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A brand new comedy by the writer of the hit play Stitching, published to tie in with the Royal Court's Christmas production from November 2002 Constables Blunt and Gobbel have one last duty to fulfil before they can finish their Christmas eve shift; telling the old couple at No. 58 some terrible news. But what if the shock is too much for them? Blunt and Gobbel didn't join up in order to ruin people's lives. Maybe they'd be happier not knowing. And maybe it would all be much easier if the two constables weren't also stuck in the middle of a full-scale village lynch-mob.
I wish you could just like consider – consider the chance of it being an accident. 'Cos you're so sure. You're so sure that I did this awful thing. Billy is out waiting for love where she last saw it. Her mum is certain love has walked into her life again. Her sister thinks love could still be found somewhere in the house . . . but Billy herself isn't even allowed through the door. In Katie Hims's sweet, stark family elegy, love never dies, but sometimes – like Billy – it has to sleep in the caravan with Frank's ashes and a bear costume. Billy the Girl is a sharp, yet gentle, look at a fractured family dealing with a lifetime of mistrust.
- Do you have to hold your breath? ... Can you do that? - Yeah. Anyone can. - Not me. Can't be doing without breath. I'd hate to drown. I'm a big fan of air ... 400 miles from home, James has started a new career as a rigger - two weeks onshore, two weeks offshore - existing between two very different spaces; and his daughter Dyl is with him in neither of them. Instead he has Ryan, his live-in landlord - sarcastic, free-spirited and liable to say what he thinks before he thinks what he says. As James focuses on finding the answers from within himself, he risks losing the very relationships that can keep him on track. Dyl is a sad comedy about isolation, the righting of wrongs and shouldering life's responsibilities. It received its world premiere on 9th May 2017 at The Old Red Lion Theatre, London
Winner of the 2021 Alfred Fagon Award It's a play, a performance, a ritual, about human farming, farming humans, soil and the soul, seeds and cells... nursing the nursery, curing creation, remedies and vaccinations against white supremacist racism; birthing revolution, raising redemption, finding yourself in the forest of futurity, the promise of immortality and the matter of Black lives. Henrietta Lacks is one of most remarkable people in medical history. Her cells were taken without her or her family's knowledge or permission. Meet Anarcha, Betsey, Lucy and three NHS nurses in the pandemic, each denied their place in history. Now is the time for their incredible legacy to undergo a transformation. To blossom and grow into something beautiful and new. Mojisola Adebayo's Alfred Fagon Award-winning play Family Tree is a beautifully poetic drama about race, health, the environment, and the incredible legacy of one of the most influential women of modern times. This edition was published to coincide with the Actors Touring Company co-production with the Belgrade Theatre, Coventry and Brixton House, in March 2023.
There's power in that fingerprint of yours. Make sure to use it wisely. London 1623. Apprentice typesetter, 17-year-old John, arrives to work under the mentorship of ambitious printer Isaac Jaggard on a potentially game-changing new commission – Shakespeare's first-ever complete works. As John grapples to stamp a manuscript of Macbeth onto the page, fuelled by his dark past, he finds himself weaving his own narrative into the text. But as the ink sets, he begins questioning who the storytellers really are... Longlisted for the Bruntwood Prize for Playwriting in 2022 and now revived in line with the 400th anniversary of the publication of the First Folio, Charlie Dupré's Compositor E celebrates the power of words and explores the many unlikely fingerprints that write and rewrite history. This edition was published to coincide with the run at London's Omnibus Theatre in September 2023.
1986. Ghana's prestigious Aburi Girls Boarding School. Queen Bee Paulina and her crew excitedly await the arrival of the Miss Ghana pageant recruiter. It's clear that Paulina is in top position to take the title until her place is threatened by Ericka – a beautiful and talented new transfer student. As the friendship group's status quo is upended, who will be chosen for Miss Ghana and at what cost? Bursting with hilarity and joy, this award-winning comedy explores the universal similarities (and glaring differences) facing teenage girls around the world. This edition is published to coincide with the UK premiere at the Lyric Theatre, Hampstead, in June 2023.
Two actors, a thousand characters, and the story of how a kingdom is changed... An epic new adaptation of the 4,000-year-old Egyptian poem about the Warrior King, Sinuhe written by Booker Prize-winner Ben Okri that captures the essence of humanity and the complexities of immigration. This edition of Changing Destiny is published to coincide with the world premiere performance at London's Young Vic Theatre, directed by Young Vic Artistic Director Kwame Kwei-Armah.
This is an essential guide for anyone interested in the best new British stage plays to emerge in the new millennium. For students of theatre studies and theatre-goers Rewriting the Nation: British Theatre Today is a perfect companion to Britain's burgeoning theatre writing scene. It explores the context from which new plays have emerged and charts the way that playwrights have responded to the key concerns of the decade and helped shape our sense of who we are. In recent years British theatre has seen a renaissance in playwriting accompanied by a proliferation of writing awards and new writing groups. The book provides an in-depth exploration of the industry and of the key plays and playwri...
Look, gang, what we need to keep sight of is, this isn't about us. It's not personal... It's about the children. When two 9-year-old boys kiss in the school playground of a small town, two sets of parents are told to 'do something about it' – but neither of them are entirely sure what. Amira is sending inclusive children's books to the school library, whilst her wife Chloe dreams of a kitchen island. Sarah is trying her best not to upset the Mum WhatsApp group, and her husband Matt just really wants to do the right thing – as soon as he can work out what that is. Luckily, here to guide our helpless humans are two cherubic winged guardians of the gays, summonsed to attend to a disturbance in the queer atmos and intervene only where strictly necessary... but where's the fun in being an ethereal being if you can't drop in and cause a scene wearing latex? The Boys Are Kissing is a riotous comedy about angelic intervention, children's birthday parties gone sour, and whether it ever really is 'just about the children', written by 503Five 2019-20 alumni Zak Zarafshan. This edition was published to coincide with the world premiere at Theatre503, London, in January 2023.
“I need you to get in the wardrobe.” Faye's afraid. She's not sleeping, she doesn't trust ducks and all she's had to eat this week is a box of dry Rice Krispies. A doctor recommends a form of exposure therapy, so Faye enlists the help of her brother, Naoise. But Naoise has a devastating secret that's about to explode. A darkly funny new monologue by Ciara Elizabeth Smyth, Lie Low is a theatrical exploration into the human brain via the genitals. This edition was published to coincide with the world premiere at the Dublin Fringe Festival, in September 2022.