Theatre Royal Bath Productions and English Touring Theatre today announce full casting for the UK premiere of Testmatch, a fast-paced, study of sport, gender politics and the legacy of colonialism, by emerging playwright Kate Attwell which runs at Bath’s Ustinov Studio from 2 April to 9 May 2020.
Testmatch is directed by Nicole Charles (Emilia, The Merry Wives of Windsor) with an all-female cast starring Komal Amin, Subika Anwar-Khan, Bessie Carter, Sally Messham, Lotte Rice and Tripti Tripuraneni. The production includes Set and Costume Design by Camilla Clarke, Lighting Design by Jess Bernberg and Sound Design by Max Pappenheim.
Testmatch confronts hard-hitting truths of colonialism and gender. Filled with coruscating dialogue and blistering humour, it traverses both continents and centuries. This new drama by Kate Attwell, an exciting new voice in American theatre recently received its world premiere at the American Conservatory Theater in San Francisco last autumn.
It makes the whole of western history make sense, this weather.
If I had to live in this, I’d get off this island as fast as I possibly could,
And take over whatever land I came across, because anything would be better.
Lord’s, 2020. It’s the Women’s Cricket World Cup: England versus India. There’s a rain delay. Stuck in the same locker room together, tensions mount, ambitions are laid bare and a whole new tactical game begins. Calcutta, 1800 (or thereabouts). Two British administrators in early 19th century India encounter challenges on the field of play that threaten the entire regime.
In this game of integrity and power, past and present collide. Kate Attwell’s explosive UK premiere, Testmatch, confronts us with the hard hitting truths of colonialism and gender.
