Last shows in New Bridge Street

Newcastle’s Alphabetti Theatre has announced its final season in its present premises before it has to leave the New Bridge Street basement on 11th March:

• 19 – 21 January
  Chopping Chillies
  Written & Performed by Clair Whitefield
  Directed by Olivier Award-winner Guy Masterson

  A cobbler and a cook concoct a delicious transcontinental enchantment as tragedy and chance entwine. Katie dreams of curries and chapattis, Ajna of holy souls and reincarnation... A poetic, magical yarn that conjoins the spirit of India with the heart of London.

• 28 January
  Alphabetti Soup
  Music, poetry, theatre—and soup.

• 1 & 2 February
  with added nuts
  Written and performed by Sean Burn

  A witty examination of the language of sanism, finding beauty beneath those wounding words. The show fuses live / disability arts with spoken word, acts of creative resistance, opportunities for participation and real art prizes. This is part of Burn’s long-term project "reclaiming the languages of lunacy" creatively, reflecting on his lived experience of mental distress, connecting this with our disabling by politics, attitude, narrative.

• 3 & 4 February
  DenMarked
  Presented by Conrad Murray & Battersea Arts.

  An autobiographical performance exploring how we are marked by events. Tales from the council estate of dodgy best friends, your first arrest (a right of passage), dinner with your social worker and the Christmas dad went to prison.

• 14 February
  Write Faster – Valentine’s Special

  Three writers must write a brand new play in front of the audience—there will be a type writer, a computer and quill. The writers will hand each line, stage direction and anything else they fancy to the actors for them to act out. They’ll each have to react to what the other writes… anything really could happen! The team is Ali Pritchard, Louise Taylor, Richard Stockwell, Gary Kitching and Steve Byron.

• 22 – 24 February
  We Are Ian
  Presented by In Bed With My Brother

  1989. Manchester. A frenzy of drugs, beats and bucket hats. Illegal raves. Acid parties. Just jumping up and down in a field and throwing two fingers to Thatcher… Remember it?

  Because we don’t. We weren’t even born. But Ian was. And Ian does remember. We’ve got fuck all now (Ian tells us). So, we’re going back to 1989...

• 25 February
  Alphabetti Soup

• 1 – 4 March
  Trajectory
  Coracle in partnership with Alphabetti Theatre

  An evening of theatre featuring two one-act, dark and comic plays:

  • Bricks and Mortar
    By Steve Byron

    Mary has lived under the same roof for over fifty years. Setting up home with husband Cyril and bringing up her only son Gavin. She has put her blood sweat, tears and laughter into the walls. Cyril has now gone and more recently Gavin. The council have decided that her home is too big for one and decided to rehouse her.
    Mary has other ideas.

  • Life After
    by Arabella Arnott

    Helen loved her sister Sophie. So did Simon. A year after Sophie's death in an accident, Simon and Helen are trying to move on with their lives, but neither of them are going anywhere fast. Did Simon really love Sophie? Why did he and Helen sleep together? How can they survive life after...?

• 7 & 8 March
  An Evening with an Immigrant
  Written and performed by Inua Ellams
  Presented by Innua Ellams and Fuel

  Born to a Muslim father and a Christian mother in what is now considered by many to be Boko Haram territory, in 1996 award-winning poet and playwright Inua Ellams left Nigeria for England aged 12, moved to Ireland for three years, before returning to London and starting work as a writer and graphic designer.

  In An Evening with an Immigrant, a show littered with poems, stories and anecdotes, Inua will tell his ridiculous, fantastic, poignant immigrant story of escaping fundamentalist Islam, performing solo shows at the National Theatre, and drinking wine with the Queen of England, all the while without a country to belong to or place to call home.

• 11 March
  Bye Bye Basement
  Alphabetti’s leaving party

  “After two wonderful, challenging, creative, inspiring, tiring and legendary years it is time for pastures new as Alphabetti Theatre closes. The builders have been chipping away for the past couple of months and it is finally time for the building to be demolished so we have to move on and up!

  “This is officially our last night in the basement so please join us to see it off in real style for a good old traditional knees up. We want to see everyone who has ever been involved with our precious little space so come on down and celebrate with us!

  “We will of course get a late license so we can party until the wee hours!”