The Young Vic releases production images of Chasing Hares, a new play by award-winning playwright Sonali Bhattacharyya (Two Billion Beats) and directed by Milli Bhatia (seven methods of killing kylie jenner).
The play, which won Theatre Uncut’s Political Playwriting Prize 2021, is set between the UK and West Bengal, and considers the power of storytelling in the struggle for a fairer world.
Ayesha Dharker (The Father, The Father and The Assassin) plays Chellam, with Zainab Hasan (The Welkin, Lotus Beauty) as Kajol, Scott Karim (Dracula, The Invisible Hand) as Devesh, Saroja-Lily Ratnavel (Bravo Two Charlies, Electric Rosary) as Amba and Irfan Shamji (The Ipcress File, Hamlet) as Prab, in this tale of resistance and dignity in the face of global exploitation.
2000s Kolkata. The Khub Bhalo factory is on lockdown and no one’s getting paid. Prab is caught between joining the picket line and the need to provide for his family. When the boss’ son ropes Prab into reinvigorating his failing folk theatre troupe, Prab seizes the opportunity to expose the injustice of factory conditions and child exploitation. Is he ready to risk his future, his family and even his own life to fight for change?
Chasing Hares is designed by Moi Tran, with lighting design by Jai Morjaria, video design by Akhila Krishnan, sound design by Donato Wharton, composition by Sarathy Korwar, movement direction by Chi-San Howard. The creative team is complete with voice and dialect coach Gurkiran Kaur, fight director Bret Yount, casting director Polly Jerrold, R&D dramaturg Guy Jones, R&D lyric consultant Jammz, assistant directors Ashen Gupta and Nikhil Vyas, trainee assistant director Tia Ali, audio description by Eleanor Margolies, BSL interpretating by Chandrika Gopalakrishnan and captioning by Miranda Yates.
Chasing Hares is at The Young Vic until 13th August 2022.
