Category: News

I have a very busy few weeks ahead. First up is my short play ‘Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell’ about US army whistle-blower Chelsea (formerly Bradley) Manning which is to be performed at the Barons Court Theatre from the 17th to 22nd September as part of Kibo Production’s ‘Love, Hate and Human Rights’ festival. It is one of 8 plays, all tackling human rights concerns. Tickets are £12 (£10 concessions) and can be reserved via email at londontheatre@gmail.com or by calling 0208 932 4747. 10% of the box office will be donated to Amnesty International.

Then, the following week, my full length play ‘Saving Souls In Soho’ opens ‘The Band Plays On‘ festival of gay-themed plays at Greenwich Theatre on Tuesday the 24th of September at 7.30pm. The first festival of its kind in London, it is being presented by Greenwich Theatre in partnership with award winning writer and director Patrick Wilde (What’s Wrong With Angry?) ‘Saving Souls In Soho’ continues the story of my ‘Dawn Rescue’ short film and accompanying website, and is a darkly comic look at how religion corrupts the innocent. Tickets are £5, available from the Greenwich Theatre website here.

Lastly, I’ve also written a play for Paradigm Theatre’s ‘Fresh Off The Boat,‘ a double bill of plays about immigration to be performed at the Hen and Chickens Theatre from the 8th to the 12th of October. My play ‘The Utility People’ is about a middle-class liberal couple who discover immigrants living inside their utility cupboard, but decide to let them stay in return for doing the cleaning, cooking, and so much more. Directed by Cat Robey, it is paired with Sarah Pitard’s ‘A Border Story’ an autobiographical retelling of her own visa nightmare. Tickets available here.

There will be a rehearsed reading of my play ‘Hungry Heart’ at RADA on Wednesday the 20th March at 7.30pm.

This American-set play tells the story of a man, Connor Hamilton, who at age 17 almost goes home with a serial killer, this brief encounter having a devastating effect on the course of the rest of his life. An epic journey spanning over 30 years of American history, projecting into the future and leading all the way to the White House.

‘Hungry Heart’ was selected by the Writers Guild and RADA for their ‘Plays of Innocence and Experience’ development scheme last year. I wrote an article about the process for the Writers Guild website here. This event is free and is being held at RADA Studios, Chenies Street, London, WC1E 7PA.

UPDATE 24/3/2013:  The reading played to a packed house and was followed by a lively audience discussion. It was directed by Owen Horsley (associate director, Cheek By Jowl) and the cast were Alistair Toovey, Sam Redford, Oliver Johnstone, Catherine Cusack, James Clyde, Rose O’Loughlin, Alex Robertson, Jamie Doyle and Hester Arden. It was organised by Lloyd Trott, RADA’s dramaturge.

 

I’m thrilled to report that my play ‘Armed Forces Day’ is being performed on Sunday the 3rd of February at the Arcola Theatre as part of the latest show by the highly regarded Miniaturists.

Curated by playwrights Stephen Sharkey and Declan Feenan, the Miniaturists have been running regular events since 2005 showcasing short plays from a host of top playwrights, including David Eldridge, Nick Payne, Moira Buffini, Stacey Gregg, Joel Horwood and Adam Brace amongst countless others.

My play is being directed by the excellent Nadia Papachronopoulou and the superb cast are Tony Bell, Kate Collison, Robin Crouch and Jessica Sichel.  Tickets can be booked from the Arcola website here The other playwrights are Glynn Maxwell, Poppy Corbett, Vanessa Wilkins and Gemma Langford. (There are two shows, at 5pm and 8pm.)

UPDATE:  The Miniaturists 39 (myself included) get a nice mention in the Guardian, in Lyn Gardner’s blog on what to see at the theatre this week.

(Below; production photos of Robin Crouch and Tony Bell in Armed Forces Day)