IN CONVERSATION WITH: Jack Blume
Reading Time: 4 minutesJack Blume. BEFORE IT HITS is a new showcase of New Musicals, all at various stages of their development, by credible emerging West End writers.
Category Interview
IN CONVERSATION WITH: Olivia Hannah
Reading Time: 2 minutesWe sat down for an exclusive interview with Olivia Hannah, playwright of Shit Life Crisis, which tours the North of England from 20th May - 7th June. Directed by Silent Uproar AD Alex Mitchel, Shit Life Crisis follows Grace, who has smashed cancer with the perennial support of her ride-or-die Abbie, but victory has begun to feel like a bad joke.
IN CONVERSATION WITH: Niall McCarthy
Reading Time: 3 minutesWe sat down with an exclusive interview with emerging Irish writer Niall McCarthy ahead of his new show Derry Boys, running at Theatre 503 from 20th May to 7th June. Developed through Theatre503’s Rapid Write Response programme, this sharp and powerful and wryly funny new work explores identity, ambition, and what it takes to carve out a place in the world.
IN CONVERSATION WITH: Medhi Walerski
Reading Time: 3 minutesVancouver’s Ballet BC is back in London on 20th & 21st May to begin an eight-venue Dance Consortium tour. The company is presenting a double bill of Crystal Pite’s Frontier and Johan Inger’s PASSING. We sat down with Artistic Director Medhi Walerski to discuss the production coming to the UK.
IN CONVERSATION WITH: Ibi Kontein
Reading Time: 5 minutesWe had a conversation with Ibi Kontein, a Nigerian playwright, director and founder of Sabi Arts, a theatre production company committed to telling bold, human-centered stories that reflect the lived realities of Nigerians, particularly young people and woman. Kontein created Dear Applicant, a satirical and emotional play about the harsh, often absurd journey of trying to find a job in the system.
IN CONVERSATION WITH: THE NAKED NEDS
Reading Time: 7 minutes‘The Naked Neds’ follows a group of Glasgow lads as they navigate the turbulent aftermath of their best friend’s suicide. In a world where politicians’ expenses seem to matter more than NHS waiting lists, they decide to take matters into their own hands.
IN CONVERSATION WITH: Viv Gordon
Reading Time: 3 minutesUsing the gestural cutting out of paper dolls as a collective act of healing and resistance, ‘Cutting Out’ is the lyrical, gutsy journey of Viv Gordon’s survival.
IN CONVERSATION WITH: Josh Asokan
Reading Time: 3 minutesWe sat down for an exclusive interview with Artistic Director and conductor Josh Asokan ahead of Odyssey Ensemble's London Debut at Kings Place on 24th May. Odyssey Ensemble is the UK’s first professional musical collective dedicated to sharing real-life stories of asylum-seekers and refugees in their own words.
IN CONVERSATION WITH: An Adequate Abridgement of Boarding School Life as a Homo
Reading Time: 4 minutesAn Adequate Abridgement of Boarding School Life as a Homo. It is life through the lens of a queer young man, navigating masculinity, Grindr and institution that is rife with shame; doing it all with a sensational soundtrack and a hearty dose of laughter. Directed by Meg Bowron and Josh Stainer and Produced by Lizzie Hawke
IN CONVERSATION WITH: Billy Barret and Ellice Stevens – After The Act
Reading Time: 5 minutesAfter the Act, from award-winning Breach Theatre, spotlights the inspiring true stories of teachers, students and activists protesting, grappling with, and impacted by Section 28 as it was being passed. Interview with writers Billy Garret and Ellie Stevens.