Earthquakes in London (Guildhall), The Tyler Sisters (Hampstead), Linda (RADA), 31 Hours (The Bunker), Death of a Salesman (Royal and Derngate/UK Tour), And Now: The World! (OpenWorks, UK tour), Timmy Failure: Mistakes Were Made (Assembly Rooms), Debris (OpenWorks, Southwark Playhouse), Molly Sweeney (Print Room/Lyric Belfast), Blue Heaven (Finborough). Directing in community and education includes Almeida, Young Vic, Clean Break, and Synergy.
Titas Halder is a writer, director, and musician working across theatre, film, and music. Following his first two plays Run The Beast Down (Finborough, Marlowe Theatre) and Escape the Scaffold (Theatre 503, The Other Room), he was nominated for Best Writer at the Stage Debut Awards. His play The Basement was a finalist for the Verity Bargate Award. He is currently writing his first feature film. His work with community theatre and young people includes an adaptation of Strindberg’s Easter (RADA), and a new play for the Lyric Hammersmith. Previously for Bush Theatre, he directed The Goat at Midnight (66 BOOKS).
Entrance to the exhibition and online viewing are both free. Further details at bushtheatre.co.uk
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Bush Theatre presents
Back Up!
Created by the Young Company and Katie Greenall
Directed by Katie Greenall
Design by Georgia Wilmot
Movement Direction by The Pappy Show
21 August at 7 pm
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After months of closure, last summer the Bush Theatre reopened its doors for the first time to their local young people for a week of workshops. It was magic… and Bush's first-ever Young Company was born.
This is their first show; a sharing of things they’ve been talking about and a celebration of their first year together. It’s a chance for the company to let audiences know who they are and what they might become. It's the start of something... something brand new. Join in welcoming the Bush Young Company to the stage for the first time.
Katie Greenall (she/they) is a facilitator, director, and writer working with Young People and Communities. Since graduating from East 15 Acting School with a degree in Acting and Community Theatre, she has been delivering projects and making work with organisations such as the Old Vic, the National Youth Theatre of GB, and the National Theatre. Katie is also Young Company Co-ordinator at the Bush Theatre.
Katie was a member of the Poetry Collective at the Roundhouse, as well as reaching the final of the Roundhouse Poetry Slam in 2018. She was a Resident Artist at the Roundhouse 2018-2019, part of the Soho Theatre Writers Lab programme, and longlisted for this year’s Channel 4 Screenwriting Course. This year she was runner up in Evening Standard Future Theatre Fund for theatre-making and she has appeared on several podcasts, including The Guilty Feminist, as well as writing for the Metro Online, Refinery 29 & Bustle.
Katie is currently performing FATTY FAT FAT, her solo show about living in a fat body. It won the VAULTS Origins Award for Outstanding New Work in 2019 and following this completed a sold-out 5* run at Edinburgh Fringe. In Spring 2020 FFF was due to head out on a tour of England & Wales and supported by Arts Council England, and in September 2020 FFF was published by Salamander Street.
Tickets for which you can ‘Pay What You Decide’ can be booked at bushtheatre.co.uk or at the Box Office on 020 8743 5050.
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Bush Theatre presents
Overflow
By Travis Alabanza
Performed by Reece Lyons
Directed by Debbie Hannan
Design by Max Johns
Lighting Design by Jess Bernberg
Sound Design by Francis Botu
Movement Direction by Annie-Lunnette Deakin-Foster
Voice and Accent coach - Fiona Kennedy
31 August – 9 October at 7.30 pm
Matinees – 4, 8, 11, 15, 18, 22, 25, 29 September, 2, 6, 9 October at 2.30 pm
Press Night – 2 September at 7 pm
Captioned Performances – 16 September at 7.30 pm, 2 October at 2.30 pm
Audio Described Performances – 25 September at 2.30 pm, 30 September at 7.30 pm
Show image and Production photographs here
‘warm, funny, sympathetic’ Pink News
‘we are reminded of the thrill that comes with a night out’ Diva
After the success of the live performances last year which were curtailed due to lockdown and following the huge international response to the online broadcast, Overflow, a hilarious and devastating tour of women’s bathrooms by acclaimed writer and performer Travis Alabanza (Jubilee, Burgerz), directed by Debbie Hannan and performed by Reece Lyons returns for a limited season.
‘Club toilets have taught me more about sisterhood than any book’
Cornered into a flooding toilet cubicle and determined not to be rescued again, Rosie distracts herself with memories of bathroom encounters, drunken heart-to-hearts by dirty sinks, friendships forged in front of crowded mirrors, and hiding from trouble.
But with her panic rising and no help on its way, can she keep her head above water?
Travis Alabanza is an award-winning theatre maker, writer, and performer. A previous member of the Royal Court Young Writers group and Barbican young poets, their show Burgerz, which explored the intersections of transness and harassment, toured internationally and at the Edinburgh Festival Fringe, won a Total Theatre award. Burgerz was picked in The Guardian 2018 top theatre shows as selected by their readers. Alabanza’s work featured in My White Best Friend (Bunker Theatre), The Bush Theatre’s Monday Monologues series as well as Paines Plough's recent season, In Tandem. Alabanza has performed their solo work in a range of venues, galleries, and mediums, including clubs such as the RVT, festivals including Latitude, galleries including the V&A, and universities and colleges including Oxford, Harvard, Bristol. They have also had their work on radio shows including The Verb and Loose Ends. In 2016/17, Travis was the youngest recipient of the Tate Gallery Workshop residency. Travis has been noted by many for their work in queer performance and culture, starring in Jubilee (Royal Exchange, Manchester, and Lyric Hammersmith) and, also in Scottee's Roundhouse show Putting Words in Your Mouth. Their writing outside of theatre has included columns in Metro, articles in Vice, Gal-Dem, The Independent, Dazed, and Gay Times. Alabanza also created a BBC Radio 4 documentary Going to The Gay Bar about the loss of LGBT+ spaces in the UK. In 2018/19, Alabanza was listed on the Dazed100 - 100 people defining culture, awarded a Gay Times Honours award for their work in the LGBT+ community, and listed in The Evening Standard’s ‘25 Influential people under 25’. Recently in The Times Style, Bernadine Evaristo picked Alabanza as a ‘trailblazer of the future’.
Debbie Hannan trained at the Royal Conservatoire of Scotland and as Trainee Director at the Royal Court. They direct new writing and make new work. Recent credits include Pah-La (Royal Court Theatre), Little Miss Burden (The Bunker), Cuckoo (Soho Theatre), Isolation (National Theatre of Scotland), The Panopticon (National Theatre of Scotland), The Ugly One (Tron Theatre), Girl Meets Boy (developed with National Theatre of Scotland and The Yard), Shielders (Traverse Theatre), The Unexpected Expert (Headlong, BBC), After Rhinoceros: The Red Pill (Royal Welsh College, the Gate), Latir (Compañia Nacional de Teatro, Mexico), The Wonderful World of Dissocia andThe Angry Brigade (Royal Conservatoire of Scotland, Pandora (Etch, Pleasance), Killer Joe, Conspiracy (Royal Welsh College, the Gate), The Session (Soho Theatre), The Five Steps, Primetime, Who Cares and Spaghetti Ocean (Royal Court), Lot and His God and Notes from the Underground (Citizens Theatre), Recreation (Arcola), CauseWay, Woman of the Year (Oran Mor), liberty, equality, fraternity (Tron/Traverse), Sucker (Old Vic New Voices), PANORAMA, Roses Are Dead (Arches), Grimm Tales and Nights at the Circus (Theatre Paradok).
Reece Lyons is a transgender actress, writer, and poet based in London. She is a Roundhouse resident artist where her work has previously gone viral and has been watched by over 4 million people online. Select credits include HANNA (Amazon Prime), Life & Rhymes (Sky Arts), Fierce Sisters (Mimbre).
Tickets priced from £20 (concessions available) can be booked at bushtheatre.co.uk or at the Box Office on 020 8743 5050
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Papatango Theatre Company in association with the Bush Theatre present the winner of the 2020 Papatango New Writing Prize
Old Bridge
Written by Igor Memic
Directed by Selma Dimitrijevic
21 October – 20 November at 7.30 pm
Matinees – 30 October, 3, 6, 10, 13, 17, 20 November at 2.30 pm
Press Night – 27 October at 7 pm
Captioned Performances – 3 November at 7.30 pm, 13 November at 2.30 pm
Audio Described Performances – 6 November at 2.30 pm, 18 November at 7.30 pm
Show image here
‘One day all you care about is music, fashion, and boys. The next day there’s no food. Piece by piece your world starts to change so you change with it.’
Mostar, Yugoslavia, 1988. Mili, a boy from out of town, dives from the famous Old Bridge. Mina, a local girl, watches. As he falls, she begins falling for him.
Mostar, Bosnia, 1992. In a town of growing divisions, Mina and Mili never doubt that their future lies together. But nor can they imagine the dangers that future will bring.
This love story is a bold, fresh, and contemporary take on real events. An epic story exploring the impact of a war that Europe forgot and the love and loss of those who lived through it.
Winner of the 2020 Papatango New Writing Prize, Old Bridge is a beautiful, heart-wrenching play by British Bosnian writer Igor Memic.
Igor Memic is originally from Mostar. He grew up in London after leaving Yugoslavia in 1992 and studied at the University of Liverpool and the Royal Central School of Speech and Drama. Old Bridge marks his professional debut.
Selma Dimitrijevic is a director and writer and artistic director of Greyscale. Her directing credits include Baroness And The Pig (Shaw Festival), joey (gobscure/Greyscale), Hedda Gabler, This is Not a Love Story (Northern Stage – also writer), The Gamblers (Dundee Rep – also writer), Gods Are Fallen And All Safety Gone (Almeida /UK tour/International tour – also writer), Dead To Me (Edinburgh Festival Fringe/UK tour), A Prayer (Almeida/Northern Stage/Hull Truck Theatre – also writer), A Beginning, A Middle And An End (Tron Theatre/tour), Harmless Creatures (Hull Truck Theatre), Tonight David Ireland Will Lecture, Dance and Box (Oran Mor/tour), What Would Judas Do? (Almeida/Northern Stage), and Incident at the Border, Cyrano de Bergerac and Waterproof (Òran Mór); and as a dramaturg, Sting’s musical The Last Ship (UK and USA tour). Further writing credits in opera and theatre include Berenice, To See The Invisible, Dr. Frankenstein, Night Time, Game Theory, and Re:Union. Her plays have been translated and performed around the world. She is Jerwood Artistic Adviser and Unlimited Ally.
Tickets priced from £20 (concessions available) can be booked at bushtheatre.co.uk or at the Box Office on 020 8743 5050
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Bush Theatre presents
Fair Play
Written by Ella Road
Directed by Monique Touko
3 December 2021– 22 January 2022 at 7.30 pm
Matinees – 11, 15, 18, 22 December, 5, 8, 12, 15, 19, 22 January at 2.30 pm
(theatre closed 24 Dec 2021 – 4 Jan 2022)
Press Night – 8 December at 7 pm
Captioned Performance – 18 December at 2.30 pm, 13 January at 7.30 pm
Audio Described Performance – 6 January at 7.30 pm, 15 January at 2.30 pm
The clocks are set. The line is drawn. They've got a chance to be champions. But at what cost?
When Ann joins Sophie's running club she's thrown into a world of regimented training and pure focus. The two girls couldn’t be more different, but soon their shared passion makes them inseparable - dreaming in lanes and lap-times, waking up picturing Olympic medals, each day stronger and faster…
But set head to head in the run-up to the World Championships, they find themselves and their friendship put to the ultimate test. As their relationships, their bodies, and their very identities are pulled into public scrutiny, does being exceptional come at too high a price?
A gripping exploration of the underside of women’s athletics, Fair Play is the new work from Ella Road (The Phlebotomist) - ‘the most promising young playwright in Britain’ (Daily Telegraph).
Ella Road is a writer and actor from London. Her debut play The Phlebotomist was produced at Hampstead Theatre Downstairs in 2018 before transferring to the Main Stage in 2019. It was nominated for an Olivier Award and was a finalist for the Susan Smith Blackburn Prize. It was also adapted into a radio drama for BBC Radio 3. Ella is currently writing new play commissions for the Almeida Theatre and Hampstead Theatre. Her play How to Eat An Elephant was due to premiere at Theatre Royal Plymouth last year and has been postponed due to the pandemic. On the screen side, Ella has just finished writing on the British series of Call My Agent for Bron/Headline, for which she wrote two episodes. She is currently writing on Doctor Who for the BBC and writing a feature film for Liberty Films/Film4, as well as developing original series with Drama Republic and Element Pictures. Ella was lucky enough to be a Soho Theatre Young Writer 2017/18, one of the Bush Theatre’s Emerging Writers 2018/19, and on the BBC Drama Writersroom 2019/20. Ella is part of the London Theatre Consortium’s Climate Lab, looking at how we can move to more sustainable working practices in the industry. She also facilitates theatre workshops in prisons with Synergy Theatre.
Director Monique Touko is a London-based multidisciplinary artist working in theatre, radio, and film. She is a theatre director, her most recent show was Lorca's Yerma adapted by Ursula Rani Sarma at Liverpool Institute of Performing Arts. Her directing training includes Regional Theatre Young Directors Scheme at Royal Exchange Manchester. At the Young Vic, her training has involved the Intro to Directing course led by Sasha Weres, Boris Karloff Trainee Assistant Directors Programme, and the Jerwood Assistant Director Scheme. Her assisting credits include Wishlist by Katherine Soper, directed by Matthew Xia at Royal Exchange Manchester and Royal Court, HighTides’ touring production of Kanye The First by Sam Steiner directed by Andrew Twyman, Yellowman by Dael Orlandersmith directed by Nancy Medina at Young Vic, China Plate’s On the Exhale by Martin Zimmerman directed by Christopher Haydon at Traverse Theatre, Cock by Mike Bartlett directed by Kate Hewitt at Chichester Festival Theatre, Shakespeare’s Richard II directed Lynette Linton and Adjoa Andoh at Shakespeare’s Globe Theatre, Ibsen’s Rosmersholm adapted by Duncan Macmillan, directed by Ian Rickson at Duke of York’s Theatre and Lorca’s Blood Wedding adapted by Marina Carr directed by Yael Farber at Young Vic.
Monique is a producer in film and music videos, her credits include an independent project for Franklyn Lane Film Productions. She is also part of The Ubunifu Space which is an online platform that builds and raises the profiles of creative artists within Africa. Monique is Partnership Manager and Assistant Producer for Ubunifu Radio as well as a regular member of the UK reaction team on the youtube channel which has a global following of 280K+ subscribers.
Tickets priced from £20 (concessions available) can be booked at bushtheatre.co.uk or at the Box Office on 020 8743 5050
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Bush Theatre presents
Red Pitch
Written by Tyrell Williams
Directed by Daniel Bailey
16 February - 26 March at 7.30 pm
Matinees – 23, 26 February, 2, 5, 9. 12, 16, 19, 23, 26 March at 2.30 pm
Press Night – 22 February at 7 pm
Captioned Performance – 5 March at 2.30 pm, 17 March at 7.30 pm
Audio Described Performance – 10 March at 7.30 pm, 19 March at 2.30 pm
Show image here
The way they’re changing endz is nuts.
Red Pitch. South London. Three lifelong friends Omz, Bilal, and Joey are playing football. Like they always have. Living out dreams of football stardom. Beyond their football pitch, local shops are closing, old flats are being demolished as new flats shoot up, some residents struggle to stay while others rush to leave. When a small football pitch has been a home from home, a place you’ve laughed, fought, and forged friendships, what happens when it’s under threat?
A coming of age story about what it means to belong to a place. Directed by Bush Theatre Associate Artistic Director Daniel Bailey (The High Table), Tyrell Williams’ fast-paced and sharp-edged new play tells a powerful story about gentrification or regeneration and the impact of this relentless change on London’s communities.
Writer/director Tyrell Williams was on the BAFTA Elevate scheme 2018 and was previously a Broadcast Hotshot. He co-created, co-wrote, and directed the viral web series #HoodDocumentary which has had over 4 million views on Youtube. Following its online acclaim, #HoodDocumentary went on to be commissioned for pilot episodes by BBC Three which Tyrell directed and co-wrote. Tyrell has original television scripts in development with Fudge Park, SLAM Films, and Big Deal Films. Red Pitch is his first full-length play and in its early iteration won the Young Harts Writing Festival ‘Audience Favourite’ award when it debuted at The Ovalhouse Theatre in June 2019.
Daniel Bailey is Associate Director of the Bush Theatre. He was previously Associate Director at Birmingham Repertory Theatre, originally joining The REP as part of the Regional Theatre Young Director Scheme and where his work included artist development programmes for writers, theatre-makers, and directors. Theatre directing credits include The High Table (Bush Theatre), Unknown Rivers (Hampstead Theatre), My Darling Wife (Talawa Theatre Company), Pre Judgment Day and Covered (New Heritage Theatre), Blue/Orange, Concubine, Stuff, I Knew You, Abuelo, Jump! We’ll Catch You, Made In India/Britain and Exhale (Birmingham Rep). He has previously been Resident Director at the National Theatre Studio, Associate Artist at Theatre Stratford Royal East, and Resident Assistant Director at The Finborough Theatre. Daniel studied Modern Drama at Brunel University before participating in the Young Vic’s Introduction to Directing.
His film director credits include: Can I Live (Complicité) On Belonging (Young Vic), Malachi (S.E.D), Floating On Clouds (Kingdom Entertainment Group) and, Y.O.L.O. Therapy (S.E.D).
Tickets priced from £20 (concessions available) can be booked at bushtheatre.co.uk or at the Box Office on 020 8743 5050
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In the Studio
Performance and on-sale dates will be announced for Studio shows once dates and further details for Step 4 are confirmed by the Government.
The Queer House in association with Bush Theatre (originally co-produced by HighTide) present
Pink Lemonade
Written and performed by Mika Onyx Johnson
Directed by Emily Aboud
★★★★ ‘Life frequently gave them lemons but goddam Johnson’s got the juice’ – The Stage 18 best shows of Edinburgh Fringe 2019
Just when Mika was starting to feel at home in their own body, they find themselves caught between Simmi who’s sweet like sugar but ain’t a lesbian, and Token Toni who loves a bitta bashment and only dates black and brown butches – how can they catch a break when straight women are like junk food?
After a sell-out run at Edinburgh Fringe 2019, Mika Onyx Johnson’s ★★★★★ long-awaited smash hit debut returns to London. Original beats collide with poetry and movement in this explosive autobiographical piece of storytelling. Do not miss this ‘dynamic, witty and moving’ (The Scotsman) journey of sexuality, identity, and self-discovery.
Mika Onyx Johnson Mika is an actor, writer, and performance artist from Nottingham now based in London. Select credits include, as an actor Michael X (Almedia), Screw (Channel 4/STV Studios), Reflection (BBC), The Girlfriend Experience (STARZ), Cyrano de Bergerac (Jamie Lloyd Company/West End), and as a writer, My White Best Friend (Bunker). Pink Lemonade is Mika’s debut play. It is also in development for TV with Balloon Entertainment and the BBC.
Emily Aboud is a Trinidadian theatre director and writer. She was shortlisted for the JMK Award 2021 and recently received the Evening Standard Future Theatre Award. She is the artistic director of Lagahoo Productions and is currently workshopping British Book by Kirk-Ann Roberts and Ostrich by Alistair Wilkinson. Other directing credits include award-winning SPLINTERED (Edinburgh/Vault) also as the writer, Pink Lemonade (Gate Theatre/Edinburgh/HighTide), The Fairytale Revolution (Theatre 503), Sprawl (Central School of Speech and Drama) & [blank] (ALRA). Emily also performs as a drag king called TriniDad & TooGayThough.
The Queer House is an artists’ agency and producing house for LGBTIQ+ actors, writers, and makers. They are an associate company at the Gate Theatre and HighTide. The Queer House debut double bill of shows premiered at the Edinburgh Festival Fringe as part of the HighTide/Assembly Disruption Festival 2019 and were included in the Guardian newspaper’s top picks and The Stage 18 best shows of the fringe. Their successful Get In The House scratch event has been at the Bush, the Yard, and Omnibus Theatre. Select credits for The Queer House artists include The Nevers (HBO), Living Newspaper (Royal Court), Overflow (Bush), Cyrano de Bergerac (West End), I May Destroy You (BBC/HBO), HANNA (Amazon Prime), Gangs of London (Sky), I’ll Take You to Mrs. Cole! (Complicité), Parakeet (Boundless), Malory Towers (Wise Children), The Feed (Amazon Prime).
Tickets priced from £20 (concessions available) can be booked at bushtheatre.co.uk or at the Box Office on 020 8743 5050
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Graeae and Tamasha in association with Bush Theatre presents
10 Nights
Written by Shahid Iqbal Khan
Directed by Kash Arshad
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All performances of 10 Nights will be audio described and will creatively integrate captioning and British Sign Language (BSL)
One man’s spiritual journey is about to begin...after he’s sent this tweet
When Yasser decides to take part in itikaf, sleeping and fasting in the mosque for the last ten nights of Ramadan, he soon regrets his decision. But as he navigates smug worshippers, shared bathrooms, and recurring thoughts of chunky chips, Yasser’s isolation forces him to confront a side of himself he’s been trying to keep hidden.
A moving and funny new play by Shahid Iqbal Khan and directed by Kash Arshad, 10 Nights is the story of one man’s journey of self-discovery and facing the consequences of your actions.
Shahid Iqbal Khan’s foray into creative writing began with a short play for Carol Godby’s Festival of Plays (Met Theatre, Bury). He joined the Manchester Muslim Writers’ group not long after, a collective that inspired him to explore and compose poetry. He was Associate Artist for Phizzical Productions and is an alumnus of Graeae Theatre’s prestigious Write To Play programme. Theatre credits include The Smile of Despair (Attenborough Arts Centre), Stardust (Belgrade Theatre), Never Been Away (2020: Collection 1) (Tara Theatre). Audio credits include The Return (That Podcast) (English Touring Theatre and Fremantle’s Storyglass), Bhavika (Connections) (Naked Productions). Upcoming: Befriended (United Kingdoms) (BBC Radio 4).
Shahid Iqbal Khan is part of BBC Writersroom Writers Access Group (20/21) and Writers Group co-led by Royal Court Theatre and Deafinitely Theatre (20/21).
Kash Arshad was the Trainee Artistic Director at Freedom Studios in Bradford and is now a freelance theatre director living in Halifax. Recent directing credits: Guards at the Taj (Theatre by the Lake) Black Teeth and a Brilliant Smile (Freedom Studios), Airplays (Leeds Playhouse), We Are Ninja Division (Slung Low Shorts), The Tempest (ALRA North), Selfies Kill More People Than Sharks (Rogue Bones),
Memories of Partition (Royal Exchange), Free Fall (Rogue Bones), The Big Reveal (Abooo Theatre), and Street Voices 7 (Freedom Studios). As Assistant Director: The Threepenny Opera (Octagon Bolton, dir. David Thacker), Handbagged (Theatre by The Lake, dir. Liz Stevenson), North Country (Freedom Studios for. Alex Chisholm), ChipShop The Musical (Freedom Studios/Octagon Bolton dir. Ben Occhipinti), Romeo and Juliet (West Yorkshire Playhouse, dir. Amy Leach).
Celebrating its 40th anniversary in 2021, Graeae is an acclaimed and award-winning theatre company, existing to cultivate and champion the best in Deaf and disabled talent on the UK and international stages. Recent productions and co-productions have included two seasons of the digital new work programme Crips without Constraints, Signal Fires, One Under, the hit Ian Dury musical Reasons to be Cheerful, The House of Bernarda Alba starring Kathryn Hunter, Blood Wedding, The Threepenny Opera, and outdoor epics The Iron Man and This Is Not For You. With Naked Productions for BBC Radio 4, Graeae have also produced radical reinterpretations of classic drama in recent years, including Bartholomew Abominations, Three Sisters, Amy Dorrit, and Midwich Cuckoos. In addition to productions, Graeae also runs an extensive programme of training, learning, and creative professional development programmes throughout the year including Ensemble for young theatre-makers and the Beyond scheme, to help Deaf and disabled artists to flourish and grow. Since 1997, Graeae has been run by Jenny Sealey MBE, who also co-directed the London 2012 Paralympic Opening Ceremony. www.graeae.org
Causing a commotion since 1989. Tamasha’s mission is to create a home for a new generation of ethnically diverse artists, enabling them to create the most powerful stories to move, provoke and inspire audiences across the UK. They do this by throwing a spotlight on stories that are otherwise kept in the shadows. They nurture talent and provide a creative home for emerging and established artists. They challenge perceptions and spark conversations.
Three decades of experience gives them the depth, strength, and confidence to pursue ambitious dreams, with landmark productions that include East Is East (1996), A Fine Balance (2006), Snookered (2012), My Name is... (2014), Made In India (2017), Does My Bomb Look Big In This? (2019) and I Wanna Be Yours (2019) winning acclaim from audiences and critics alike.
Tickets priced from £20 (concessions available) can be booked at bushtheatre.co.uk or at the Box Office on 020 8743 5050.
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WABRIYA KING JOINS THE BUSH FAMILY
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Wabriya King has joined the Bush Theatre as Associate Dramatherapist to support their artists and teams. The theatre’s work often deals with traumatic themes and incidents and so wants to create a space and a format to hold people safely while they navigate their experiences in relation to the theatre’s work. Wabriya has previously worked as a dramatherapist on The HIgh Table at the Bush Theatre, for shows at Soho Theatre, Stratford East, and is currently working with Hampstead Theatre, The Royal Court, and Paines Plough.
Wabriya said, ‘What actors have to take themselves through both physically and emotionally takes its toll. My role is to work alongside them and acknowledge and nourish their mental wellbeing in relation to the work, enabling them to safely honour their character's journey, without giving or losing too much of themselves in the process’
Daniel Bailey, Associate Artistic Director of the Bush said. ‘We take our duty of care to our Bush family very seriously. When we’re programming work that asks cast and creatives to expose themselves to stories and situations which reach into the heart of their soul, it’s vital that we offer the most supportive environment we can. Wabriya has such an amazing track record of work in this field and we at the Bush are excited to have this opportunity to work with, and learn from her.’
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SUMMER AT THE BUSH THEATRE BAR AND TERRACE
As the Library Bar reopens, the Bush has a brand new food menu to share!
With a selection of pies provided by the acclaimed Young Vegans, and Caribbean style patties from Tottenham favourite Paradise Patties, as well as sides, snacks, and light bites, there's plenty to get your taste buds tingling.
Any money spent at the theatre’s bar will directly support their work and ensure their future, so why not soak up the sunshine on the terrace with a pint and a pie or pattie and support the Bush to reopen stronger than ever.
Bush Theatre is currently open from 1 pm to 10 pm. From the commencement of Lava, it will be back to standard opening times 10 am to 10 pm during the week and until late on the weekend.
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SHUBBAK FESTIVAL
Until 17 July
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Shubbak (meaning ‘window’ in Arabic) supports and celebrates the diversity of Arab artists' creativity and innovation through national touring, a biennial multi-artform festival, and its professional and community engagement programmes.
London’s largest festival of contemporary Arab culture, Shubbak Festival connects London audiences with the best contemporary Arab culture through an ambitious live and online programme of premieres and commissions of visual arts, film, music, theatre, dance, literature, workshops, talks, and debates. Visit the Bush during the Festival where they will be displaying posters from the ‘Distant Here’ exhibition, a free walking tour which includes various venues in West London. Full details at https://www.shubbak.co.uk
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Pen-Ting West
14 August, 16 September, 14 October, 11 November at 7 pm
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The freshest open mic night in London returns to the Bush Theatre, following their incredible debut event this Summer. The Bush are proud to host Pen-Ting’s West London night, live and direct from their very own Script Library.
Join them as they bring you the waviest of poetry waves and vibes higher than London rent, with a night that is committed to changing the narrative and platforming inclusive and challenging voices.
It’s Hip Hop, politics, poetry, and speaking truth to power. Good vibes included.
This event has both seated and standing options. Arrive early to ensure a seat.
If you’d like to jump on the mic, use code PENTING when booking your ticket.
Tickets £7 or £3.50 for performers
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Fizzy Sherbert Podcast Recording
2 October at 7.30 pm
Hosts: Tamara von Wethern and Josephine Starte
Guests include Athena Stevens, Anna Girvan
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Fizzy Sherbert is an award-winning initiative and podcast that showcases the voices of creative women worldwide. Join Fizzy hosts Lily McLeish, Tamara von Werthern, and Josephine Starte for this special live podcast recording of a new play by the award-winning Athena Stevens (Late Night Staring At High Res Pixels; Scrounger; Schism), followed by conversations and Q&A with Athena, director Anna Girvan (The Invisible Man, Northern Stage; Our Country’s Good, Tobacco Factory Theatres) and a special guest. Let's get fizzing! Fizzysherbetplays.com
Tickets £8 (£5.50 Concessions, £4.50 Student/Bush local)
