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.
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Graeae is a force for change in world-class theatre – breaking down barriers, challenging preconceptions and boldly placing Deaf and disabled artists centre stage.
Artistically led by Jenny Sealey, Graeae’s signature characteristic is the compelling creative integration of sign language, captioning and audio description, which engages with both disabled and non-disabled audiences. Championing accessibility and providing a platform for new generations of artists, Graeae leads the way in pioneering, trail-blazing theatre, both in the UK and internationally.
Graeae also run an extensive programme of training and learning opportunities throughout the year, training and developing the next generation of Deaf and disabled artists. These programmes include Write to Play for early-career writers, and Ensemble, which trains young Deaf and disabled artists in theatre making skills. Graeae are lucky enough to have a cohort of young artistic advisors, also known as The Rollettes, who come together to perform once a year.
Graeae are a National Portfolio Organisation (NPO) of Arts Council England and strategic partners of Ramps on the Moon. www.graeae.org / twitter.com/graeae
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).
Shahid Iqbal Khan’s initial foray into playwriting began with a 15-minute play for Carol Godby’s Festival of Plays (Bury, Lancashire). Phizzical’s Associate Artist scheme allowed him to further explore the medium of playwriting. His first play for them, The Smile of Despair, performed for two nights at the Attenborough Arts Centre (Leicester) in 2015. The piece was later redrafted and retitled as Mr. And Mrs. Khan. It was a finalist in the Top 5 Play Readings Festival and was performed for one night at the Octagon Theatre (Bolton) in 2016.
His second play was a musical for Phizzical, Stardust, written in collaboration with Samir Bhamra, with lyrics by Robby Khela. It ran for one week at the Belgrade Theatre in Coventry in 2019. The story looked at gender and sexuality through the prism of the Bollywoodian reincarnation genre.
Shahid took part in Graeae Theatre’s Write to Play development programme in 2018. This year was about developing playwriting skills as well as liaising with programme partners Tamasha Theatre, Bush Theatre, Ovalhouse, Talawa and Soho Theatre. He makes his London debut with 10 Nights.
Tamasha has a 30-year history of reaching new writing audiences and specialise in making new work for the stage inspired by the ever-changing cultures of contemporary Britain. They aim to spark distinctive social discourse through compelling theatre experiences that place the voices of emerging and established artists from culturally diverse backgrounds centre-stage.
Landmark productions include East Is East (1996), A Fine Balance (2006), Snookered (2012), My Name is… (2014), Blood (2015), Made In India (2017), Approaching Empty (2018), Does My Bomb Look Big In This? (2019), and I Wanna Be Yours (2019) winning acclaim from audiences and critics alike.
Alongside our national tours, Tamasha continues to nurture the next generation of theatre-makers through Tamasha Developing Artists (TDA); a national artist development programme with a track record of providing high-quality training and tangible professional opportunities for emerging and established theatre artists throughout their careers. They facilitate theatre-makers to engage with communities, young people and audiences through unique engagement, education projects and creative collaborations.
