KILN THEATRE ANNOUNCES PROGRAMME
AS PART OF
BRENT LONDON BOROUGH OF CULTURE 2020
Kiln Theatre today announces their programme as part of Sadiq Khan’s wider Brent London Borough of Culture 2020. The programme includes the world première of Zadie Smith’s The Wife of Willesden directed by Artistic Director Indhu Rubasingham,renewing their collaboration following the acclaimed world première stage adaptation of Smith’s White Teeth in 2018, Footholds: NW Stories;a trilogy of short plays by Moira Buffini, Suhayla El-Bushra and Roy Williams, and the fourth annual Mapping Brent project, supported by the Brent 2020 Culture Fund. Kiln Theatre will also lead The Agency, a programme for young people in Brent to workshop and pitch unique business and social enterprise ideas for funding and support.
Brent 2020 will present high profile cultural events throughout the year across the Borough exploring the spirit and creativity of Brent, with hundreds of the Borough’s local residents taking a leading role in shaping the programme.
With a population of 335,000 and embracing such well known areas of London as Wembley, Kilburn, Harlesden, Willesden, Neasden, the London Borough of Brent is perhaps one of the most diverse communities in London, and covers a huge area of the city, bordering Harrow in the north west, Camden to the east, Westminster in the south east and Kensington & Chelsea in the south.
Brent will be the second London Borough of Culture in 2020, a major initiative launched by the Mayor of London in June 2017 inspired by the UK City and European Capital of Culture programmes. More than 20,000 people backed Brent’s bid to be London Borough of Culture 2020.
THE WIFE OF WILLESDEN
by Zadie Smith
Directed by Indhu Rubasingham
Coming to Kiln Theatre in 2020
Acclaimed author Zadie Smith will write a new work as a gift to her home borough. Smith has been praised as one of the finest chroniclers of contemporary London, presenting a vivid picture of a multicultural city through her depictions of the North West London neighbourhoods where she grew up. For Brent 2020 she has reimagined Geoffrey Chaucer’s The Wife of Bath’s Tale as The Wife of Willesden. The work, penned 630 years after the original, will raise important questions about the place of women in society and will be performed at Kiln Theatre, directed by artistic director Indhu Rubasingham.
Kiln Theatre presents
FOOTHOLDS: NW STORIES
A trilogy of short plays by Moira Buffini, Suhayla El-Bushra and Roy Williams
Directed by Taio Lawson and Susie McKenna
Coming to Kiln Theatre in 2020
In the tradition of The Great Game: Afghanistan and Women, Power and Politics, Kiln Theatre presents a unique evening of three independent stories with common roots in Brent. Presented together, these kaleidoscopic stories re-investigate the different neighbourhoods of our local area and celebrate the important local events and people that went on to change the world.
Kiln Theatre presents
MAPPING BRENT
The Mapping Brent Festival is a Kiln Theatre community outreach project, working with young people from every corner of the borough, giving young people a platform to tell their stories, showcase their talents, and participate in the transformative power of theatre.
This year’s Festivalis supported by the 2020 Culture Fund – a funding scheme which will support local people and organisations in Brent to produce their own cultural activities as part of the London Borough of Culture year.
THE AGENCY
The Agency at Kiln Theatre will work with young people aged 15-25 from St Raphael’s, Chalk Hill and the surrounding neighbourhoods in Brent to develop their unique ideas into business or social enterprises in the local area.
The programme will provide training, support, funding and advice from industry professionals, to develop participants’ passion into a project that benefits their local community. This could be anything from a boxing workshop, to a music festival.
Following workshops, participants will then pitch their idea to a panel of experts for the chance to win £2000 to fully develop their business idea.
The Agency runs nationwide and takes place in London, Manchester, Cardiff and Belfast.
Twitter: @KilnTheatre / @KilnCinema
