Brixton House announces its second Christmas production, a brand-new reimagined musical of Cinderella, script and lyrics by Danusia Samal with music by Duramaney Kamara and directed by Ola Ince; playing from 23 November until 31 December 2023.
Set in the fictional Brixton Lane, rooted in the heart of its local community, Brixton House’s musical Cinderella follows Sindi-Ella as she journeys through the streets of modern-day Brixton and reminds us of the beauty of community spirit in an overwhelming online world!
Following their five-star award-winning 2022 Christmas production Alice in Wonderland, which received seven nominations and won Best Newcomer at the Offies 2022, this year Brixton House continues their brand of locally inspired alternative Christmas productions, reworking the classic rags-to-riches tale, to reflect the community that Brixton House firmly sits within.
Writer Danusia Samal throws out the glass slippers and pumpkins to recreate a world where Sindi-Ella takes us through the streets of Brixton on a journey of loss and loneliness to rediscover how friendship, love, family and community spirit can make all the difference. Samal’s Sindi-Ella is a plant-loving teenager attempting to save her father’s struggling greengrocers and navigating the complexities of growing up in a frenzied social media society, can teenage entrepreneur Charmz help her find her place?
Danusia Samal and Duramaney Kamara return as creative duos after their hugely successful run of Cardboard Citizen’s Bangers (Soho Theatre, 2022) joined by the award-winning Ola Ince (Viral Headlong Theatre & Century Films 2022, Appropriate Donmar Warehouse 2019, The Convert Young Vic Theatre 2-18, Poet in da Corner Royal Court Theatre). With music composed by Duramaney Kamara (SuckerPunch, Queen’s Theatre 2023, Bootcandy Gate Theatre 2023, Anansi The Spider, Unicorn Theatre 2023) known for his multi-disciplinary talents and musical style rooted in Afro-beat, Jazz and reggae influences; this new version is full of punchlines and rap lyrics, songs and music you can dance to and promises to bring audiences to their feet – and their social media shares.
Ruth Hawkins, Head of Programming and Producing says, “Who doesn’t want to see Sindi-Ella finding friendship with Charmz in the heart of Brixton at the party of the year? It’s hugely exciting to return this Christmas after an incredible run of Alice in Wonderland last year with another re-imagined classic tale spun on its head to bring the main theatre alive with a musical version of Cinderella.
Welcoming new creative teams into the building is our mission alongside developing work that reflects our community. We are excited to see what Danusia, Duramaney and Ola create in our House. Taking the premise of the story and adapting it to the journey of young gardening Sindi-Ella as she navigates family and rediscovers friendship in an ever-changing community. It’s a huge part of our ambition to present work with and for families and we look forward to welcoming you back to Brixton House this Christmas!”
The venue continues to build on its legacy of working with artists to develop new work and ideas that champion stories from voices and perspectives that are often unheard. Sindi-Ella’s world in Brixton brings attention to how young people are coping with the realities of the cost-of-living crisis, climate change and environmentalism, ideologies of activism and the contradictory world of social media and the material capitalism that underpins it. This Cinderella is talented and conscientious, and all the expected characters are cleverly embedded into the narrative for a perfect Christmas treat we all know, with unexpected spins for a 2023 generation of TikTok lovers.
More information can be found here
