This May, INK Festival is going on the road and taking the best of East Anglia’s short plays to London in Feast from the East, with contributions from such writing superstars as Richard Curtis and his daughter Scarlett. INK is a vital platform for regional writing which celebrates the short play artform, and its London residency seeks to bring their work to a wider audience.
Over four years INK has drawn attention to the extraordinary potential of the short play as an under-utilised artform and has produced more than 100 new plays. The short play showcases how theatre can colonise new spaces, strange time slots, and different mediums, while providing short-form entertainment that captivates audiences. Feast from the East, in partnership with The Actors Centre, home of the Tristan Bates Theatre, continues the mission of both organisations to encourage new short plays. Each night in London will see eight brilliant short plays performed, from new writers to established playwrights.
Richard Curtis, one of Britain’s best-loved writers, will present Another Suitcase in Another Hall, opening alongside daughter Scarlett Curtis’s new short play Wellington. Accompanying the Curtis super duo will be a brand-new short play by comedian and author Shappi Khorsandi. Also in the incredible line up will be That’s Great! by Shaun Kitchener, Mixed Up by James McDermott, Dan Allum’s Bus Stop, Martha Loader’s After Prospero, and Sound Guy by Corin Child.
Julia Sowerbutts, Artistic Director of INK, comments: “We are delighted that 8 of the best brand new short plays which premiered at INK Festival 2019 are transferring to Tristan Bates Theatre for this exciting run. They have been selected from over 350 new submissions by new and experienced writers – all with East Anglian connections. Libby Purves wrote that “the world needs to pay attention to INK”, and the London run is a real opportunity for all this talent to shine beyond East Anglia and to develop the INK audience. What could be a better way to promote INK and the flexibility of the short play artform than a two-week showcase at Tristan Bates Theatre? We can’t wait to show London what is happening in East Anglia.”
INK Festival is at Tristan bates Theatre 7th – 18th May, more details can be found here.
