Conversations, dispatches and ideas from the Bush Theatre.
Monica, Javaad, Ben, Estelle, Arinzé, Vinay, Jaz and Winsome. These are our writers: bold, fresh voices that drive to the heart of what it means to be all the kinds of people you see everyday in our city. Some of their names may already be familiar to you. We’re certain that soon they’ll all be. This cohort of innovative new writers stand on the shoulders of a generation of playwrights like Winsome Pinnock whose play Leave Taking we will make new this year for contemporary audiences as part of an initiative called Passing the Baton.
I kept making references back to heart-and-soul incredible plays, by men and women of colour from the last 50 years, which no one had heard of because they’re out of print and not being revived. These important works are being lost and silenced. Today we announce Passing the Baton – a three year initiative to reacquaint theatre goers with artists of colour who carved their way through British playwriting with distinction. It will also include a mentoring scheme to nurture the next generation of writers of colour.
We are immensely proud to announce eight plays across our THEATRE and STUDIO for 2018. The STUDIO remains a flexible space which we use to support our wide-ranging talent development programmes. Alongside our newly announced plays work will continue with our Emerging Writers’ Group, Up Next, Associate Artists, Community Associate Companies and Project 2036.
Scroll down to discover the line-up.
The Believers Are But Brothers
24 Jan – 10 Feb
Javaad Alipoor’s Fringe First award-winning play envelops its audience in a digital realm, exploring the blurry and complex world of extremists, journalists and fantasists. This bold one-man show weaves together their stories to engage with a web of resentment, violence and power.
The B*easts
12 Feb – 3 Mar
Setting the modern obsession with putting your own child first, against our responsibility as a society towards our children as a whole, this dark tale, written by and starring BAFTA-winning actress Monica Dolan, explores how far one mum will go to give her child what she wants.
Misty
15 Mar – 21 Apr
Arinzé Kene delivers an epic, lyrical journey through the pulsating heart and underground soul of inner city London. An inventive blend of gig theatre, spoken word, live art and direct address, Misty confronts the assumptions and expectations underpinning the act of telling a story.
Leave Taking
24 May – 30 Jun
Winsome Pinnock puts black experiences centre stage. A single mother travelled to England determined to make a good life for her family. Now Enid and her two daughters search for a way to feel rooted in a land where they’re invisible. Leave Taking is a beautifully observed account of a second generation immigrant family navigating the conflicts between generations and cultures.
An Adventure
6 Sep – 20 Oct
An epic technicolour love story from one of the country’s most promising writers, An Adventure spans seven decades and three continents, following headstrong Jyoti and her fumbling suitor Rasik on their lifelong search for happiness and home. Vinay Patel was named BAFTA Breakthrough Brit 2016.
Jellyfish
26 Jun – 21 July
Agnes and her daughter, Kelly, have walked the same stretch of Skegness beach every day for fifteen years. But when Kelly who has Down’s Syndrome falls in love with Neil, their cosy world changes drastically. Ben Weatherill’s new play is a unique story about the boundaries of love.
Going Through
3 Oct – 3 Nov
Going Through by Estelle Savasta is a poetic and touching story of one girl’s journey through adolescence, across borders and through a well-guarded secret. This bilingual production seamlessly mixes English and British Sign Language.
Lands
13 Nov – 8 Dec
The award-winning Antler directed by Jaz Woodcock-Stewart return with a playful, intimate dissection of a relationship teetering on the edge of collapse. Lands is an absurd tragicomedy exploring our inability to understand one another. This moving play arrives at the Bush following a sell-out run at the Edinburgh Fringe.
