by Amber Pathak
The play opens with three, young lads playing games. As it reaches dinner time they begin to debate whose country’s food is better: Jamaica, Cameroon or Ghana? This is the basis of Jollof Wars – an argument between two families that will see relationships broken and mended. Focusing on the engagement of a Ghanaian man to a Nigerian woman, Jollof Wars gives a witty yet poignant insight into how culture influences our choices, and in turn impacts the rest of our lives.
by Laura Kressly
Lou and Tosh aren’t long out of uni. They’re housemates and best friends who share everything with each other, including their rejection of society’s expectation of young women to want a serious, monogamous relationship with a man. However, their opposing approaches cause some friction between them, people grow and change, and friendships between girls and women are extremely complex, so the feminist utopia they’re trying to create may not be as perfect as they hope.
by Laura Kressly
Zara lives with Alice, her best friend from uni. They work for the same law firm and party with the same friends, but their similarities largely end there. Alice is white and from a wealthy family, whereas Zara’s parents are working class, Muslim refugees from the Middle East. The class and race differences between the two women add to the increasing pressure on Zara to live up to the opposing ideals of the two cultures she inhabits, making her feel out of place in both. But how long can she keep up this balancing act before the strain becomes too much to manage?
by Meredith Jones Russell
Day two of Sinead’s hen party and enthusiasm for bottomless brunch is beginning to wane slightly in the ladies’ loo, where hen after hungover hen staggers in for a quick sit-down and some crisis talks.
by Laura Kressly
Annie and Rob fall through their door, drunk and giggling. It’s their wedding night and they’ve got plans, but it turns out they’re not alone. When Annie discovers a naked man in their bed who turns out to be Rob’s ex-boyfriend, a hilariously weird chain of events kicks off with unpredictable results.
by Laura Kressly
John Gay wrote The Beggar’s Opera in 1728 to reflect a London ridden with corrupt and dangerous politicians, inequality and violence. Not much has changed in those nearly 200 years, then. Kneehigh updates the story to a rundown coastal town where all the citizens resort to cold-hearted ruthlessness in the name of survival, resulting in an extravaganza of murder, betrayal and spectacle.
by Laura Kressly
Aisha and Morgan have to go to school one day in August, like almost every other 16-year-old in the country, to collect their GCSE results. Their school is different from the rest of the country’s though – news teams are at the gates of Mitcham High reporting on the recent disappearance of Yasmin Sheikh, dubbed ‘terror baby’ by the Home Secretary. Frustrated with her best friend’s depiction in the media and the way she has been treated by the police after Yasmin left for Syria, Aisha is determined to tell the story of the girl behind the headlines and enlists Morgan’s help.
by Lara Alier
Regent’s Park Open Air Theatre is a feast for all five senses. From feeling the early summer breeze in your face, to smelling the woodiness of the gigantic trees that surround the stage, it’s all a treat, really. It’s such a delight that it almost became more seductive than the play.
by Meredith Jones Russell
Three women – Beth, Deirdre and Marie-Sue – set out to murder their husbands. but things quickly spin out of control when one murder goes right, one goes wrong and one goes very, very wrong.
by Laura Kressly
Tomomi stands on the prow of a ship with arms flung open, ready to embrace a new life as a Hollywood actress. There’s something of Kate Winslet in Titanic about her unfaltering determination and hope – and that seminal pose, of course. When an older man disturbs her quiet reflection on the fish feeding below the water’s surface and her need for acting compared to their need for water, her destiny is forever altered.
The Play's The Thing UK 