Rifco Theatre Co presents 'Dishoom!', UK Tour 25th Sep - 27th Oct

Rifco Theatre Co presents
‘Dishoom!’, UK Tour 25th Sep
– 27th Oct
Rifco Theatre Company and Watford Palace Theatre with Oldham
Coliseum Theatre present ‘Dishoom!’ featuring music from the
iconic Bollywood hit Sholay. The play, about friendship and
courage, will tour from 25th September until 27th October 2018
and is written by Gurpreet Kaur Bhatti and directed by Pravesh
Kumar.

Synopsis
Summer 1978, Simon and his friends should be looking forward
to leaving school, but the National Front are on the streets,
Simon’s Bibi is ashamed of him and his Dad spends his life
hiding in the pub. When Simon’s cousin Baljit comes to stay,
she introduces him to the Bollywood classic, Sholay. Inspired
by the film’s dynamic duo, Jai and Veeru, Simon and Baljit
find their inner superheroes and set out to change their world
forever.

Cast
Elijah Baker – Mark
Seema Bowri – Bibi
Georgia Burnell – Donna
Omar Ibrahim – Dad
Gurkiran Kaur – Baljit
Bilal Khan – Simon
James Mace – Keith

Creatives
Writer – Gurpreet Kaur Bhatti
Director – Pravesh Kumar
Set Designer – Neil Irish

Costume Designer & Choreographer – Andy Kumar
Lighting Designer – Rory Beaton
Composer – Arun Ghosh
Sound Designer – Chris Murray

Dishoom! Tour Schedule
Queen’s Theatre, Hornchurch
Tue 25th Sep – Sat 29th Sep 2018
https://www.queens-theatre.co.uk

Oldham Coliseum Theatre
Tue 2nd Oct – Sat 13th Oct
www.coliseum.org.uk

Warwick Arts Centre
Tue 16th Oct – Sat 20th Oct
https://www.warwickartscentre.co.uk

Derby Theatre
Tue 23rd Oct – Sat 27th Oct
https://www.derbytheatre.co.uk

For further information visit https://www.rifcotheatre.com/

Kali     Theatre    presents
‘Sundowning’ by Nessah Muthy,
10 Oct – 10 Nov
Kali Theatre Co. presents ‘Sundowning’ by Nessah Muthy, a
compelling new play about love, loneliness and guilt between
three generations of women. The play, which tours from 10th

October to 10th November, features Hazel Maycock , Nadia
Nadif, Aasiya Shah in key roles and is directed by Helena
Bell.

What is the true cost of care?

When Alyssa returns home from prison she’s devastated to find
her aunt has put her beloved grandmother Betty in a care home.
Determined to give Betty one last jolly, jingle filled holiday
and recapture happy childhood memories, Alyssa kidnaps Betty
and the pair embark on a campervan road trip to the seaside.
But soon Betty’s dementia and Alyssa’s troubled past catch up
with them….

Cast & Crew
Cast – Hazel Maycock , Nadia Nadif, Aasiya Shah
Director – Helena Bell
Designer – Rajha Shakiry
Video Designer – Daniel Denton
Lighting Designer – Pablo Fernandez Baz
Sound Designer – Dinah Mullen
Choreographer – Yarit Dor
Production Manager – Kate Jones
Stage Manager – Charlotte Cooper

Tour Schedule
Plymouth
Wed 10th – Sat 13th October 7.45pm
Theatre Royal – The Drum
https://www.theatreroyal.com

London
16th Oct – 3rd Nov Tue- Sat 7.30pm
Sat Matinee 3.30pm, No performance Mon 22nd
Tristan Bates Theatre
https://www.tristanbatestheatre.co.uk

Slough

9th – 10th November
Slough Curve

About Nessah Muthy

Nessah Muthy is a Writer’s Guild nominated writer and winner
of the Adrian Pagan Award 2018. She has worked with a number
of theatres including: the Royal Court Theatre, HighTide, the
National Youth Theatre, Cardboard Citizens, Kali Theatre,
Punchdrunk and Theatre Centre. For theatre, Nessah is
presently under commission to: Iris Theatre and the National
Youth Theatre.

For screen, Nessah has written for Holby City and EastEnders:
E20. She is the inaugural recipient of the Character 7 Award
and is currently developing a number of new ideas for
television.

Stellar cast announced for
The Village, 7th Sep – 6th
Oct 2018
A stellar cast has been announced, alongside acclaimed actor
Art Malik, for The Village which runs from 7th September until
6th October 2018 at the Theatre Royal Stratford East. Harki
Bhambra, Sudha Bhuchar, Anya Chalotra, Ameet Chana, Neil
D’Souza, Souad Faress, Rina Fatania, Naeem Hayat, Scott Karim,
Art Malik, Arian Nik, Humera Syed and Ragevan Vasan will all
star in writer April De Angelis’s play Fuenteovejuna which
calls for courage in the face of tyranny.

Synopsis
Village life for Jyoti is simple: the people work hard, sing
and live off the earth. She would much rather devour a
delicious meal than think about a suitable partner. But when
the Inspector and his men arrive back in town, things quickly
begin to sour. The Inspector’s reign of terror sees him commit
unspeakable acts against the village with young Jyoti in his
sights, pushing everyone to breaking point. Will she dare
scorn his advances?

This new adaptation by April De Angelis of de Vega’s
Fuenteovejuna, is transported to contemporary India, and set
against a backdrop of political unrest. Nadia Fall directs The
Village which opens her inaugural season as Artistic Director
of Stratford East.

The Village
Venue: Theatre Royal Stratford East, Gerry Raffles Square,
London E15 1BN
Dates: Friday 7th September – Saturday 6th October 2018
Time: 7.30pm (matinees on select days 2.30pm)
Price: From £10 (all preview performances are £10)
Runtime: TBC
Age Guidance: 14+​

Concessions: £10 tickets for under 26s. If you can’t attend a
show without the support of a companion or carer, you can get
a companion ticket free of charge – click here for details.

Newham Discount Night: There are a limited number of £5 for
all preview performances for visitors who work or live in
Newham – proof of address required. Only available to book in
person or over the phone (020 8534 0310).

Access performances:
BSL Performance – Thu 4 Oct, 7.30pm
Captioned Performance – Fri 5 Oct, 7.30pm

Audio Described Performance – Sat 6 Oct, 2.30pm

Writer April De Angelis
Director Nadia Fall
Designer Joanna Scotcher
Lighting Designer Paul Pyant
Movement Director Polly Bennett
Composer Niraj Chag
Sound Designer Helen Atkinson
Fight Directors RC-Annie
Casting Director Amy Ball
Cast: Harki Bhambra, Sudha Bhuchar, Anya Chalotra, Ameet
Chana, Neil D’Souza, Souad Faress, Rina Fatania, Naeem Hayat,
Scott Karim, Art Malik, Arian Nik, Humera Syed and Ragevan
Vasan

For     further   information      or   to    book    tickets
visit http://stratfordeast.com/whats-on/all-shows/the-village

Bollywood comes to Birmingham
in new musical Taj Express
Bollywood comes to Birmingham in spectacular new musical Taj
Express from Tuesday 11th – Saturday 15th September 2018 for a
strictly limited run. Following a smash-hit season at The
Peacock Theatre, London, a sell-out tour of America and a stop
off in Film City, Mumbai, the all-singing, all-dancing
Bollywood spectacular Taj Express is choreographed by Vaibhavi
and Shruti Merchant (The Merchants of Bollywood) and features
the songs of Oscar winner A.R. Rahman, composer of “Slumdog
Millionaire”.

Taj Express follows the story of ones man’s passion and

another man’s genius. Young composer Shankar struggles with
his music, and it’s only when he begins to follow in the
footsteps of his idol, A.R. Rahman that he discovers his path
to success. The production reveals the secrets of the world’s
most prolific film industry, and the people behind the screen
who make the magic in India’s factory of dreams.

With a cast of multi-talented performers, Taj Express is an
uplifting show full of colour, high-energy music and
sensational dance scenes choreographed by one of Bollywood’s
top young choreographers, Vaibhavi Merchant and directed by
her sister Shruti Merchant. The pair were part of the creative
team behind The Merchants of Bollywood, based on the life of
their grandfather Shri Hiralalji and Vaibhavi herself.

About Vaibhavi Merchant
Vaibhavi Merchant started her career assisting her uncle
Chinni Prakash, a renowned Bollywood film choreographer. She
performed in the film Snehapoorvam Anna, but soon returned to
choreography working on a variety of acclaimed Bollywood films
including Kuch Na Kaho, Na Tum Jano Na Hum, Devdas and the
Oscar nominated Lagaan. Her awards include a National Film
Award for choreographing the dance ‘Dhole baaje’ in the movie
Hum Dil De Chuke Sanam.

About Shruti Merchant
Prior to Taj Express, Shruti Merchant toured for over five
years with The Merchants of Bollywood, visiting various
countries from Australia, Switzerland, South Africa, Spain,
France, Singapore and the USA. During her career Shruti has
also assisted in the choreography direction of various
Bollywood blockbusters. As director of Taj Express, Shruti
aims to give audiences a true flavour of Indian and entertain
and enthral audiences of all ages across the world.

Taj Express visits Birmingham Hippodrome, Hurst Street,

Southside, Birmingham, B54TB. Tues 11 – Sat 15 Sep 2018,
Tickets: From £12 Performances: Tues – Sat 7.30pm, Wed 2pm &
Sat      2.30pm.      Ticket      Office:      0844      338
5000. birminghamhippodrome.com

Women of Power: More Than
Just a Piece of Cloth, 23 –
29 May 2018
This May, Penny Appeal are staging of a new play in support of
International Gender Equality. Women of Power: More Than Just
a Piece of Cloth is unveiled with performances by critically-
acclaimed theatre group Once Upon a Family, featuring poet
Sukina Pilgrim, one half of the London based hip-hop duo
Poetic Pilgrimage. This all women production peers through the
hijab to tell the real stories of Muslim women in the 21st
century.

“The cloth is worn as a hijab in the Middle East, carries a
baby in Africa and is used as a cleaning rag by others”. Each
time, rather than seeing the simple piece of cloth, we learn
about the unique and diverse lives of the women themselves as
they share their wisdom and insight with our young female
protagonist before her wedding day.
The entirely women-only cast will visit seven mainland UK
towns and cities including Glasgow – 23rd May, Bradford 24th
May, Blackburn – 25th May, Manchester – 26th May, Leicester –
27th May, Birmingham – 28th May and London 29th May 2018.

Penny Appeal are inviting Muslim and non-Muslim women to
attend along with their friends, colleagues and daughters to
immerse themselves in the experience of the entertaining and

emotional journeys of a Muslim woman living within the modern
age.

Proceeds from Women of Power are donated directly to the
Women’s Welfare campaign, which promotes gender equality and
champions the rights of women and girls around the world.

Tickets cost £5 at the ½ price ‘Early Bird’ rate for a limited
time and £10 after that.

To book now visit pennyappeal.org/event/women-of-power

Shobna Gulati to play Ray in
‘Everybody’s Talking About
Jamie’
TV star Shobna Gulati will take over the role of Ray in the
award-winning feel good new musical sensation ‘Everybody’s
Talking About Jamie’ from Monday 7 May 2018. Shobna, best
known for playing Sunita Alahan in ITV’s Coronation Street and
Anita in Dinnerladies, said “Everybody’s Talking About Jamie
is a wonderful show; it’s truly warm, infectious for the soul
and incredibly uplifting. The show is full of the rich
diversity that makes my heart sing and what makes Britain
great!”

Shobna joins current cast members, John McCrea (Jamie), Josie
Walker (Margaret), Tamsin Carroll (Miss Hedge), Lucie
Shorthouse (Pritti Pasha), Phil Nichol (Hugo), Alex Anstey
(Laika Virgin), Luke Baker (Dean Paxton), Luke Bayer, Courtney
Bowman (Fatimah), Marvyn Charles, Ken Christiansen (Jamie’s

Dad), Jordan Cunningham (Sayid), Daniel Davids (Levi), James
Gillan (Tray Sophisticay), Ryan Hughes (Mickey), Daniel Jacob
(Sandra Bollock), Cherelle Jay, Rebecca McKinnis, Harriet
Payne (Bex), Chloe Pole, Shiv Rabheru (Cy), Lauran Rae (Becca)
and Kirstie Skivington (Vicki).

About Shobna Gulati
Shobna Gulati has become a household name for her role as
Anita in Victoria Wood’s Dinnerladies and as Sunita in
Coronation Street. Theatre credits include Daisy Pulls It Off
(The Park), Anita & Me (Birmingham Rep and Touring
Consortium), Grease (Leicester Curve Theatre), Mamma Mia!
(international tour), April in Paris (Derby Playhouse and UK
tour), B!rth, Hunger for Trade, Come Closer, Pretend You Have
Big Buildings, Cafe Vesuvio (Royal Exchange, Manchester), The
Jungle Book (West Yorkshire Playhouse), dinnerladies (UK
tour), Romeo and Juliet (Leicester Haymarket) and A Midsummer
Night’s Dream (Tara Arts, UK tour).

She has also written and directed the critically acclaimed
comedy show for young women, The Masala Girls. Film work
includes Shadowscan (BAFTA winner), Honey and Razerblades,
Junkhearts, Ashes and Finding Fatimah. Other TV includes
Moving On, Hold the Sunset, Doctors, Casualty, In the Club,
EastEnders, New Street Law, Magnolia, River City, Paranoid,
You, Me and Them, Where the Heart Is, Loose Women and
Celebrity Masterchef. She currently voices Kari in Cbeebies’
Treasure Champs. Radio includes her own late night show on BBC
Radio Manchester, and many plays for BBC Radio 4, including
The Break and The Show What You Wrote.

About Everybody Talking About Jamie
Jamie New is sixteen and lives on a council estate in
Sheffield.

Jamie doesn’t quite fit in.

Jamie is terrified about the future.

Jamie is going to be a sensation.

Supported by his brilliant loving mum and surrounded by his
friends, Jamie overcomes prejudice, beats the bullies and
steps out of the darkness, into the spotlight. This fabulous,
funny, feel good brand new musical sensation hits London with
catchy new songs by lead singer-songwriter of The Feeling Dan
Gillespie Sells and writer Tom MacRae. Sixteen: the edge of
possibility. Time to make your dreams come true.

The Sheffield Theatres Production of Everybody’s Talking About
Jamie is produced in the West End by Nica Burns, Ian Osborne,
Paula Marie Black, Teresa and Craig Beech.

Director Jonathan Butterell saw the Firecracker documentary
film ‘Jamie: Drag Queen at 16’ the true story of Jamie
Campbell and his mother, Margaret. This inspired him to create
this musical which is a dramatised portrayal of a period in
Jamie’s life but is not a faithful account. Certain events and
characters have been fictionalised.

Everybody’s Talking About Jamie opened at the Sheffield
Crucible in 2017 and is now playing at the Apollo Theatre in
the West End, currently booking until 6 October 2018. As well
as receiving 5-star reviews, Everybody’s Talking About Jamie
was nominated for 5 Olivier Awards, received the UK Theatre
and What’s On Stage Awards for Best New Musical and won the
Attitude Culture Award 2017.

Everybody’s Talking About Jamie
Apollo Theatre, 31 Shaftesbury Avenue, London W1D 7ES.
Performances Monday to Saturday at 7.30pm
Matinees – Wednesday and Saturday at 2.30pm.
Ticket prices – £10 to £65.
Booking number: 0330 333 4809
Website: www.nimaxtheatres.com
www.EverybodysTalkingAboutJamie.co.uk

Currently booking until 6 October 2018.

Kali Theatre presents ‘War
Plays: 7 plays | 70 years’,
8th – 19th May 2018
Kali Theatre presents ‘War Plays: 7 plays | 70 years’ from 8th
– 19th May 2018 at Tristan Bates Theatre to mark the 70th year
since the ground-breaking Universal Declaration of Human
Rights. The global stories of courage and hope amid the chaos
and displacement of war are written by Rukhsana Ahmad, Nushin
Arbabzadah, Azma Dar, Bettina Gracias, Nimmi Harasgama, Sayan
Kent and Anu Kumar and directed by Helena Bell, Poonam Brah,
Pooja Ghai, Aileen Gonsalves, Rosamunde Hutt and Tessa Walker

The two week festival features seven staged readings of full-
length new plays from some of the most original voices in new
theatre writing, accompanied by Speak Out Events, panel
discussions with leading female journalists and human rights
activists. Led by the company’s new Artistic Director Helena
Bell, War Plays is Kali’s first specially commissioned season
of plays. The first in a series of biennial Kali Theatre
festivals, it brings together a wealth of female theatre
practitioners from playwrights to directors, behind-the-scenes
teams, and designer Rajha Shakiry (Nine Night at National
Theatre, Misty at Bush).

Helena Bell, Artistic Director, Kali Theatre: “I was deeply
moved when I read the Universal Declaration of Human Rights,
which was adopted by the United Nations General Assembly in
1948 after taking three years to draft. I was struck by its
incredibly progressive, utopian vision with the uplifting

message of equality for all. Seventy years on, Kali marks the
moment by exploring women’s stories within the war that
triggered it and subsequent human rights transgressions in
conflicts around the world. It is important that the festival
is framed within the hopeful messages of the Declaration: that
we all have the right to freedom of expression and to
participate in cultural life. I am excited that this festival
offers an opportunity for audiences to experience plays by our
many superb playwrights.”

Play Schedule
Tue 8 May 19.30 & Sat 12 May 19.30
‘From Kabul to Kunduz’ by Rukhsana Ahmad, directed by Helena
Bell

Determined to reconnect with his past and obsessed with
memories of his long-lost brother, young Afghan refugee Saeed
Khattak ventures from London to Kabul. He is soon caught up in
the paranoia, suspicion and violence of contemporary
Afghanistan. Forced to travel from Kabul to Kunduz, he must
face up to the realities of a changed world.

Sat 12 May 14.30
‘Afghan Girls Don’t Cry’ by Nushin Arbabzadah, directed by
Helena Bell

Layla, a young Afghan woman living in London, is told by her
mother that a celebrated Afghan diplomat she saw interviewed
on the BBC is a rapist and the murderer of Layla’s father.
Pushed by her mother to seek revenge, Layla returns to Kabul
only to discover a much darker and more dangerous truth about
her own family.

Thur 10 May 19.30 & Thur 17 May 19.30
‘Noor’ by Azma Dar, directed by Poonam Brah

Princess, musician and writer of children’s stories, Noor was
recruited by the British Special Operations Executive during

World War 2 and sent to occupied France on a deadly mission as
an undercover wireless operator. After the war, the senior
officer in charge of recruiting female agents meets the German
Major responsible for hunting them, and they piece together
Noor’s story – one of determination, courage and the power of
the imagination.

Mon 14 May 19.30 & Fri 18 May 19.30
‘Lhasa’ by Bettina Gracias, directed by Rosamunde Hutt

Ama, a feisty Tibetan woman, is fighting to keep her guest
house, homeland and traditions. Her son Karma wants her to
leave Tibet with him and his Chinese girlfriend, to seek
refuge in India near the Dalai Lama where they could live
without prejudice. But Ama stubbornly continues to resist the
colonisers, and suspects her one guest – a troubled monk – of
being a Chinese spy.

Wed 16 May 19.30 & Sat 19 May 14.30
‘My Homemade Kite’ by Nimmi Harasgama, directed by Pooja Ghai

After being tortured during the Sri Lankan conflict,
Krishnaveni has begun a new life in the UK. Here she must live
with the stigma of being an asylum seeker and the lingering
effects of her experiences. This topical new play is based on
real life interviews and stories from victims of torture.

Fri 11 May 19.30 & Tue 15 May 19.30
‘Hecuba Birangona’ by Sayan Kent, directed Tessa Walker

The 1971 Bangladesh Liberation War triggered genocide, a huge
refugee crisis and the mass rape of women and girls. Hecuba
Birangona draws on the myths of Hecuba and The Trojan women to
tell the story of five women being held in a prison camp. They
have survived the war but as the Indian Army and Freedom
fighters approach they must get through one last day…

Wed 9 May 19.30 & Sat 19 May 19.30
‘Freedom’ by Anu Kumar, directed by Aileen Gonsalves

January 2017. Maya has come to work as a doctor in a UN
Displaced People’s Camp near ISIS controlled Mosul in Iraq.
Initially she feels free to have left her life in England, but
as she meets local women and joins their journeys she
discovers that freedom can mean many things.

‘War Plays: 7 plays | 70 years’ , 8th -19th May 2018 at
the Tristan Bates Theatre, 1A Tower Street, London WC2H
9NP. Tickets: readings £12 (£5 concessions) / Speak Out Events
£5. Box office: 020 3841 6611 / tristanbatestheatre.co.uk