New season at rejuvenated Birmingham REP

Published: 25 April 2015
Reporter: Steve Orme

King Charles III, opening the season in the REP’s main auditorium
No Guts, No Heart, No Glory is the first production of the new season in the Studio Credit: Christopher Nunn
Paterson Joseph in Sancho – An Act Of Remembrance in the Studio

Birmingham REP has announced its season of work for autumn and winter 2015-16 on the back of a successful year for the theatre, with a 43% increase in audiences during 2014-15—the highest attendance for more than 20 years.

Artistic director Roxana Silbert said, “the past year has been tremendously successful for the REP both in terms of audiences and the work we’ve created.

“We took a bold decision to make our programme more diverse and I’m so pleased to say audiences have embraced that. We’ve supported local and national writers and theatre makers, and we now have a building that’s a hub of creativity bursting with exciting work and talented people.

“For the autumn season ahead, I’m particularly proud to be premièring Meera Syal’s Anita And Me and to be producing the first UK tour of Mike Bartlett’s King Charles III. We’re also working with established talent Carrie Cracknell and Lucy Guerin on Macbeth and welcome two of the UK’s finest actors, Paterson Joseph and Ruby Wax, with their one-person shows.”

Opening the season in the main auditorium will be Mike Bartlett’s Olivier Award-winning play King Charles III. Co-produced by the REP and the Almeida Theatre and directed by Rupert Goold, King Charles III explores the people underneath the crowns, the unwritten rules of our democracy and the conscience of Britain’s most famous family. It runs from 4 until 19 September.

Meera Syal’s novel bursts on to the stage for the first time. Anita and Me premières at the REP in a stage adaptation by Tanika Gupta. Directed by Roxana Silbert, Anita and Me follows Meena, a young girl growing up in the only Punjabi family in a 1970s Black Country mining village. It runs from 9 until 24 October.

Based on The Beggar’s Opera, Kneehigh Theatre’s Dead Dog In A Suitcase (And Other Love Songs) visits the REP from 29 September until 3 October.

One in four people experiences some kind of mental health problem each year. The REP will be collaborating with Birmingham and Solihull Mental Health NHS Foundation Trust to put mental health centre stage.

BEDLAM—The Festival of Divine Madness will demonstrate how the arts can play an important role in reducing stigma around mental health and promote recovery and wellbeing. Ruby Wax will appear for one night only on 25 October with her show Sane New World. The festival runs from 19 until 25 October.

The Lion, The Witch and The Wardrobe by C S Lewis (19 November until 16 January) will be brought to life on stage in a new production by the REP’s associate director Tessa Walker. The Christmas season also marks the return of the REP’s show The Snowman (20 until 24 January).

After their collaboration on Euripides’s Medea at the National Theatre, Carrie Cracknell and Lucy Guerin reunite to present Shakespeare’s tragedy Macbeth (26 to 30 January).

February will mark the return of the REP’s 2014 production Of Mice And Men (4 to 13 February), directed by Roxana Silbert. The production will open at the REP before going on a 15-week UK tour.

Highlights in the Studio include the story of a group of Muslim female boxers which comes under the spotlight in No Guts, No Heart, No Glory (8 to 12 September).

Paterson Joseph brings to life the true story of Charles Ignatius Sancho—fellow actor and friend of David Garrick and the first black person of African origin to vote in Britain—in Sancho—An Act Of Remembrance (22 to 25 September).

Maxine Peake’s play Beryl (24 to 28 November) will celebrate the life of cycling legend Beryl Burton—the greatest woman on two wheels.

The full programme is available at the Birmingham REP web site. 

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