Music and Lyrics by Dolly Parton, Book by Patricia Resnick
and Directed by Jeff Calhoun
Based on the 20th Century Fox Picture
AT THE SAVOY THEATRE FROM 28 JANUARY 2019
Caroline Sheen will be joining the company of 9 TO 5 THE MUSICAL in the role of ‘Violet Newstead’ at theSavoy Theatre, London from 28 January until the end of March. Louise Redknapp will re-join the company and play ‘Violet Newstead’ in the musical from the end of March.
Caroline Sheen is renowned for her leading roles in the West End, US and on tour throughout the UK. These include the West End productions of “Les Misérables” at the Palace and Queen’s theatres, “Chitty Chitty Bang Bang” at the London Palladium, the original cast of “Witches of Eastwick” at Theatre Royal Drury Lane, ‘Once in a Lifetime’ and ‘A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum’ at the National Theatre and the title role in “Mary Poppins” on tour throughout the US and the UK. She will be seen later this year as a lead role in the new BBC series ‘Pitching In.’
Caroline joins the previously announced Amber Davies as ‘Judy Bernly’, Natalie McQueen as ‘Doralee Rhodes’, Bonnie Langford as ‘Roz Keith’ and Brian Conley as ‘Franklin Hart’.
The cast also includes Victoria Anderson, Alexander Bartles, Ashford Campbell, Simon Campbell, Rhiane Drummond, Demmileigh Foster, Llandyll Gove, Lucinda Lawrence, Jenny Legg, Christopher Jordan Marshall, Jacob Maynard, Natasha Mould, Sean Needham, Jon Reynolds, James Royden-Lyley, Giles Surridge, Sasha Wareham and Emily Woodford.
9 TO 5 THE MUSICAL features a book by Patricia Resnick, the legendary film’s original screenwriter, and an original Oscar, Grammy and Tony award-nominated score by country legend and pop icon Dolly Parton. It tells the story of Doralee, Violet and Judy – three workmates pushed to boiling point by their sexist and egotistical boss. Concocting a plan to kidnap and turn the tables on their despicable supervisor, will the girls manage to reform their office – or will events unravel when the CEO pays an unexpected visit? Inspired by the cult film this hilarious new West End production is about teaming up, standing up and taking care of business!
9 TO 5 THE MUSICAL is written by Patricia Resnick, with music and lyrics by Dolly Parton. It is directed by Jeff Calhoun, choreography by Lisa Stevens, design by Tom Rogers, lighting design by Howard Hudson, musical supervision, arrangements and orchestrations by Mark Crossland, musical direction by Andrew Hilton and casting by Victoria Roe.
9 TO 5 THE MUSICAL Original Broadway Cast Recording is planned for re-release via Dolly Records/Sony Music.
Based on the 20th Century Fox Picture. Originally produced on Broadway by Robert Greenblatt, April 2009.
9 TO 5 THE MUSICAL is produced by Ambassador Theatre Group and Selladoor Worldwide with Gavin Kalin Productions, Glass Half Full Productions, Showtime Theatre Productions, Hartshorn – Hook Productions and Kilimanjaro Live.
Devil You Know Theatre Company are delighted to announce full casting for the first London production since 2005 of the multi-award winning play THE RUBENSTEIN KISS by James Phillips.
This new production will star Ruby Bentall as Esther Rubenstein. Ruby is perhaps best known for playing Verity in the BBC’s adaptation of Poldark. Other notable acting credits include Hils in ITV’s Jekyll & Hyde, Minnie Mude in BBC’s Lark Rise to Candleford and Mary Bennett in BBC’s Lost in Austen. She’s also had film roles in Ridley Scott’s Robin Hood, Mr Turner directed by Mike Leigh, and Armando Iannucci’s forthcoming adaptation of David Copperfield.
Esther’s husband Jakob Rubenstein will be played by Henry Proffit. Henry’s stage credits include For King and Country (Southwark Playhouse), Great Expectations (York Theatre Royal), Kindertransport (UK Tour), and A Dance of Death (Finborough Theatre).
Sean Ribgy will play David Girshfeld. Sean has starred as DS Jim Strange in ITV’s Endeavour since 2013, and is also known for his role as Lord Monteagle in the BBC drama Gunpowder. His theatre credits include Pomona (National Theatre, Orange Tree Richmond), Table Talk (Short Back And Sides), and Still Life And Red Peppers (Folie a Deux Productions).
FBI Agent Paul Cranmer will be played by Stephen Billington. Stephen’s acting credits include television roles in Armchair Detectives (BBC), Danny Lomax in Hollyoaks (Channel 4), Greg Kelly in Coronation Street (ITV), Edward Thurlow in Casualty (BBC), Doctors (BBC), and Jonathan Creek (BBC). On stage he has starred in The Crucible (York Theatre Royal), Peter James’s Not Dead Enough (UK Tour), and Alan Ayckbourn’s Hero’s Welcome and Confusions (UK Tours, Brits Off Broadway). He also played Phillip in Mel Gibson’s 1995 film Braveheart.
Matthew will be played by Dario Coates. Dario’s television acting credits include Damned (Channel 4), Endeavour (ITV), The Coroner (BBC), Drifters (E4) and Alex Neeson in Coronation Street (ITV).
Completing the cast are Katie Eldred as Anna, and Eva-Jane Willis as Rachel Girshfeld.
Directed by Joe Harmston (The Lover and The Collection, Donmar Warehouse; The Father, Belgrade Theatre, Coventry) this new production will play for a limited season at Southwark Playhouse from 14 March to 13 April 2019, with a national press night on Monday 18 March.
James Phillips said, “I’m thrilled about Joe Harmston’s new production of The Rubenstein Kiss, and I can’t wait to see the exciting new generation of actors he’s assembled in these roles I love. Our current, dangerous, fraught political moment – where so many are trying again to test the limits of political idealism, where we read daily of Russian agents in this country and in the United States – seems a perfect time from him to revive the play.”
THE RUBENSTEIN KISS is the story of the Rubensteins, a deeply devoted Jewish couple whose Communist idealism leads to their world being torn apart by suspicion and treachery which then echoes through the generations. Phillips’s explosive and affecting drama, inspired by the haunting true story of Ethel and Julius Rosenberg, who were executed in 1953 for allegedly providing atomic secrets to the Soviet Union, is the study of conspiracy, betrayal, and guilt.
THE RUBENSTEIN KISS was originally staged in 2005 at Hampstead Theatre starring Gary Kemp and Samantha Bond, winning the John Whiting Award and the TMA Award for Best New Play.
THE RUBENSTEIN KISS has set design by Sean Cavanagh, sound design by Matthew Bugg, lighting design by Mike Robertson, and casting by Kate Plantin CDG. THE RUBENSTEIN KISS is produced by Devil You Know Theatre Company.
LISTINGS INFORMATION
14 March – 13 April 2019
Southwark Playhouse
77-85 Newington Causeway
London SE1 6BD
Performance Times:
Monday – Friday 7.30pm
Saturday and Tuesday – 3pm and 7.30pm
Tickets: £22 (£18 concessions), £14 preview performance tickets available
GRAND OPERA HOUSE, York AND CITY OF YORK COUNCIL PARTNER TO OFFER AUDIENCES AGED 26 AND UNDER £5* TICKETS FOR ABIGAIL’S PARTY.
To help make theatre accessible to everyone, Grand Opera House York and City of York Council have teamed up to offer any students or people aged 26 and under the chance to see Mike Leigh’s iconic Abigail’s Party. One of Britain’s most celebrated comedies, it was described by The Guardian as ‘One of the greatest plays about the human condition ever written’.
Abigail’s Party stars Jodie Prenger and it tells the story of a 1970’s cocktail party that goes terribly wrong…
Beverly and her husband Laurence are throwing a party for their newlywed neighbours, Tony and Angela. Joining them is highly strung Susan who’s been banished from the party of her teenage daughter Abigail. Welcome to 1970’s suburbia and its heady mix of free-flowing cocktails, classic disco and cheese and pineapple sticks. As tensions rise and tempers flare the sheen of respectability is torn away by the warring couples with hilarious and potentially disastrous consequences.
Originally directed in 1977 by Mike Leigh and then starring Alison Steadman, Abigail’s Partyis a suburban situation comedy of manners, and a satire on the aspirations and tastes of the new middle class that emerged in Britain in the 1970s. Leigh had developed a method for creating narratives that relied on actors’ improvisations to manufacture characters and conflict in an organic manner. That method would become a signature feature of Leigh’s work thereafter.
Cllr Keith Myers, executive member for education, children and young people, said: “We welcome this offer which gives young people and students the opportunity to access the theatre whether for part of their studies or for the pleasure of seeing a great, live performance.”
Cllr Nigel Ayre, executive member for culture, leisure and tourism, said: “This is a great offer which make’s the city’s rich and varied arts even more easily accessible. Live theatre is a spectacle worth enjoying and I hope many take advantage of this partnership. ”
People aged 26 or under and students can get tickets for just £5. Available for all performances, simply give the code ABIGAIL5 and present ID on collection
Lighting Designer: Adam Foley; Musical Director & Sound Designer: Matthew Robins
Boundless Theatre and Script Club today announce that Josh Tucker will play the role of Liam in Tom Wells and Matthew Robins’ Drip, as it embarks on a new 2019 tour following its recent run at Bush Theatre. Directed byJane Fallowfield, the production tours to The Lowry, Salford; Customs House, South Shields; Curve, Leicester as part of#DMUpride festival; North Wall, Oxford; The Coliseum, Oldham; Slung Low, Leeds; New Wolsey, Ipswich; Nonsuch Studios, Nottingham; Brewery Arts Centre, Kendal; Phoenix Arts, Hampshire; Harrogate Theatre; Cast, Doncaster; LIVE, Newcastle; and Stephen Joseph Theatre, Scarborough.
Drip is a one-man musical comedy about a 15-year old boy who signs up to Hull’s first ever synchronised swimming team, though he can’t swim. It tells a story of getting the hang of being a queer teenager in Hull, and feeling proud of yourself and your city.
#DripTheMusical
@boundlessabound
@ScriptClubPlays
Tom Wells is a playwright. His theatre credits include Me, As A Penguin (Arcola Theatre/UK tour), The Kitchen Sink – which won the Critics Circle Award for Most Promising Playwright and the George Devine Award (Bush Theatre), Jumpers For Goalposts (Watford Palace Theatre/UK tour), Cosmic (Hull Truck Theatre), Folk and Broken Biscuits (UK tour). He has also written Ben & Lump (Channel 4) and Jonesy (BBC Radio 4). He is currently under commission to the Royal Court Theatre and National Theatre.
Matthew Robins composes the music following his previous collaboration with Tom Wells on Broken Biscuits in 2016. His writing and performing credits include Flyboy is alone again this Christmas and Lullaby (Barbican). As a designer and puppet maker his credits include Something Very Far Away (Unicorn Theatre), A Most Peculiar Wintry Thing (The Ark, Dublin) and Laila (Watford Palace Theatre). He also recently directed and designed an adaption of Ted Hughes’ The Iron Man (Unicorn Theatre). A collection of Matthew’s animations, songs and mechanical puppet installations is on permanent display at the Science Museum in London in the Information Age gallery.
Josh Tucker plays Liam.His theatre credits include The Dip (Bunker Theatre/Edinburgh Festival Fringe), Five:Eight (Bernie Grant Arts Centre) and Witch, Witch, Witch (Camden People’s Theatre).
Jane Fallowfield directs. Her credits includeGerm Free Adolescent, Bird (Derby Theatre), Fingertips (Clean Break), Cosmic, Spacewang (Hull Truck), The Only Way is Chelsea’s (York Theatre Royal/Soho Theatre) andLagan (Ovalhouse). She is the Literary Associate at Talawa Theatre Company. Previously, Jane was Director on Attachment at Clean Break, Director on Attachment at Birmingham Rep (John Fernald Award) and Senior Reader at Paines Plough. She is a mentor for Graeae Theatre Company and she has been on the script panel for the George Devine Award panel, BBC Writersroom and Channel 4 Screenwriting Course.
Katy Lipson of Aria Entertainment and Joseph Houston and William Whelton of Hope Mill Theatre, Manchester are delighted to announce AN EVENING WITH STEPHEN SCHWARTZ, a showcase of the multi-award-winning American lyricist and composer’s best loved repertoire, on Sunday 17 February. A drinks and finger buffet will begin at 6pm, with the main event beginning at 7.30pm, including Schwartz’s first ever UK panel discussion about his life and work.
In a career that spans four decades, Schwartz has written such critically acclaimed shows as Wicked, Pippin and Godspell and contributed lyrics to the films Pocahontas and The Hunchback of Notre Dame and songs for The Prince of Egypt.
The evening will be Hope Aria Production’s second fundraising event, after the success of ‘An Aria of Hope and Dreams’, with all proceeds from ticket sales going towards their 2019 season of work. The season opens with Schwartz’s RAGS from 2 March – 6 April, MAME with music by Jerry Herman, starring Tracie Bennett, from 27 September – 9 November, and THE ASTONISHING TIMES OF TIMOTHY CRATCHIT, a new musical, with music and lyrics by newcomer Andre Catrini, from 22 November – 29 December.
Hope Aria Productions was created in 2016, when Joseph Houston and William Whelton of Hope Mill Theatre joined forces with Katy Lipson of Aria Entertainment to spearhead the venue as a home for new musicals, musical premieres and musical revivals. Katy is now Producing Artistic Director for all in-house musicals. Hope Aria productions since 2016 include Parade, Hair, the European premiere of Yank!, Pippin, the European premiere of Little Women, the world premiere of Toyboy Diaries, Spring Awakening, Andrew Lloyd Webber’s Aspects of Love, new British chamber musical The Return of the Soldier, and Stephen Sondheim’s Putting It Together. London transfers include Yank! at Charing Cross Theatre, Pippin at Southwark Playhouse and Hair at The Vaults, which won the WhatsOnStage Award for Best Off West End Production. Hair will tour the UK later this year and the London transfer of Aspects of Love has recently opened at Southwark Playhouse. In 2018, Hope Mill Theatre won The Stage Award for Fringe Theatre of the Year and the company featured in The Stage 100 in 2018 and 2019.
The move from the beloved TV series to stage play has gone seamlessly for Benidorm, due in no small way to the brilliant writing of Derren Litten. He has given life to all the characters he knows so well.
In the fine tradition of farce, the story is based on a series of misunderstandings. Posh couple Sophie (Tricia Adele-Turner) and Ben (Bradley Clarkson) have been sent to the 3* Solano hotel in Benidorm because the sister hotel, the 5* Santiago hotel in Altea is overbooked. Manager Joyce (Sherrie Hewson) thinks the couple are really Hotel Inspectors and starts to treat them like VIP’s with free champagne, a personal waiter and a cheque for £3000 for “compensation”.
After meeting Ben at the pool, Jacqueline (Janine Duvitski) and her friend from the Middlesbrough Swingers Club, “Gay” Derek (Damian Williams) think that the couple are swingers.
At “Blow and Go”, Liam (Adam Gillen) is missing his dad Les so Kenneth (Tony Maudsley) fixes up a blind date for him. Derek meets Kenneth and falls instantly in love – with a totally hilarious scene with Derek “singing” I Can’t Fight This Feeling to Kenneth – all that was missing was a fogmaster 3000.
After discovering that Sophie and Ben aren’t the inspectors, Mateo (Jake Canuso) believes it to be Derek and he is given the champagne and attentive waiters instead.
It turns out to be someone else completely different in the end, but all’s well that ends well and we leave the Solano on a high.
Shelley Longworth completely shines as Sam the rep, revealing her outstanding singing voice and Jake Canuso shows off his epic dancing skills. Asa Elliott moves the plot along with his fabulous singing and there is some excellent choreography from Alan Harding.
Mark Walters’s set is versatile and I loved the little touches of the towels on the balconies, some curtains closed and others open and different lights on.
From Kenneth’s outfits to the double entendres, this show is very near the knuckle filth wise and the entire audience seemed to love it. With a very much deserved standing ovation at the end.
In Sunderland until Saturday and on tour around the UK, if you are a fan of the TV show then this hilarious stage version is not to be missed.
★★★★★ “These guys are fantastic… DON’T miss this show!” – Alfie Boe
★★★★★ “Do you hear the people sing? Yes! With dashing good looks, incredible voices and outstanding musical magic!” – Elaine Paige, BBC Radio 2
Direct from London’s West End and Broadway, The Barricade Boys are back on the road with their sensational and critically acclaimed national tour! Featuring fabulous harmonies, incredible vocals, dashing good looks and stacks of charm, The Barricade Boys showcase the UK’s finest male voices from the world’s longest running musical – Les Misérables.
The Barricade Boys not only perform the world’s greatest show tunes, but they also celebrate music from some of the most iconic names in the music industry, from powerful ballads and beautiful operatic arias to some of the best pop, rock and swing numbers of all time.
After sell-out performances in London’s West End, an appearance on Broadway and a host of international dates, this exceptional group are once again taking their spectacular live show around the country, as well as across the pond to the USA (in April).
The Barricade Boys have played nearly every major role in musical theatre from The Phantom of The Opera, Wicked and Billy Elliot to Jersey Boys, The Sound Of Music and of course Les Misérables. As seen on ITV’s ‘This Morning’ and ‘The Paul O’Grady Show’, The Barricade Boyshave rightfully secured their place as the world’s leading musical theatre super group.
The Barricade Boys were founded in 2016 by Scott Garnham (Nativity! The Musical, Billy Elliot The Musical, Made in Dagenham, Les Misérables) and Simon Schofield (title role in Oliver! London Palladium, Joseph and The Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat, The Sound of Music, Doctor Doolitle, Les Misérables).Note To Editors:
Follow The Barricade Boys on Facebook and Twitter @Barricadeboys and Instagram @BarricadeboysUK
Whitney Houston tribute show announces sell out debut
Critically acclaimed international stage sensation Whitney – Queen of the Night will return to London’s Savoy Theatre for a second show – after its premiere performance sold out.
The production makes its West End debut in front of a full house at the Savoy on Sunday March 24.
And due to the huge demand for the stunning celebration of the music and life of one of the greatest singers of our time, the show will return to The Savoy Theatre on Sunday, June 2.
Whitney – Queen Of The Night will star Elesha Paul Moses (Whitney – Queen Of The Night tour,What’s Love Got To Do With It?, The Voice, The X Factor) in the title role, supported by a stunning live band.
Speaking about the sell-out show and new date, Elesha said: “It is amazing to be planning and preparing for our West End debut knowing that there will be a sold out audience at the historic Savoy theatre.
“I am thrilled to be bringing Whitney – Queen Of The Night to the West End and am so excited that we are announcing a second date – thanks to the huge demand from audiences.”
The outstanding concert production has toured extensively across the UK and Europe for the past three years and promoters Cuffe and Taylor are delighted to be giving the show its West End premiere.
The Savoy audience can enjoy three decades of nostalgic hits, including I Wanna Dance With Somebody, One Moment In Time, I’m Every Woman, I Will Always Love You, My Love Is Your Love, So Emotional Baby, Run to You, Saving All My Love, How Will I Know, Million Dollar Bill, The Greatest Love Of All, and many more.
Elesha added: “Whitney – Queen Of The Nightis a magnificent show, celebrating the life and music of a phenomenal performer. I’ve toured with the production in the past, and now to step into the limelight and perform as Whitney on the West End stage singing these incredible songs is an amazing opportunity, and one I’m really looking forward to.”
Ben Hatton, Cuffe and Taylor Director of Theatre Touring, said: “We are delighted to be givingWhitney – Queen Of The Night its West End premiere and to now be adding a second date in the capital. This is a stunning show and The Savoy is the perfect theatre to present this to a West End audience.”
Before her death in 2012, Whitney had been hailed as the most awarded artist of all time, by Guinness World Records – with six Grammy Awards and 30 Billboard Music Awards among her 415 titles.
Whitney – Queen Of The Night is an unmissable evening paying homage to one of the best-selling music artists of all time, with a sensational cast and a stunning live band.
Full casting announced for Northern Broadsides/New Vic Theatre production of Much Ado About Nothing
Northern Broadsides and New Vic Theatre are delighted to announce full casting for their forthcoming touring production of William Shakespeare’s glorious tale of antagonistic romance and chaotic comedy –Much Ado About Nothing.
The production’s cast will feature Richard J Fletcher (Oh What A Lovely War, Oldham Coliseum) as Don John; Rachel Hammond (Babe: The Sheep Pig) as Ursula; Sophia Hatfield (When We Were Married, Northern Broadsides) as Margaret; Anthony Hunt (The Commitments, West End and Hard Times, Northern Broadsides) as Borachio; Sarah Kameela Impey (The Tempest, RSC and Pinocchio, National Theatre) as Hero; Linford Johnson (The Rise And Fall Of Little Voice, Park Theatre ,War Horse, National Theatre and Showboat, Sheffield Crucible) as Claudio; James McClean (New Tricks, Bolton Octagon) as Messenger; Isobel Middleton (Anna Tregorran in The Archers, BBC Radio 4,Emmerdale and Cracker, ITV and Eric, Ernie and EastEnders, BBC) as Beatrice; David Nellist (The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time and War Horse, National Theatre and Sherlock, BBC) as Dogberry; Heather Phoenix ( The Rivals, Theatre by the Lake) as Conrade: Matt Rixon (Hairspray, UK Tour and Around The World In 80 Days, New Vic/Royal Exchange) as Don Pedro; Robin Simpson (Midsummer Night’s Dream and Macbeth, Shakespeare’s Rose Theatre)as Benedick, Simeon Truby (The Pitman Painters, New Vic Theatre) as Leonato; Robert Wade (Cyrano, Northern Broadsides) as Balthazar and Andrew Whitehead (An August Bank Holiday Lark, Northern Broadsides) as Antonio/Friar.
Directed by Northern Broadsides’ Artistic Director Conrad Nelson and co-produced with Staffordshire’s New Vic Theatre, the production’s fine creative team includes Lis Evans (An August Bank Holiday Lark) with lighting by Daniella Beattie and musical direction by Rebekah Hughes.
Much Ado About Nothingwill open at the New Vic Theatre, Newcastle-under-Lyme from 8 February – 2 March and will then tour till the 25 May.
Kwame Kwei-Armah, Artistic Director of Young Vic,today announces YV:ID, a five-week festival of digital and live events taking place throughout February and March 2019, which aims to catalyse debates around the themes of identity.
YV:ID festival will include: Soon Gone: A Windrush Chronicle, a series of monologues commissioned by BBC Arts and produced in partnership with Sir Lenny Henry’s production company Douglas Road Productions, exploring themes of personal and cultural identity through the eyes of an Afro-Caribbean family from the 1940s to the present day, which will air on BBC Four in February; My England, a collection of fourteen short films by writers, directors and performers from across the country, exploring the notions of Englishness and English national identity, which will be released online in March ahead of Brexit; The 8 Club, is a five-part web series investigating the notion of ‘toxic masculinity’, and some of the issues facing future generations in the wake of the positive social change brought about by #MeToo.
The Young Vic will host a series of accompanying live debate events at the theatre to run parallel to each project.
Kwame Kwei-Armah, said today, “The stages of the Young Vic have always been a place dedicated to asking the most profound questions in artistically compelling ways. It’s not just the art we invite into these four walls but also the discourse we send beyond them. After seven years in America, I returned home to a country which seemed amidst an identity crisis. YV:ID is a way to catalyse a debate about those perceptions, and, as part of our commitment to channelling work into the digital world, we are also bringing these discussions into the digital sphere to reach new audiences and continue the conversation outside of our four walls.”
#YVID
SOON GONE: A WINDRUSH CHRONICLE
Commissioned by BBC Arts and co-produced by Sir Lenny Henry’s production company Douglas RoadProductions and the Young Vic, Soon Gone: A Windrush Chronicle, are eight 15-minute heartfelt monologues set in and around the front room of an Afro-Caribbean home. The monologues, which will broadcast on BBC Four in February, follow the highs and lows of one family from their arrival in England in the 1940s up to the present day as they explore their hopes and desires, challenges and shattered dreams.
They have been curated by the Young Vic’s Artistic Director Kwame Kwei-Armah and feature some of the UK’s finest acting talent including Sir Lenny Henry (The Long Song), Vinette Robinson (Doctor Who), Montserrat Lombard (Upstart Crow), Danielle Vitalis (Attack the Block), Clifford Samuel (McMafia), Gamba Cole (Damilola: Our Loved Boy), Elliot Barnes-Worrell (Jericho), Jonathan Jules (Invasion Earth), and Olivia-Mai Barrett (Penny on M.A.R.S).
The eight films are written by a team of leading writers for television and stage: Carmen Harris (EastEnders), Angie Le Mar (Funny Black Women on the Edge), Roy Williams (Clubland), Juliet GilkesRomero (Creative Fellow at RSC), Carol Russell (The Story of Tracy Beaker), Clint Dyer (Sylvia Plath for Royal Court), Nathaniel Martello-White (Blackta for Young Vic), and Kwame Kwei-Armah (Elmina’s Kitchen).
The monologues will air on BBC Four in February. As part of YV:ID, the Young Vic will also be programming a live discussion event hosted by Afua Hirsch and Kwame Kwei-Armah at the theatre on 21 February, around notions of cultural identity and self-definition in the 21st century.
#SoonGoneWindrush
MY ENGLAND
My England is a series of fourteen filmed monologues from across England, commissioned and produced by the Young Vic and created by writers, actors and directors exploring how they define “Englishness” and what it means to be English right now. Half the monologues were filmed on location in the regions the writers are from, including Coventry, Halifax, Luton, Peak District, Plymouth, Middlesbrough and London, and the other half were filmed at the Young Vic, performed by actors from the local neighbourhood in collaboration with the Young Vic’s Taking Part department.
The writers include Javaad Alipoor (England’s Red with Christopher Eccleston), Michael Bhim (The Question), Ishy Din (UTB!), Kenneth Emson (Mayday),Lynette Linton (Simone), Zodwa Nyoni (On Belonging), Bea Roberts(Sir F. Mother Fucking Drake withJenny Rainsford), Jack Rooke (The Game), Lucy J. Skilbeck (Big Ben), Stef Smith (How To Grow A Nation withKate Dickie), Polly Stenham (Flat White with Ophelia Lovibond), Simon Stephens (she), Selina Thompson (I Feel Most English When… with Ronke Adekoluejo) and Jack Thorne(Luton? with Mat Fraser). Directors include Young Vic Genesis Fellow, Nadia Latif, and Rodney Charles.
The films will be released via the Young Vic website and social media channels from 25 February.
The Young Vic will host an accompanying event on 12 March, bringing together members of the public with politicians, artists and social commentators to explore the identity of a nation as it’s going through a divorce, and to ask how we define “Englishness” in our potentially fractious society.
#MyEngland
A Young Vic co-production with David Weale-Cochrane and Kwame (KZ) Kwei-Armah Jr.
THE 8 CLUB
The 8 Club is an online video series exploring the notion of ‘toxic masculinity’ and the legacy young men have inherited from the ideas of masculinity as defined by generations before them. Each episode tackles the subjects that surround and affect young men today, focussing on provocative and often unspoken topics for men, such as mental health, money, sex, violence and personal relationships and how these topics are viewed in the wake of the #MeToo movement and the wider impact this has on gender politics.
Participants in The 8 Club include JJ Bola, Michael Brooks, Ned Dukes, Matt Harvey, Roly Hunter, LionHeart,Simon Anthony Mitchell, Adam Pugh, Michael Simon, Jordan Stephens, Elric Stockley and Jamell Williams.
The films will be released via the Young Vic social media channels from 11 March, and the Young Vic will host an accompanying live event on 21 March which explores some of the questions around gender politics which are facing the next generation.
