God’s Property, by award winning playwright and former EastEnder’s actor Arinze Kene, will run at mac birmingham from 26 – 28 March.
Directed by Michael Buffong, Artistic Director of Talawa Theatre Company, the UK’s foremost Black-led theatre company, God’s Property tells the story of two estranged mixed race brothers who both inhabit the restless streets of Deptford in the early 1980s.
It’s 1982. London is restless, gripped by spiralling youth unemployment, inner city riots and an economic downtown. Ska beats dominate the airwaves and in a flat in Deptford, South London, two estranged mixed race brothers are re-united unexpectedly. But notions of family and belonging are put to the test when a pack of hostile neighbours gather outside to deliver their own rough justice.
The cast includes Kingsley Ben-Adir (The Riots, Tricycle Theatre) as Chima and Ash Hunter (A Clockwork Orange, Theatre Royal Stratford East) as Onochie. They are joined by Ria Zmitrowicz (Chapel Street, The Bush Theatre) as Holly and Bradley Gardner (Saved, Lyric Hammersmith) as Liam.
In 2011 Arinze Kene was one of the inaugural Soho Six; a selected group of six writers who are commissioned and are in residency for a six month period to work on a new play for Soho Theatre. During his residency Arinze wrote God’s Property. He was named most promising playwright by Off West End.com (Offies) for his debut play Estate Walls (Oval House Theatre,2010). Little Baby Jesus (EnglishTouring Theatre) was shortlisted for the Alfred Fagon award in 2009. Arinze was a member of the Royal Court’s Young Writer’s Progamme and the 2012 Supergroup. His play Hackney Baths was broadcast on BBC Radio 4 during the Olympics and he was last year’s Pearson Writer in Residence at Lyric Theatre, Hammersmith. Arinze is part of the writing team on E20 for EastEnders/BBC. He hasjust completed writing a film for Film London entitled Seekers. As an actor, Arinze is best known for his portrayal of ‘Connor Stanley’ in EastEnders, and has also starred in The Lion King.
Michael Buffong became Artistic Director of Talawa Theatre Company in March 2012. He most recently directed The Serpent’s Tooth (Talawa Theatre Company and Almeida Theatre) by David Watson. Previous productions include Moon on a Rainbow Shawl (National Theatre), the multi-award winning A Raisin in the Sun (Manchester Royal Exchange), Crawling in the Dark (Almeida Theatre), and One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest (Leicester Curve).
Talawa Theatre Company is the UK’s primary black-led theatre companies. Talawa aims to create work informed by the wealth and diversity of the Black British experience, with the mission to invest in talent, build audiences and inspire dialogue with and within communities across Britain.
View a trailer here…..
Talawa Theatre Company, Soho Theatre and the Albany
Gods Property By Arinze Kene
Directed by Michael Buffong
Designed by Ellen Cairns
Lighting by Jason Taylor
Sound by Jack Arnold
Cast: Kingsley Ben-Adir, Bradley Gardner, Ash Hunter, Ria Zmitrowicz.
Tuesday 26 – Thursday 28 March 2013
Wednesday 27 March BSL signed performance
mac birmingham
Time: 8pm
Tickets: £12 (£10)
To Book: 0121 446 3232
Website: www.macarts.co.uk
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