Press Information

VIBRANT N​ EW WRITING ​ | UNIQUE R​ EDISCOVERIES Premieres at the Season – November 2014 to February 2015

presents THE SIXTH YEAR VIBRANT 2014 – A FESTIVAL OF FINBOR​ OUGH PLAYWRIGHTS

Satinder Chohan Henry Darke Steven Hevey Ross Howard Kevin Kautzman Nakkiah Lui Louise Monaghan Carmen Nasr Amy Ng Sarah Page Sharon Pollock Paul Roberts Chris Thompson Jane Wainwright Ben Weatherill The Earl’s Court Local Community

Curated by Finborough Theatre Artistic Director Neil McPherson. Produced by Rachel Kraftman for the Finborough Theatre.

Directed by Jennifer Bakst. Daniel Burgess. Suba Das. Simon Dormandy. Robert Hastie. Zoe Lafferty. Alex Marker. Anna Marsland. Laura McCluskey. Caitlin McLeod. David Mercatali. Max Pappenheim. ​Vik Sivalingam. Alex Thorpe. C​ hris White.

Supported by

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Press Information Now in its sixth consecutive year as West 's original new writing festival, the multi-award-winning Finborough Theatre – the coalface of British Theatre – presents ​Vibrant 2014 – A Festival of Finborough Playwrights,​ its annual explosion of new writing, running between ​2–20 November 2014.​

This year's festival features 15 staged readings of new works by 15 UK and international playwrights, discovered, developed or championed by the Finborough Theatre.

As always, V​ ibrant 2014 – A Festival of Finborough Playwrights ​offers an eclectic and idiosyncratic selection of new plays from both established writers and first time writers, aged from their 20s to their 70s, including dramatists from Australia, the United States, Canada, and from throughout including Cornwall, the North East, the East Midlands and Earl's Court itself. This festival also includes more female playwrights than ever before, work from South Asian, East Asian, British-Lebanese and Australian Aboriginal playwrights, work from our local community, and new plays from our Channel 4 Playwright-in-Residence and all three of our Playwrights-on-Attachment.

Concentrated solely on full length works for the stage, V​ ibrant 2014 – A Festival of Finborough Playwrights ​continues to introduce you to some of the fascinating diverse vibrant voices we have nurtured. A unique opportunity to see behind the scenes at one of the UK's most exciting theatres as we continue to discover and develop tomorrow's plays today, brought to life by some of the UK's most talented actors and directors.

Since the first festival in 2009, our V​ ibrant ​festivals have included 79 new plays, 21 of which have gone on to be produced in full productions at the Finborough Theatre including ​Mirror Teeth ​ by Nick Gill, ​The Man ​ by James Graham, And I And Silence ​ by Naomi Wallace, B​ lack Jesus ​ by Anders Lustgarten, ​Carthage​ by Chris Thompson and Nona Shepphard and Craig Adams' musical version of T​ hérèse Raquin​. Plays that went on to be produced by other theatres have included ​Bull b​ y Mike Bartlett at the Crucible Theatre, Sheffield, and ​The Stock Da’Wa ​ by David Eldridge at the Downstairs.

Despite remaining completely unsubsidised, the Finborough Theatre has an unparalleled track record of discovering new playwrights who go on to become leading voices in British theatre. Under Artistic Director Neil McPherson, it has discovered some of the UK’s most exciting new playwrights including Laura Wade, James Graham, Mike Bartlett, Sarah Grochala, Chris Thompson, Jack Thorne, Simon Vinnicombe, Alexandra Wood, Al Smith, Nicholas de Jongh and Anders Lustgarten.

It is the only theatre without public funding to be awarded the prestigious Pearson Playwriting Award bursary for writers not once, but eight times: Chris Lee in 2000, Laura Wade in 2005 (who also went on to win the Critics' Circle Theatre Award for Most Promising Playwright, the George Devine Award and an Olivier Award nomination), James Graham in 2006 (also subsequently nominated for an Olivier Award), Al Smith in 2007, Anders Lustgarten in 2009, Simon Vinnicombe in 2010, Shamser Sinha in 2012 and Chris Thompson in 2013. Three bursary holders (Laura Wade, James Graham and Anders Lustgarten) have also won the Catherine Johnson Award for Best Play written by a bursary holder.

Vibrant 2014 – A Festival of Finborough Playwrights ​ is again curated by Finborough Theatre Artistic Director ​Neil McPherson​, winner of ​ ​The Writers’ Guild Award for the Encouragement of New Writing, and twice winner of the OffWestEnd Award for Best Artistic Director.

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Sunday, 2 November 2014 at 7.30pm The House of My Father b​ y Carmen Nasr. Directed by Zoe Lafferty. While war rages in the streets of a divided Beirut, a family refuses to abandon their home as they await the return of their father. As bombs fall and soldiers appear unannounced in their garden, Mona and her family cook, repaint the kitchen, plant flowers and persuade each other that all will be well. Exploring the sometimes forgotten lives of those who remain living in their homes during protracted urban wars, this debut play from an exciting new playwright asks how far people will go to preserve a sense of normality, in the face of unimaginable horror. Part of the Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea's N​ our Festival of Arts​, a celebration of the very best in contemporary Middle Eastern and North African arts and culture.

Playwright ​ Carmen Nasr​ is British-Lebanese, grew up in Beirut, and then moved to London five years ago to study and pursue a career in playwriting. This is her first play.

Director Z​ oe Lafferty ​ is currently an Associate Director of the Freedom Theatre, Palestine. Productions at the Finborough Theatre include T​ he Fear of Breathing​ which Zoe wrote whilst undercover in the Syrian revolution. It was published by Oberon Books, as was Critics’ Choice in both T​ ime Out ​and T​ he Daily Telegraph.​ Zoe trained at Drama Centre, London, and the Vaktangov Theatre School, Moscow. Theatre includes the world premiere of Bola Agbaje’s Concrete Jungle ​ (), T​ he Keepers of Infinite Space​ and ​No More Page Three ​ (), ​Gaza: 2

Press Information Breathing Space a​ nd ​Off Record ​ ( and AZ Theatre), ​War and Peace​ (Rich Mix and AZ Theatre) ​Sho Khman? (Freedom Theatre, Palestine, and International Tour), ​Alice in Wonderland ​ (Freedom Theatre, Palestine), ​Adult Child / Dead Child ​ (Edinburgh Festival and ) and ​Not a Step Back ​ (). Zoe was also Associate Director for the documentary and site-specific production of L​ ost Nation​ (The Red Room). Assistant Direction includes The Dresser ​ (Watford Palace Theatre), W​ aiting For Godot​ (Freedom Theatre, Palestine, and International Tour), ​Protozoa and O​ ikos​ (The Red Room).

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Monday, 3 November 2014 at 7.30pm A Film About Someone You Love ​ by Chris Thompson. Directed by Robert Hastie. Sophie can’t work out why one of her daughters went out one morning and never came back. The rejection is taking its toll – Sophie is on the brink of losing her shit and has been signed off work for locking herself in the stationery cupboard. Her other daughter, Ellie, hasn’t left (more’s the pity) and has invited round her fiancé, Monday, and her best friend, Adam, to practice the first dance for her upcoming wedding. Monday’s got the dinner on, and the doorbell goes. Could this be the night the errant daughter sees sense and comes back home to Croydon? You can’t choose your family, but you can sure as hell f***k them up if you want to. Urgent, acerbic and sometimes painful, this is a corrosive comedy about self-obsession and what happens when someone stops loving you.

Playwright ​ Chris Thompson ​ is Channel 4 Playwright-in-Residence at the Finborough Theatre, where his debut play Carthage p​ remiered earlier this year. Theatre includes A​ lbion (​ ). Following an attachment at the in 2014, Chris was invited to join their most recent Summer Group, whilst in 2013 he took part in the Kudos/ Bush initiative. In his previous career, Chris was a social worker.

Director R​ obert Hastie​ returns to the Finborough Theatre where his previous productions include Chris Thompson’s critically acclaimed C​ arthage​ (the first reading of which he also directed for ​Vibrant 2012 – A Festival of Finborough Playwrights)​ , and the first production in over 40 years of John McGrath's ​Events While Guarding the Bofors Gun.​ Theatre includes ​My Night with Reg (​ ) and the UK premiere of ​ Sunburst ​by Tennessee Williams, as part of ​The Hotel Plays ​ for Defibrillator at the Holborn Grange Hotel. Associate Direction includes S​ ixty-Six Books​ which opened the new Bush Theatre in which Robert directed the world premieres of I​ n The Land of Uz​ by Neil LaBute, T​ he Middle Man​ by Anthony Weigh, D​ avid and Goliath​ by Andrew Motion, ​Snow In Sheffield ​ by Helen Mort and ​A Lost Expression​ by Luke Kennard. Robert was also Associate Director of M​ uch Ado About Nothing​, starring David Tennant and Catherine Tate (Wyndham's Theatre).

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Tuesday, 4 November 2014 at 3.00pm One for All ​ by Henry Darke. Directed by Anna Marsland. Huck, 38, decides to squat in a Cornish holiday home to make a political stand. But is he a fierce revolutionary, or a bum that wants his name in the paper? When arch nemesis and local surf God Darren Kashmarick appears on the scene intent on sabotaging Huck's plan, a political battle becomes a local grudge going back thirty years. Both men will stop at nothing to outdo each other. The local surf championships are coming up and seemingly happy-go-lucky pillar of the community, Daz, turns out to be a man with a lot to prove. There are sharks in the water – and they bite. Set in a disenfranchised community in Cornwall, ​One For All ​ is about man’s struggle to feel significant.

Playwright H​ enry Darke ​ had his first piece of writing, a one-act play, H​ ighfliers​ included in the Royal Court Young Playwrights Season, and was subsequently selected as one of 'The Royal Court 50' by Plymouth Theatre Royal. In 2006, he won a scholarship to attend the London Film School as a director, graduating with a short film set in Cornwall called The Lobster Trap ​ which won the Lodz Festival Poland. His second short film ​Big Mouth,​ also filmed in Cornwall, on 35mm, was long-listed for a BAFTA and won Best Film at the Brief Encounters Film Festival. Henry also directed​ Hooked ​ for Channel 4's 'Coming Up' series. He is a Screen International 'Star of Tomorrow' and has feature films in development with The Bureau Film Company and Pico Pictures. A​ ll For One​ is Henry's first full length play.

Director A​ nna Marsland​ trained on the MFA Theatre Directing course at Birkbeck College, and was a finalist for the 2013 JMK Award for Young Directors. Theatre includes ​Twelfth Night​ (Victoria Baths, Manchester), M​ asterclass Academy Showcase ​ (), T​ he Leonardo Question​ (The and Roxy Art House), Secret Heart,​ R​ oad​, ​All the Ordinary Angels,​ W​ hat the Butler Saw​ and ​Two (​ ADC Theatre). As Assistant Director, theatre includes ​The White Devil,​ ​The Roaring Girl ​ (Royal Shakespeare Company), H​ ope Light and Nowhere​ (Underbelly Theatre), A Christmas Carol (​ New Vic Theatre, Stoke-on-Trent), L​ ady Windermere's Fan​, ​Miss Julie,​ T​ he Gatekeeper​, B​ eautiful Thing a​ nd G​ ood ​(Royal Exchange Theatre, Manchester), O​ thello​ (Rose Theatre, Bankside and Broadway Theatre,

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Press Information Barking), L​ ove and Money​ (Arts Educational School). As Text Assistant, theatre includes ​The Malcontent ​ () and H​ enry VI: Parts I, II, and III​ (Shakespeare's Globe).

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Wednesday, 5 November 2014 at 3.00pm Shangri-La b​ y Amy Ng. Directed by Simon Dormandy. Bunny, an ethnic minority tour guide in China, struggles to break free from Western travellers determining and defining her life. Nelson, her Chinese boss, wants a new kind of tourism - sustainable, respectful, enabling genuine cultural exchange. Their white clients yearn for something authentic and unique. These desires collude and collide in Shangri-La.

Playwright A​ my Ng​ was born in Australia, brought up in Hong Kong and educated at Yale and then Balliol College, Oxford, which she attended as a Rhodes Scholar. Amy is also a graduate of the Royal Court Theatre’s Critical Mass writers programme. Her other plays include ​Beyond Cathay,​ selected for the semi-finals of Reverie Productions Next Generation Playwriting Competition, New York City, and ​A Little Night Music ​ (). Currently, Amy is a member of the British East Asian Theatre writing group, a year-long script development programme which is supported by The . Her screenplay ​Prelude to a Feast ​ won the Oxford University Film Foundation competition for Best Short Screenplay. Amy is also a historian and the author of ​Nationalism and Political Liberty ​ (Oxford University Press), as well as articles published in the ​Journal of Contemporary History,​ C​ ontemporanea ​and ​The English Historical Review.​

Director S​ imon Dormandy​ previously worked as an actor spending two years with and five with the Royal Shakespeare Company, as well as working at the Donmar Warehouse, and the Chichester Festival Theatre, among many others. Between 1997 and 2012, Simon taught, directed and managed theatre at where he was Director of Drama. Since January 2013, he has been working as a freelance theatre director, recently directing ​Waiting for Godot ​ with young comic duo Totally Tom in the leads, and the UK premiere of ​Eldorado ​ by Marius von Mayenburg (). This spring, Simon will direct his own stage adaptation of ​The Hudsucker Proxy,​ a film by the Coen Brothers, for the Nuffield Theatre, Southampton, and Liverpool Playhouse.

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Thursday, 6 November 2014 at 3.00pm Apophis ​ by Steven Hevey. Directed by Caitlin McLeod. When a close group of friends gather to observe Venus begin her transit across the face of the sun, little did they expect ever coming face to face with a very different type of Venus, a fast talking, hard drinking working-class Mum. From a world very different to their own, and with the clouds conspiring to block their view, they struggle to connect not only with each other but themselves. Yet when an unexpected bomb of a guest arrives it’s not long before they soon do; only not in the way they had planned. A play about life, love, the universe and everything that’s in it (well almost), and of how, no matter how many times you mess up in life, you always get a second chance. Don’t you?

Playwright ​ Steven Hevey​ is a Playwright on Attachment at the Finborough Theatre. He is also under commission by Old Vic New Voices, and he was recently announced as the seventh writer to be supported by OffWestEnd.com’s Adopt a Playwright Award. He has worked extensively with Old Vic New Voices and Paines Plough. A recipient of several Peggy Ramsay Foundation awards and a graduate of the Royal Court and Soho Theatre Young Writers Programmes, Steven’s plays have been performed at the Soho Theatre, Shakespeare's Globe, , Hampstead Theatre, , Waterloo East Theatre, Old Vic Tunnels, Trafalgar Studios 2, Vineyard Theatre, New Tork City, Bowery Poetry Club, New York City, and the Lyric Studio Hammersmith.

Director C​ aitlin McLeod ​ previous productions at the Finborough Theatre include ​Facts,​ A​ nd I And Silence​ and ​Northern Star. C​ aitlin studied Theatre and Performance at the University of Warwick and was Trainee Director at the Royal Court Theatre from 2011-12. Theatre includes ​And I And Silence​ (Signature Theater, New York), T​ he Malcontent (​ Shakespeare's Globe),​ CommonWealth (​ ), ​The Children's Hour (​ Royal Welsh College), T​ he Red Set, Mahua ​ (Royal Court Theatre, "New Plays from Chile and India"), E​ scalator Plays​ (HighTide Festival Theatre), ​Love, Love, Love ​ (La Mousson d'été Festival and Théâtre du Rond-Point, staged readings), O​ ne Short Sleepe ​ (Southbank Festival), ​The Lady's Not For Burning ​ and ​Elephant's Graveyard​ (Warwick Arts Centre), S​ laughter City ​ (Royal Shakespeare Company, staged reading). As Assistant Director, theatre includes S​ trange Interlude​ (National Theatre), ​Hamlet ​ (Shakespeare’s Globe),​ Love and Information, In Basildon, Love, Love, Love a​ nd ​ Haunted Child ​(Royal Court Theatre), T​ he Talented Mr Ripley​ (Royal and Derngate Theatres, Northampton) and T​ ouched​ (North Wall Theatre, Oxford).

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Sunday, 9 November 2014 at 7.30pm 4

Press Information The Komagata Maru Incident ​ by Sharon Pollock. Directed by Vik Sivalingam. A UK premiere commemorating the 100th anniversary of the true story. May 1914. The ​Komagata Maru ​ – a boatload of Indian immigrants – docks in Vancouver Harbour. Using laws designed to keep out immigrants of only Asian origin, passengers are refused permission to land despite right of entry to Canada, guaranteed by India’s membership of the British Empire. For two months, it’s a funfair on the docks, while those aboard suffer as supplies – including food and water – are denied. T.S. Master of Ceremonies creates a Carnival Circus to reveal and revel in the political, legal and racist skirmishes in courts, parliament and the street. His sideshow skills come into play as he manipulates and maneouvres Immigration Officer William Hopkinson; Evy, madam of a brothel; Sophie, a lazy but ambitious prostitute; Georg, a recent immigrant, eager to get ahead; and a Sikh woman and child, the only woman among 376 men on the Komagata Maru.​

Playwright S​ haron Pollock ​ is a multi-award-winning Canadian dramatist, and has also directed at theatres across Canada. She has served as Artistic Director of Theatre New Brunswick, as Associate Artistic Director of Stratford Festival Theatre, and of Manitoba Theatre Centre. Her other plays include ​Blood Relations (​ Shaw Festival, Canada), W​ alsh​ and Fair Liberty’s Call (​ Stratford Festival Theatre), O​ ne Tiger to a Hill​ (National Arts Centre, Ottawa) and​ Doc (​ Soulpepper Theatre, Toronto). Sharon has also won two Governor General’s Drama Awards for ​Blood Relations ​ and ​Doc,​ The Canada Australian Literary Award, a Japan Foundation Award, Canada’s National Theatre School Gascon-Thomas Award and two Gwen Pharis Ringwood Awards for ​Constance ​ and ​Kabloona Talk. ​ Her contribution to theatre was recently recognized with investiture as an Officer of the Order of Canada. In addition to her theatre work, Sharon has served since 2007 as librettist and dramaturg with The Atlantic Ballet of Canada in the creation of four premieres.

Director V​ ik Sivalingam​ is currently Resident Director on ​Made in Dagenham: The Musical a​ t the , is a graduate of Birbeck, University of London’s MFA in Theatre Directing programme and holds a Post Graduate Award in Teaching Shakespeare from Warwick University. ​ ​Theatre includes R​ ice n Peas n Caviar! ​ (Edinburgh Festival), P​ ericles (Rose Theatre, Bankside), M​ uch Ado About Nothing ​(Royal Welsh College of Music and Drama), ​Jack and the Beanstalk (City Varieties ), ​Little Shop of Horrors ​ (Westminster Kingsway College Theatre), A​ ge of Arousal​ (Patrick Centre, Birmingham Hippodrome), R​ adio Serenade​ (Medicine Show Theatre, New York), ​The Glass Menagerie ​ (Old Joint Stock, Birmingham), ​Cinderella ​ (City Varieties Music Hall), H​ ome​ (The Last Refuge), B​ us Stop​ (Arts Educational Schools), E​ d Reid- Living The Dream ​ (also writer, Edinburgh Festival ​*Best Fringe Show Radio- Forth Awards 2012 ​ & Scottish Tour), The Marriage of Bette & Boo ​ (Old Rep Theatre, Birmingham), H​ ow To Disappear Completely And Never Be Found​ (Arts Educational Schools), ​Circles (​ Arcola & Tricycle Theatre), ​Aladdin - The Rock & Roll Panto ​ (City Varieties Music Hall), Invisible Man​ (Royal Shakespeare Company and Park Avenue Armory, NYC), T​ he Bullet​ (Royal Shakespeare Company at Hampstead Theatre), ​Once On This Island (​ Cockpit Theatre), C​ aucasian Chalk Circle​ (Birmingham School of Acting), Writing On Your Feet Playlets ​ (Royal Shakespeare Theatre and Swan Theatre), ​Uncle Vanya ​ (Sturdy Beggars Theatre Company), O​ r Nearest Offer​ (Almeida Theatre) and B​ lue/ Orange​ (New Wolsey Theatre).

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Monday, 10 November 2014 at 7.30pm Childhood Memories – Monologues of Local Residents’ Memories of Growing Up During the Second World War b​ y the Earl's Court Local Community with Jane Wainwright, based on interviews conducted by Caroline Tod and Pavel Rjabtsenkov. Directed by Jennifer Bakst. Produced by Sean Duffy for St Cuthbert with St Matthias Church. Commemorating the centenary of the start of the First World War and the 70th anniversary of the D-Day Landings, this is a performance of a series of monologues, based on memories of childhood in Earl's Court during the Second World War, together with drama, music and poetry. During the course of the interviews, there were poignant, introspective flashes of recollection along with charming childlike observations of the world our local interviewees lived in. A story of love and resilience, families wanting to stay together, and despite danger, wanting to remain in their streets. The taped interviews will be archived at Kensington Central Library as part of an oral history bank. This project could not have been made possible without a grant from the Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea's City Living Local Life (Earl’s Court and Redcliffe wards) and TLC Estate Agents.

Playwright Jane Wainwright returns to the Finborough Theatre where her play ​Barrow Hill, a​ lso published by Oberon Books, was produced in 2012, her play ​Photos of You Sleeping ​ was a Prizewinner in the 2012 PapaTango New Writing Festival, and I​ n World​ was seen in V​ ibrant 2011 – A Festival of Finborough Playwrights.​ Trained with the Royal Court’s Young Writers Programme where she was an invitation member of both their Studio Group and 'Supergroup'. She has recently finished a commission for the Bush Theatre in association with White City Youth Theatre. She has worked with Tamasha and OffWestEnd.com on Schoolwrights, writing two commissions for schools in East London. She has also worked with Hampstead Theatre and Theatre Centre as one of their ‘Skylines’ writers where her play was chosen as the winner of the final showcase. Plays include ​Concrete Supernova (​ commission for Bush Theatre in association with White City Youth Theatre at Bush Theatre), ​Leftovers (​ Schoolwrights at Rich Mix and 5

Press Information Soho Theatre),​ How I Skinned My Sister (​ Schoolwrights at Rich Mix), ​ A Bite of the Apple ​(TBG Theatre, New York City),​ A Guide to Removing Corpse Stains ​(Theatre Café for Company of Angels at York Theatre ​ Royal), ​Life Mould (​ Skylines Showcase at Theatre Centre), ​Pinocchio Gets Laid ​ (Winner of the Invertigo/IdeasTap Brief at the HighTide Festival and Pleasance London), F​ iveFiftySeven​ (Roundhouse), Hands Free ​ (Old Vic Tunnels) and P​ et's Corner​ (Miniaturists at the Arcola Theatre). She was shortlisted for the BBC Heartlands New Writing Scheme, and was an invited member of both the BBC Writers Academy Story Workshop and BBC Playwright’s Scheme. Jane is 'fostered' by OffWestEnd.com’s Adopt A Playwright Award.

Director Jennifer Bakst is the Associate Director of the Finborough Theatre,​ supported by The Richard Carne Trust. She directed the world premiere of ​Armstrong's War,​ the English premiere of T​ he Flouers O'Edinburgh ​ , a staged reading of L​ ittle Red Hen​, and ​Hate Radio ​ as part of V​ ibrant 2013 – A Festival of Finborough Playwrights. S​ he was formerly Resident Assistant Director at the Finborough Theatre where she assisted on ​I Didn’t Always Live Here,​ R​ OOMS: A Rock Romance, ​and N​ othing is the End of the World (Except for the End of the World)​. Jennifer also translates dramatic texts from German into English, and translated Rolf Hochhuth’s S​ ommer 14​, recently performed at the Finborough Theatre and published by Oberon Books. ​Jennifer is an international director working in theatre and opera across the UK, USA and Germany. ​Theatre and opera directing includes ​L'elisir d'amore ​ (Fine , USA), ​Bash ​ (), S​ elkie ​and N​ ow We Are Three​ (Southwark Playhouse), ​Everything Happens at the Starlight Lounge ​ (Vault Festival), T​ he Collectors ​(Courtyard Theatre), T​ iny Dynamite​ (Cockpit Theatre) and F​ allen Angels ​ (Theatro Technis). She will be directing ​Bong Hits 4 Jesus a​ t and ​Acis and Galatea ​ at the Arcola Theatre in 2014. Jennifer also worked as an Assistant Director at the Deutsche Oper Berlin and the Royal Academy of Music.

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Tuesday, 11 November 2014 at 3.00pm Chicken Dust ​ by Ben Weatherill. Directed by Suba Das. A chicken farm in rural England. New boy Tim has just arrived for his first shift. The job is pretty simple: grab chickens seven at a time by their legs and ram them into cages for shipping. All of this in the dark, stomping around in ankle deep chicken shit, muck and mud. His teammates are old-timers, with cigarettes dangling from their lips and pantyhose up their arms to protect their skin. Feathers cling to clothes. A thick film of brown dust cakes clothing and faces. This band of survivors don't want much: just to stay in the countryside, catch the chickens, and earn the best living they can. But the chickens are dying, rotting from the inside out like hot fruit just hours after they arrive. As disease spreads and pressure mounts, enter Oscar, the meticulous poultry inspector. Suddenly, the farmers are forced to fight to hold on to the little they have left. But at what cost?

Playwright B​ en Weatherill​ trained at the Royal Central School of Speech and Drama, and was part of the Royal Court Theatre’s Young Writer's Programme. Ben is currently the Literary Manager at the Old Red Lion Theatre, as well as Playwright-in-Residence with Curve Theatre, Leicester. ​Chicken Dust ​ won the Curve Theatre Leicester Playwriting Competition, supported by the Finborough Theatre, IdeasTap, Writing East Midlands and BBC WritersRoom, and has been developed through Curve’s annual Inside Out programme and festival, dedicated to nurturing the very best talent from the region. C​ hicken Dust​ is Ben’s professional debut.

Director S​ uba Das ​ is currently Curve’s Associate Director and helped develop ​Chicken Dust.​ At Curve, Suba has directed Serious Money ​ by Caryl Churchill, M​ other Clap’s Molly House​ by Mark Ravenhill and ​Abigail’s Party ​ by Mike Leigh. Suba also created and curates Curve’s Inside Out programme. He was previously Resident Director at the National Theatre Studio. Theatre includes ​Medea ​ (Theatre Royal, Stratford East), Z​ indabad ​by Avaes Mohammed (Tamasha Theatre and ), H​ ope, Light And Nowhere​ (Underbelly) and T​ he Suit​ (The Young Vic).

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Wednesday, 12 November 2014 at 3.00pm The Sweethearts ​ by Sarah Page. A girl band, in desperate need of some positive publicity, travel to Camp Bastion in Afghanistan to do a special gig for the troops. A group of battle weary soldiers, chosen to protect these three gorgeous pop stars, eagerly await their arrival. But when there's an attack on the base The Sweethearts and the soldiers are thrown together and forced to wait it out in a very small tent. As the sound of gunfire becomes louder, allegiances are tested, tactics are deployed and a war begins to break out inside their tent. A black comedy about the people we choose to make into our heroes.

Playwright S​ arah Page​ returns to the Finborough Theatre where she formerly a script reader. T​ he Sweethearts ​was a runner up in the Curve Theatre Leicester Playwriting Competition, supported by the Finborough Theatre, IdeasTap, Writing East Midlands and BBC WritersRoom. Sarah studied at Bristol University before completing an MA in Play and 6

Press Information Scriptwriting at City University London. She was a member of the Royal Court Theatre's Young Writers' Group, before being invited to join their Studio Writers' Group in 2013. Her first full length play P​ ilgrims ​(Etcetera Theatre), débuted last year to critical acclaim, and Sarah has subsequently had performances of her work at the Arcola Theatre, Curve Theatre Leicester, Old Vic Tunnels, Hampstead Theatre and Soho Theatre. Sarah was also a contributing writer for BBC Radio 4's new comedy series T​ he Show What You Wrote​, whilst her first television drama pilot G​ YPPO​ was shortlisted for the BBC's Scriptroom 4 p​ rize. Sarah is currently Literary Associate of Raise Dark Theatre Company.

Director D​ aniel Burgess​ is Artistic Director of All-In Productions. After completing a BA in Theatre Arts (Theatre Direction), at Middlesex University, Daniel was a Resident Assistant Director and Literary Assistant at the Finborough Theatre. Previous productions at the Finborough Theatre include I​ n the Blood​, ​Beating Heart Cadaver,​ ​Sign of the Times,​ A Day at the Racists,​ ​Moliere or the League of Hypocrites ​ and ​Too True to be Good.​ Theatre includes ​To Defend Freedom (Theatre503), T​ he Grace of God​ (Southwark Playhouse), ​Starting Tomorrow,​ ​Guardian Angels ​ (Park Theatre), A​ ctors Platform Showcase ​ (Tristan Bates Theatre), ​The Dispossessed ​ (Etcetera Theatre), ​Days of Significance,​ C​ aucasian Chalk Circle ​ and T​ he Nativity​ (Theatre Royal, Norwich Youth Company), ​The Pillowman ​ (Norwich Playhouse), ​Waterton’s Wild Menagerie ​ (Theatre503), C​ oming and Going​ (Poole Lighthouse Theatre) and ​Christie in Love ​ (Edinburgh Festival). Theatre, as Associate, includes A​ s You Like It​ (Shakespeare’s Globe), O​ rpheus and Eurydice​ (Produced by National Youth Theatre at ) and D​ orothy and the Lost Princess of Oz​ (Theatre Royal Norwich). Theatre, as Assistant Director, includes ​ ​ (English Touring Theatre and Shakespeare’s Globe), ​As You Like It ​ (Shakespeare’s Globe), Skylight a​ nd ​The Ugly One ​ (Norwich Playhouse).

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Thursday, 13 November 2014 at 3.00pm Gunplay b​ y Kevin Kautzman. Directed by Max Pappenheim. Bang. Bang bang bang!!! Guns. What are they good for? Not much. Or maybe everything? Here's a new play straight from the hip that asks the question, complete with True Stories from 'Merica, a talking Human Moocow and (not least) a vicious raccoon that haunts the trail recent divorcee Evelyn jogs at dawn each morning because she can't stand the goddamned gym. Fear! Security! Freedom! College! Fear?! College? Freedom? Security...

Playwright K​ evin Kautzman​ returns to the Finborough after the OffWest Award nominated world premiere of his play Dream of Perfect Sleep ​ this summer. Originally from North Dakota, an alumnus of the University of Minnesota and also holds an MFA from the University of Texas at Austin. His full-length plays include C​ oyote​ (Nouveau 47, Dallas), ​ If You Start A Fire [Be Prepared To Burn] (​ 45th Street Theatre, New York), I​ ris​ (Red Eye, Minneapolis), ​Wolf Cry Wolf ​ (The New Theatre Project, Ypsilanti), L​ ife Electric​, ​Then Waves ​ and V​ asilisa Most Lovely​. His short plays include ​Clifton Mill (Nouveau 47), ​The Play is Memory,​ R​ osemary​ (History Theatre), S​ trike​, ​Solomon the King,​ and most recently $​ <0RP!0​. His honours include the Jerome and Michener fellowships, the Tennessee Williams and Kenyon Institute scholarships, the Kernodle New Play, International Student Playscript Competition, Repertory Theatre Iowa’s Alpha Project and Southwest Playwriting awards. He is represented by Max Grossman at Abrams and lives in New York, where he is a partner at web development agency e9digital and a member of Page 73′s playwriting group. Kevin is currently under commission from History Theatre, working on a play about Hemingway's last days. kevinkautzman.com.

Director M​ ax Pappenheim ​ returns to the Finborough Theatre where he directed D​ ream of Perfect Sleep​ this summer, as well as directing ​Nothing is the End of the World (Except for the End of the World),​ P​ erchance to Dream​ and A​ vow​ as part of ​Vibrant 2013 – A Festival of Finborough Playwrights.​ . He was formerly a Resident Assistant Director at the Finborough Theatre. Directing includes S​ an Giuda​ (Southwark Cathedral), ​The Charmed Life (​ King's Head Theatre), Finchley Road ​ (LOST Theatre), S​ iegfried​ (Fulham Opera) and ​Quid Pro Quo ​ (Riverside Studios). Max was nominated for an OffWestEnd Award for Best Director in 2013.

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Sunday, 16 November 2014 at 7.30pm Fifty Pairs of Unworn Shoes b​ y Louise Monaghan. Directed by Alex Marker. Lifelong friends Eva and Angharad meet at a condemned primary school where fifty children died. Heavily pregnant, Eva is staging a sit-in to prevent the bulldozers moving in, but Angharad, who lives opposite the school, agrees with the authorities that the building must come down. With the river threatening to flood the building and the arrival of Eva’s baby imminent, emotions run high, forcing the women to confront the past and think about the future. Yet, in the wake of such tragedy, can they ever move on? An intense two-hander, that explores the part memorials play within our lives.

Playwright L​ ouise Monaghan ​ is currently Playwright-on-Attachment at the Finborough Theatre where her play ​Pack won the 2012 Papatango New Writing Award and L​ ife After Life​ received a staged reading as part of V​ ibrant 2013 – A Festival of Finborough Playwrights.​ Plays include ​My Space ​ (24:7 Festival, Manchester), S​ hadow Play​ for which Louise won a Bruntwood Judges’ Award and A​ urora​ for which Louise was a finalist for both the London Fringe Festival’s Theatre

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Press Information Writing Award and Little Brother’s Big Opportunity. Radio includes A​ lone in the Garden With You​ and T​ he Man Inside the Radio is My Dad,​ both for BBC Radio 4.

Director A​ lex Marker ​has directed sell-out revivals of William Douglas Home's P​ ortraits​ and J. B. Priestley’s ​Summer Day’s Dream ​ at the Finborough Theatre, as well as Atman by Iain Finlay Macleod in V​ ibrant 2010 – An Anniversary Festival of Finborough Playwrights ​ and ​Pig Girl ​ by Colleen Murphy in ​Vibrant 2012 – A Festival of Finborough Playwrights He has also been Resident Designer of the Finborough Theatre since 2002.

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Monday, 17 November 2014 at 7.30pm Come Home Badger Gash ​ by Paul Roberts. Directed by David Mercatali. When Charles 'Badger' Gash returns to his childhood home in the North East, all he wants to do is restart his life, pick up those pieces and put things back together. However, his over bearing mother, a reckless pastor, and his violent, vengeance obsessed brother Billy have other plans. And towering above it all - the shadow of Jackie Prentice. ​Come Home, Badger Gash ​ is a black comedy about small town grudges, personal imprisonment and family.

Playwright P​ aul Roberts​ trained as a screenwriter.​ Come Home, Badger Gash ​ was runner up in the 2014 PapaTango Award. This is the first part of a trilogy of tales, being continued by ​A Bairn Born Wrong.​ Theatre includes P​ ink Confetti​, which was long listed for the Bruntwood Prize, and shortlisted for Hightide and the RedPlanet Prize in 2013, and ​A Black Heart of Petty Malice ​ which won Soho Theatre's Westminster Prize.

Director D​ avid Mercatali​ returns to the Finborough Theatre where he directed the world premiere of Anders Lustgarten’s B​ lack Jesus​ and Papatango prize-winner ​Coolatully.​ He won a 2013 Fringe First for his production of Philip Ridley's D​ ark Vanilla Jungle​ (which transferred to the Soho Theatre in 2014) and was nominated for the Evening Standard Outstanding Newcomer Award for his production of T​ ender Napalm​ in 2011. Other theatre includes the world premiere of Timberlake Wertenbaker's O​ ur Ajax​, ​Johnny Got His Gun ​ and ​Feathers in the Snow ​ (Southwark Playhouse), S​ ochi 2014 (Hope Theatre), S​ omeone to Blame ​ (King's Head Theatre), M​ oonfleece​ (Riverside Studios and Tour), ​People's Day (Pleasance Theatre), ​Runners the Return ​ (Underbelly at the Edinburgh Festival), W​ eights​ and ​Paint Over ​ (). He is the Associate Director at Southwark Playhouse.

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Tuesday, 18 November 2014 at 3.00pm Picture Ourselves in Latvia ​ by Ross Howard. Directed by Alex Thorpe. A contemporary comedy on contemporary England. Desires are suppressed and aspirations thwarted for both the staff and patients of a psychiatric ward. Orderly Oliver pines for Margaret Thatcher. Dr Rupert wants Nurse Whitehall who wants Dr Rupert. But Dr Rupert and his wife are trying for a baby and Nurse Whitehall who is also married has just returned from maternity leave. As for the patients, Duncan secretly loves Anna who secretly loves Martin who openly loves no one. Both a love story and a modern allegory of the state, P​ icture Ourselves in Latvia​ confronts the impossibility of categorising people as either sane or insane.

Playwright R​ oss Howard​’s work has been seen in Las Vegas (Onyx Theatre), Minneapolis (Pillsbury House Theatre), San Francisco (Phoenix Theatre), London (Theatre503, Upstairs at the Gatehouse, Riverside Studios, Old Red Lion Theatre, Park Theatre) and New York City (Cherry Lane Theatre, Clurman Theatre, Access Theater). Hailing from Lancashire, he was awarded a Playwright Fellowship from the Edward F. Albee Foundation. His plays include ​Arthur and Esther ​ – awarded Best of Fringe at Las Vegas Fringe Festival, N​ o One Loves Us Here​ which was a finalist for the New York Stage and Film Founders Award and ​Frisky and the Panda Man ​ was a winning finalist in the 38th Samuel French Off Off Broadway Short Play Festival. He is the Resident Playwright of New Light Theater Project. ​Arthur and Esther,​ ​No One Loves Us Here a​ nd his collection of six short plays, ​Our Walk Through the World,​ are published by Samuel French.

Director A​ lex Thorpe ​returns to the Finborough Theatre following the anniversary production of Michael Hastings’ L​ ee Harvey Oswald: A Far Mean Streak of Independence Brought on by Negleck.​ He is currently one of the Assistant Directors on Shakespeare’s Globe’s World Tour of H​ amlet​. Theatre as director includes ​Metamorphosis ​ (), Newlands ​ by Janice Okoh ( Community Theatre and National Theatre Pop-Up Workshop),​ Relief (​ Theatre503), Rubbish,​ ​Inherited Risk Factors ​ (Eyebrow Productions), S​ torm on the Ward​, O​ ne Act Play Festival​ (Almeida Projects). Assistant Direction includes assisting Dominic Dromgoole on ​Hamlet ​ (Shakespeare’s Globe), Dawn Walton on ​One Monkey Don’t Stop No Show ​ (Tricycle Theatre and Sheffield Theatres), Paul Miller on ​Democracy ​ (The Old Vic and Sheffield Theatres), Nick Bagnall on H​ enry VI​ (Shakespeare’s Globe) and B​ etrayal​ (Sheffield Theatres), and Jonathan Munby on Company (​ Sheffield Theatres). Alex was long listed for the 2014 JMK and Genesis Future Directors Awards. He delivers theatre workshops for organisations including The Old Vic, Almeida Theatre and Little Angel Theatre and is a visiting director at Arts Educational School.

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Wednesday, 19 November 2014 at 3.00pm This Heaven ​ by Nakkiah Lui. Directed by Laura McCluskey. An Australian Aboriginal family at the breaking point of oppression, loss, love and anger. Sometimes you need to push. Sissy Gordon’s father died in custody at Mount Druitt Police Station. The cops got a fine, Sissy’s family got $9,000 and no-one is allowed to speak about it. Sissy is about to become a lawyer, but tonight, lawyers and the law are beside the point. Tonight the night is dirty and heavy, and the moon is swollen and bright. Everyone knows that on nights like this things happen. Here, the streets and parks of Mount Druitt are turned into a fierce public forum, where the essential matters of what is right and what is wrong, what is good and what is bad are up for grabs. T​ his Heaven​ poses the question: does doing nothing make you as complicit as the perpetrators?

Playwright N​ akkiah Lui ​ is a Gamillario and Torres Strait Islander woman. She is currently Playwright-in-Residence at Belvoir Theatre, Sydney, where her debut play T​ his Heaven ​opened the 2013 downstairs season and was an instant hit, with a sell-out production that was extended twice. Nakkiah was previously Artist-in-Residence at Griffin Theatre Company. Her other writing work includes ​My Dreaming, Our Awakening (​ the first radio play on ABC Radio National programme ​Awaye), I Should Have Told You Before We Made Love (That I’m Black) (​ You Are Here Festival), S​ tho Sthexy (MKA Melbourne) and ​The Traditional Owners of Death (​ Bondi Feast for Rock Surfers Theatre Company). Nakkiah also wrote and directed F​ rom Drag King to Law Queen ​and B​ abyGirl ​(Chauvel Cinema, ABC and Colourise Festival). In 2012, Nakkiah was the first recipient of The Dreaming Award from The Aboriginal and Torres Strait Island Arts Board of the Australia Council and the inaugural recipient of the Balnaves Foundation Indigenous Playwright award. Nakkiah was also the recipient of the Malcolm Robertson Prize and recently received a Green Room Award for the Sisters Grimm production S​ overeign Wife ​(Melbourne Theatre Company). This year, Nakkiah will make her television debut in B​ lack Comedy (​ ABC and Scarlett Pictures), a new comedy series she has co-written and stars in. Nakkiah is also a young leader in the Australian Aboriginal community and has contributed to ​The Guardian, ​ been a featured panellist during Sydney Writers Festival and has appeared on ​The Drum (​ ABC). Director L​ aura McCluskey ​ is also a playwright and directed her own work C​ ake and Congo​ (Theatre503) and N​ ina and Shaz ​ ( Jack Theatre), followed by a London tour for Black History Month (Rich Mix, Drill Hall and Tara Arts). Theatre as assistant director includes B​ een So Long​ by Che Walker (The Young Vic) and G​ one Too Far​ by Bola Agbaje (Royal Court Theatre), where she was also education manager. Theatre includes ​The Wing ​ by Clara Brennan as part of Theatre Uncut. Laura is also education manager at Clean Break, a theatre company that works with women affected by the criminal justice system, where she recently worked with playwright Stacey Gregg on an ensemble piece.

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Thursday, 20 November 2014 at 3pm 1984 ​ by Satinder Chohan. Directed by Chris White. 1984. England. Seventeen-year-old Liverpool fan Tarno is coming of age to the beats of bhangra and Madonna, the miners’ strike and the Sikh independence struggle in India. Dad supports the pro-Khalistanis, one brother fights the National Front after school, the other wants a flash Ford Cortina, while Mum arranges his marriage to a Punjabi village girl, nagging Tarno to make chapattis. Seeking her own truth and freedom in worlds under siege, Tarno has to kick against the men at home – and Maggie Thatcher and Indira Gandhi outside. In a play about youthful idealism, faith and belief, if you can’t trust those in power, who can you trust?

Playwright S​ atinder Chohan​’s plays ​Zameen ​ and K​ abaddiKabaddiKabaddi ​both embarked on national tours. She previously received a Kali Futures Writer Award, and was selected as an Emerging Writer for a residency at both Edinburgh’s Traverse Theatre and for Tamasha Theatre’s New Writing Workshop. After a Writer’s Attachment at Hampstead Theatre, Satinder wrote C​ rossing the Line​ for Heat & Light - Hampstead’s Youth Theatre. In 2013, Satinder received the OffWestEnd Adopt A Playwright Award for her play M​ other India​ about East-West surrogacy. Other projects include ​Lotus Beauty,​ set in a suburban British-Asian beauty salon (Tamasha Theatre), and ​Lost Bright Heads,​ a feature film about teenagers in her hometown of Southall, West London. Her monologue R​ ed, White and Blue​ featured in T​ welve (Tristan Bates Theatre), a continuing collaborative piece about honour killings. Satinder has also worked in journalism including editing arts and culture magazine 2​ nd Generation​ and occasionally still works as a Researcher and Assistant Producer for television and film. ​1984 ​ is supported by a Grant for the Arts Award.

Director C​ hris White​'s directing includes T​ rouble and Wonder​ (Royal Shakespeare Company), D​ reamworlds​ (Royal Shakespeare Company and Theatre Royal Newcastle), C​ ocoa​ (Theatre503), T​ he Ravenglass​ (National Theatre Studio), The Sale ​ (Tinderbox Theatre at the Chapter Theatre, Cardiff), ​ Pillars of Salt​ (Everyword Festival at the Everyman Theatre, Liverpool, and Hampstead Theatre),​ The Water When it Burns​ (Hampstead Theatre), P​ lan D​ (Tristan Bates Theatre), T​ he Truth ​ (La Virgule, Lille), Soho Young Playwrights (Soho Theatre), ​40 Years Young ​ (The Young Vic), I​ ce Cream​ and W​ ay to Heaven ​ (Arts Educational Schools, London). He was Assistant Director at Shakespeare's Globe, The Young Vic and then the Royal Shakespeare Company on the Spanish Golden Age Season. Chris also directed ​Hard Places ​ at Mercury Theatre, 9

Press Information Colchester, and Pritvi, Mumbai, before an Indian tour for Tinderbox Alley and RAGE Productions. Having studied at Manchester University, Chris worked in Italy at Teatro Della Contradizzione, Milan, for whom he directed ​The Visit, The Suicide ​ and ​The Fire Raisers,​ before co-directing L​ e Foreste di Arden​ with the company. Earlier this year, he co-directed a new piece adapted from ​Whole Blue Sky ​ by (IT Festival, Milan), which will be further developed and produced by Teatro Litta in November 2014. Chris is an Associate Practitioner for Royal Shakespeare Company Education for whom he has recently worked in India, as well as directing a version of ​Henry IV a​ t the Houses of Parliament. Chris is also working with Satinder on M​ other India​, directing a reading of at Theatre Royal Haymarket.

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LISTINGS INFORMATION Vibrant 2014 – ​ A​ Festival of Finborough Playwrights Finborough Theatre, 118 Finborough Road, London SW10 9ED Box Office 0844 847 1652 ​ Book online at www.finboroughtheatre.co.uk ​

Sunday, 2 November – Thursday, 20 November 2014 Sunday and Monday evenings at 7.30pm. Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday matinees at 3.00pm. Tickets £4 all seats. Subscribe for five or more readings and save 10% on the total price

Week One – 2–8 November 2014 Sunday, 2 November 2014 at 7.30pm – T​ he House of My Father​ by Carmen Nasr. Directed by Zoe Lafferty. Monday, 3 November 2014 at 7.30pm – A​ Film About Someone You Love​ by Chris Thompson. Directed by Robert Hastie. Tuesday, 4 November 2014 at 3.00pm – ​One For All ​ by Henry Darke. Directed by Anna Marsland. Wednesday, 5 November 2014 at 3.00pm – ​Shangri-La ​ by Amy Ng. Directed by Simon Dormandy. Thursday, 6 November 2014 at 3.00pm – A​ pophis​ by Steven Hevey. Directed by Caitlin McLeod.

Week Two – 9–15 November 2014 Sunday, 9 November 2014 at 7.30pm - ​The Komagata Maru Incident ​ by Sharon Pollock. Directed by Vik Sivalingam. Monday, 10 November 2014 at 7.30pm - ​Childhood Memories – Monologues of Local Residents’ Memories of Growing Up During the Second World War ​ b​ y the Earl's Court Local Community with Jane Wainwright. Directed by Jennifer Bakst. Tuesday, 11 November 2014 at 3.00pm – ​Chicken Dust ​ by Ben Weatherill. Directed by Suba Das. Wednesday, 12 November 2014 at 3.00pm – T​ he Sweethearts​ by Sarah Page. Directed by Daniel Burgess. Thursday, 13 November 2014 at 3.00pm – ​Gunplay ​ by Kevin Kautzman. Directed by Max Pappenheim.

Week Three – 16–21 November 2014 Sunday, 16 November 2014 at 7.30pm – ​Fifty Pairs of Unworn Shoes ​ by Louise Monaghan. Directed by Alex Marker. Monday, 17 November 2014 at 7.30pm – ​Come Home Badger Gash ​ by Paul Roberts. Directed by David Mercatali. Tuesday, 18 November 2014 at 3.00pm – ​Picture Ourselves in Latvia ​ by Ross Howard. Directed by Alex Thorpe. Wednesday, 19 November 2014 at 3.00pm – ​ ​This Heaven ​ by Nakkiah Lui. Directed by Laura McCluskey. Thursday, 20 November 2014 at 3.00pm – ​1984 b​ y Satinder Chohan. Directed by Chris White.

For more information, interviews and images, please contact Neil McPherson​ on e-mail ​[email protected] or​ ​07977 173135 Download press releases and images at http://www.finboroughtheatre.co.uk/press-resources.php

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