The Hope Theatre has announced details of its upcoming winter season, including a programme of productions this December where all tickets will be £10 in response to the cost-of-living crisis.
Phil Bartlett, artistic director of The Hope Theatre, comments, Times are tough for many, and with our Winter season we’ve looked for ways to support theatre-makers, audience-members and our local community. This December we’ll be presenting a programme of performances from fringe artists for which all tickets are £10, with performing companies receiving additional support to help bring their productions to our little theatre in Islington and a proportion of the Hope’s proceeds being donated to local charities working with those who need help getting through the winter.
The winter season opens with Cheryl May Coward-Walker’s ‘wildly relatable’ debut play The Wedding Speech (29th November – 3rd December), in which a woman prepares to speak at her mother’s wedding and it becomes clear the apple hasn’t fallen far from the tree. Presented by Purple Moon Drama, the show stars Princess Donnough and will play at the Hope for one week in advance of a 2023 London tour.
Also at the Hope as part of the £10 December programme is A Splash of Milk (6th – 10th December) by Sami Sumaria, focussing on the character of Sunny, who retreats to their childhood bedroom after ‘a not-so-great couple of years’. A queer almost-love story, the show is sprinkled with sass and humour and comes to the Hope after a successful run as part of Camden Fringe.
Back at the Hope this December following their sold-out run of These Craters of Ours are Springbok Production House, with their new production Nice Jewish Boy (13th – 17th December), a tragic comedy about a clash of identities. When Josh is gifted his worst nightmare on his 19th birthday, he must confront what haunts both his synagogue services and Grindr hook-ups.
The theatre will start the new year with Iphigenia; or, the sacrifices of a young woman in nine movements (11th – 28th January with press night on 13th January). Conceived and directed by Elsie Yager, the show tells the tragic tale of the forces behind a young girl’s demise and the mother who feels she must allow it to happen. Alongside documentary interviews with daughters and mothers, the company presents a series of private moments set in the confines of Iphigenia’s childhood bedroom as she reconciles her own desires against the role she is asked to play.
The Hope Theatre’s long-running Sunday – Monday series also continues this winter, giving companies the opportunity to present work professionally in a low-risk environment. December Sunday – Monday productions include: Goodbye Papà (11th- 12th December), the new tri-lingual production from Hope Theatre favourites Teatro Multilingue; Deck the Stalls (18th – 19th December), a blistering new play set at the office party from hell; and The Not-12 Days of Not-Christmas (4th – 5th December), an interactive life-sized board-game in which the performer dishes out a smorgasbord of not-so-festive confessions at the mercy of the roll of the dice. The programme continues in January with And Then They Came For Me (15th – 16th January), a powerful multimedia play that combines videotaped interviews with Holocaust survivors Eva Schloss and Ed Silverberg with live actors recreating scenes from their lives as teenagers; and The Best Pints (22nd, 23rd, 29th and 30th January), a comedy play in which three friends tell the stories of the best pints of stout they ever had.
Phil Bartlett, artistic director, adds, Whilst everyone is feeling the pinch, we remain committed to presenting high-quality pub theatre where all the actors and stage management are paid for their work. Our winter season is stuffed with brilliant and beguiling performance, and with all tickets for December priced at £10 we hope to be able to welcome as many people as possible through the doors of our little theatre with big ideas.
Tickets for all productions are now on-sale via the Hope Theatre website.
