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A 3x3 grid of book covers surrounding a trans flag in the centre panel

Eight plays and anthologies for Trans Awareness Week 2022

By | Blog, Uncategorised

This week, 13-19 November, is Transgender Awareness Week, in which trans people and their allies advocate around the stories and experiences of trans lives, in the run-up to Transgender Day of Remembrance on Sunday 20 November, which memorialises victims of transphobic violence.

Below is a selection of plays and anthologies by or featuring trans writers, which are available to borrow for free from our Theatre Library in Hull’s Old Town. We are always looking to expand our collection, so if you have any recommendations please do get in touch with literary manager, Matthew May.

As always, we extend our love and solidarity to trans people across the world.

Joan / Bullish by Leo Skilbeck

In Bullish, ancient mythology meets modern gender negotiation. Inspired by Ovid’s Minotaur, a gender fierce ensemble of hopers and renegades try to pass, pack and blag their way out of the labyrinth.

Joan is an earthy story of courage, conviction and hope, with Joan of Arc retold as a modern gender warrior. A fearless solo play with uproarious songs about what it means to stand out, stand up and stand alone.

Leo penned a song for our 2021 cabaret, we used to be closer than this, and is co-directing our 2023 project, Modest.

Since U Been Gone by Tabby Lamb

Brought to life with storytelling, an original pop music score, and way too many America’s Next Top Model references, Since U Been Gone is a moving and powerful autobiographical account about childhood co-stars, teenage rebellion, growing up queer in the mid-noughties, and finding yourself while losing a friend, by Middle Child associate writer, Tabby Lamb.

A Generous Lover / Boy in a Dress by Lauren John Joseph

A Generous Lover is the true and very queer tale of one soul’s journey through the wasteland of mental illness to deliver their lost love.

Boy in a Dress follows the life story of Lauren John Joseph: a trans, fallen Catholic, ex-fashion model from the wrong side of the tracks.

Monlogues for ‘Others’ by Charlie Josephine

This book is for the ‘others’. For anyone who’s ever felt othered. For us lot. Who deserve celebration and opportunity. Each one is written with love, with the actor in mind. I hope they make your body feel fizzy, I hope they get you all the jobs, I hope your flowers bloom.

Global Queer Plays

A unique anthology bringing together stories of queer life from international playwrights, these seven plays showcase the dazzling multiplicity of queer narratives across the globe: the absurd, the challenging, and the joyful.

Book of Queer Monologues, edited by Scottee

The first collection of its kind, The Book of Queer Monologues chronicles over one hundred years of queer and trans performance. Combining stage plays with spoken word and performance art, this anthology features over forty extracts from some of the most exciting stage works in the English-speaking world.

Burgerz by Travis Alabanza

Hurled words. Thrown objects. Dodged burgers. A burger was thrown at Travis Alabanza on Waterloo Bridge in 2016. From this experience they have created a poetic, passionate performance piece based around the ‘burger’: the texture, and taste of being trans. Their experiences include verbal abuse, ostracisation and being thrown out of a Top Shop changing room. The piece also explores the black trans experience.

Overflow by Travis Alabanza

Cornered into a flooding toilet cubicle and determined not to be rescued again, Rosie distracts herself with memories of bathroom encounters. Drunken heart-to-hearts by dirty sinks, friendships forged in front of crowded mirrors, and hiding together from trouble. But with her panic rising and no help on its way, can she keep her head above water? Overflow is a hilarious and devastating tour of women’s bathrooms, who is allowed in and who is kept out.

Two men and two women pose in the theatre library

Reflections on Concrete Retreat

By | Artist Development, Blog, Uncategorised

Earlier this month our Concrete Retreat writer residency returned for its first in-person gathering since covid-19 upended our artistic programme in 2020.

Joe Hakim, Natasha Brown, John Booker and Lydia Marchant joined us at our rehearsal space and theatre library in Hull for four days to explore new ideas, without the pressure of having to create any actual work.

Below, John and Lydia share their reflections on their time in Hull, developing new ideas from scratch, discovering chip spice and visiting The Deep.

Two men and two women pose in the theatre library

Clockwise, from top left: Joe Hakim, Natasha Brown, John Booker and Lydia Marchant

John Booker

Having never been on a retreat before, I wasn’t sure what to expect. I tried to approach the week with an open mind. I wanted to end the retreat with some developed ideas on work I’d like to write in the future. I had a long list of thoughts, ideas, and musings, but I wanted to turn them into something concrete.

It took me a day or two to get my head out of regular work annd other projects and into the room. A lot of the first day was taken up fighting the urge not to spend the time replying to emails for that small serotonin hit.

Morning walks through Hull, chatting with either Joe, Lydia, or Tash, felt like a perfect start to the day and got me thinking creatively from the off. Check-ins on arrival helped bring clarity to how I would structure my day and a check-out to wrap the day would help to track my progress.

Having artistic director Paul and literary manager Matt on hand to ask questions and get dramaturgical support made a huge impact on my work. With their help I was able to sort my ideas, organise my thoughts and I left with a new creative outlook. Ideally, I would have taken them back home with me, but unfortunately, I couldn’t fit them in my suitcase. Instead, I had to make do with  a shaker of Hull’s famous Chip Spice. If you haven’t tried it, you really should.

I had a chance to work out what’s important to me as a creative, why I do it and where my dislike of Paddington Bear comes from. Sometimes the process of creating can feel lonely and like you’re just screaming into an empty void, hoping someone will respond. I was lucky enough to share the space with three talented artists, who helped to create a comfortable and relaxed environment, where ideas and conversation could flourish. Having the chance to discuss different topics, problem solve and vent felt like the perfect relief.

After reflecting on the week, it showed me how important it is to stop and think. How rare it is for a person to just be allowed to exist and think, rather than have the weight of expectation on their shoulders. In an industry going a million miles an hour, with constant deadlines and pressure, this couldn’t have come soon enough, and I didn’t know how much I needed it until I was there. The only thing that could have improved the process would be more time. Having felt so at home, I had to fight the temptation not to bring my pillow and stay for another week.

Lydia Marchant

Early on in the Concrete Retreat week, we were asked to think about what did well as writers and what we felt we struggled with. For me, without doubt, one of the big things I struggle with is coming up with ideas. It feels like we’re expected to sit on ten brilliant ideas we can pitch at any moment, when it can take me a year to come up with one.

But, during the Concrete Retreat, there was no pressure to come up with or pitch ideas. In fact, there was no pressure to do anything. In the mornings we kicked off with a walk-and-talk conversation, with prompts ranging from “How does where you’re from influence your writing?” to “What does success look like for you?”

After the group discussion, the time was ours to do whatever we wanted – and I mean whatever we wanted. I read plays from Middle Child’s incredible library, had research chats, made spider diagrams and went to The Deep – research, I swear! For whenever we got stuck, Paul and Matt also gave us insanely useful folders full of writing prompts.

In this environment, which was so creative but without pressure, I found, for the first time in months, that nuggets of two or three ideas started to form. Sometimes in the room; sometimes at 2am when I was trying to get to sleep. Most of them are just bullet points in the notes section of my phone but, for one of them, I managed to come up with a two page treatment.

On the last day, I took this treatment to Matt to chat over. Because I’m so used to pushing things forward to meet tight deadlines, I was really hung up on what the story structure could be, but Matt pulled me back into thinking about what the story I wanted to tell was, really interrogating my central dramatic question. This really deepened the characters and a much richer story began to emerge from there.

If we want to pay bills working in the arts, we have to be working on loads of things at once. We never get time to just pause and think. Or certainly we never get paid to pause and think. Until Concrete Retreat, I didn’t realise how much I desperately needed that and I’m so grateful to Middle Child for giving me the opportunity to hit ‘creative refresh.’

A young white woman in purple bathrobe and wig, holding a water pistol, stood back to back with another young woman dressed in a fox onesie

Reflections on the Kickstart Scheme

By | Blog, Uncategorised

There will be tears in the Middle Child office today as we say farewell to Erin Anderson and Lucy Foy, who have been working with us over the past six months as part of the Kickstart scheme.

During that time, Erin and Lucy have played key roles in the success of our first ever outdoor show, There Should Be Unicorns, as well as the opening of our new home at Bond 31 and preparation for upcoming shows, including this year’s panto.

The energy, enthusiasm, care and attention they’ve brought to Middle Child will be much missed. Read on to see, in their own words, about their experience working in theatre for the first time.

Erin: hit the goodbye playlist!

A blonde, white woman smiling at the camera wearing a brick red top and black jeans.

Erin Anderson, digital marketing assistant

Six months ago, I found myself looking for work again as my previous job come to an end. Up until this point my work history had been varied, having never stayed in one field for very long, and a lot of employers didn’t find that too appealing. I began applying for Kickstart roles on the advice of my government-appointed work coach and one of the jobs I applied for was production assistant with Middle Child. 

As things started feeling like they weren’t going to look up, I accepted a job offer I had been avoiding in sales and lettings. I was ready to bite the bullet and resign myself to a life I knew I didn’t want. I started that job with a warning not to let the boss know I was vaccinated and to expect to have to work through my unpaid lunches – but what choice did I have? I’m about the furthest thing imaginable from the ‘trust me with your property investments’ type, but this was just what was on the cards for me.  

That was until a few days later, when I had an email in my inbox from Jamie, Middle Child’s audience development manager, asking if I would be interested in interviewing for a different position within the company, as digital marketing assistant. I had never done anything close to marketing before, especially anything digital, at which my skills were admittedly rusty and questionable. I didn’t even have a great love of theatre on my side. Still, I knew that I couldn’t pass up this chance.  

I accepted an interview at the latest possible date Jamie offered and, to the disappointment of my parents, quit the serious job that was about to get me off abhorrently low Universal Credit to make that interview. It was a risk I had to take, for my own sanity. That week I met Jamie and Hattie Callery, who was then maternity cover for exec director Lindsey, in what was one of the loveliest interviews of my life. I didn’t think I would get the job, but in preparing for this I was reminded that I did have a lot more to offer a role like this than I had first thought.  

I pitched my general love for the arts, talked about the transferable skills I could bring to the table and chatted about folk music my way through the door. That afternoon, Jamie called to offer me the job. I would be getting straight to work on There Should Be Unicorns, a show I can probably quote backwards and forwards at this point.  

I was instantly welcomed into a fold of amazing people doing amazing things in my city. How had I never realised all of this was on my doorstep? Each day I further explored my capabilities and understood there was a reason I always swam in the deep end of the pool – life was better when I felt like there was something to swim for.  

Those first six weeks of marketing, rehearsing and opening a show felt a lot like floundering. This was all completely new to me, but behind me I had Jamie reminding me that Middle Child was a place for people who hadn’t tried things before. I did my best to get stuck in and push my way past the awkward phases of getting to know a company, and a show, and a whole bunch of people who are suddenly in the rehearsal room next door.  

I’m now a far-cry from the person that took a risk to interview with Middle Child back in March. The past six months have been a huge professional and personal journey for me, in realising that there are little pockets in the world that I do in fact fit into. I definitely won’t be selling you a house anytime soon. I’ve surprised myself with how capable I am, and I am forever grateful to Middle Child for helping me realise it.  

A young white woman with blonde hair in a white jumper and brown coat

Lucy Foy, production assistant

Six months ago, I was almost completely clueless as to what I wanted to do with my life, both short-term and long-term. I’d dropped out of university (I managed this twice in one year, somehow), flushing my passion for a career in psychology down the drain. I felt the simultaneously lonely, yet very common feeling of being lost and the fear that I would never find a path that excited me, that I genuinely had a passion for pursuing.

All my close friends from school had gone off to university, studying courses they really enjoyed. It seemed everyone around me had it together. However, contrary to my views amidst what I’m making out to be a quarter-life crisis, nobody has it completely together, almost everybody is just making it up as they go along, and that’s okay.

I’ve always had very fond memories of performing and being in theatres as a child: attending youth groups, the adrenaline of putting on a show and the shared sense of community it brought. Around the time I started secondary school, I began experiencing anxiety and panic attacks that caused me to quit the majority of these hobbies I’d loved growing up. Then, shortly before coming across the Middle Child Kickstart job advert, I began considering going back into theatre, from a different angle to performing. Why should I deprive myself of something that brought me so much joy?

I had many of what I now realise are misconceptions about theatre before going into this role. I believed I was ‘too quiet’, ‘too introverted’ and that the type of people who work in theatre would be too overpowering for a personality like mine. I couldn’t have been more wrong. In terms of both work and education, Middle Child is the first place where I haven’t been criticised for being ‘too quiet’. They recognise that everybody’s differences should be celebrated and can be seen as strengths, rather than weaknesses that need to be improved.

If you’re interested in this topic, I really recommend the book ‘Quiet Power’ by Susan Cain and her Ted Talk ‘The Power Of Introverts’. At Middle Child, although everyone has varying levels of experience, they acknowledge that everyone has wisdom and experience to share: everyone you meet, you can learn from.

Although I’ve thoroughly enjoyed being a part of this company and the amazing work they do, it hasn’t been the easiest ride. There have been a fair few tears shed on days I’ve not been feeling on top form, when I’ve felt anxious about certain tasks such as meeting new people, attending meetings, or just for no particular reason at all.

Each time I’ve felt this way, I’ve been met with nothing but kindness, encouragement and empathy. Even in times where I felt a bit hopeless, no member of the team ever gave up on me. After a particularly bad panic attack, artistic director Paul even went as far as to go out of his way to buy me a book, which I highly recommend, called ‘Anxiety: Panicking About Panic’ by Joshua Fletcher. The support I’ve received here has been unmatched.

Thanks to my time at Middle Child, I have now found real enjoyment and a sense of excitement for the theatre industry and have begun studying Drama and Theatre Practice at Hull university.

Skills I’ve developed at Middle Child, both work-related, and personal development-related, have transferred really well to this course and have already come in very useful. I now make conscious decisions to step out of my comfort zone more, bringing me a newfound confidence I would have never imagined I could have before working here. I couldn’t be more grateful to Middle Child for helping me get to the headspace and mindset I have now and will carry with me into this next chapter.

Hattie Callery says goodbye to Middle Child

By | Uncategorised

By Hattie Callery, executive director (maternity cover)

For the past 14 months or so, I’ve been Exec Director at Middle Child covering the amazing Lindsey Alvis while she was on maternity leave. I can truly say from the bottom of my heart that it has been an incredible experience at an awe inspiring organisation. Middle Child make incredible work, develop artists who’ve gone onto amazing careers, and serve Hull’s community with real integrity.  

My time at Middle Child has been challenging, fun, inspiring, sometimes stressful, but always joyful. I’ve been stretched in all the right ways and I feel like a different person to the 28 year old who first walked through the door in 2021.  

When I reflect on my time with Middle Child three key things come to mind: 

1) How to run a really good recruitment process 

I would never have dreamed of applying for this job (Executive Director?! Who, me?!),  if it wasn’t for the effort and care that Middle Child put into the recruitment process. I opened up the job ad because I thought I might like to be an ED one day in the future – it was only ever meant to be an aspirational read to see what skill sets and experience a company I admired would be looking for. What sprung out to me was their focus on transferable skills, and a key message that you didn’t have to have been an ED before. Most importantly – there was a section written by a previous maternity cover ED (the incredible Rozzy Knox, now one of our trustees), about her time with the company, the level of support they offered her and what an incredible learning opportunity it was. Reading Rozzy’s words gave me the bravery and permission to put an application in for a job that I would never normally have considered applying for.  

We need more companies to take a creative approach to recruitment, and who will invest in people’s development both personally and financially, if we want to change who gets to make big decisions in our industry. If you are recruiting – talk to Middle Child.  

2) Learning about all things finance and fundraising 

When I got the job my largest skill gap was in financial management. Yeah, I’d run budgets, but that was it really. Here’s the thing – I had to work really hard to get a C in maths. When I got the job friends and family asked me cautiously – and how are you feeling about the finance? Turns out, I love the finances. Finances isn’t all maths – its story telling with numbers, informed decision making, it’s making incredibly satisfying spreadsheets that link across tabs (nod to all you excel geeks out there), its problem solving. The responsibility felt huge and there were days when I over panicked about the money (for anyone who has ever wondered about buying pizza for the cast – always buy pizza for the cast). I’ve learnt so much and I now genuinely read other organisations statutory accounts as a hobby. Don’t be scared of the numbers – there is always an answer; you just have to find it.  

My biggest joy has been discovering fundraising. I’d done bits and bobs in various jobs, but it was during my time at Middle Child that I discovered a new passion. Fundraising brings together strategic thinking, a need for concise, persuasive writing, project planning and relationship management – and I love all of it. I’m now shifting my career to focus purely on fundraising because of my experience at Middle Child, and I feel indebted to the team and our trustees for helping me find a new career path.  

3) Hull 

My first day at Middle Child was my first day in Hull. Paul (AD, founder of Middle Child, top person), gave me a tour and I quickly fell in love with the vibe of the city. It’s artsy, grounded and got a real sense of community. It quickly became apparent that Middle Child are a huge part of this community. The best example of this was Middle Child’s 10th Birthday Party, which was the first event I worked on in my new role. I was blown away by the love in the room. A packed out audience watched scenes and songs from a decades worth of Middle Child shows, sang along, drank pints and shots of tequila, and showed their appreciation for a company that has made real change in the city. The atmosphere was incredible, and I knew I was working somewhere really special. 

There is so much more that I could say about Middle Child. They are kind, hard working, funny, genuine, and committed to making great work. I can’t wait to see what they do next. A word to the wise – their upcoming programme is staggeringly good. I can’t wait to be sitting in stalls (or standing on a sticky floor, pint in hand), watching them do their thing. Bring it on.  

Residents of Gipsyville walk in procession at night with light up puppets

New theatre project about the industrial heritage of Gipsyville

By | Uncategorised

Year-long Absolutely Cultured project will create a theatre parade around the streets of west Hull, featuring a community cast and crew

Residents of Gipsyville walk in procession at night with light up puppets

Floodlights parade in Gipsyville, 2021. Photo by Tom Arran for Absolutely Cultured.

Middle Child are delighted to reveal we will be working with residents of Gipsyville on a new theatre project about the industrial heritage of the Hull neighbourhood.

This exciting new project has been commissioned by Absolutely Cultured with funding from the National Lottery Heritage Fund.

Starting this Friday we will work with residents in creative workshops over the next 12 months, exploring how the area became the place it is today.

These will then be used to create a theatre parade around the streets of Gipsyville featuring a community cast and crew.

Reminiscence sessions will be run by Absolutely Cultured, and supported by Gipsyville Library, to give residents a chance to contribute their memories, stories and links to the history of their area.

Middle Child artistic director, Paul Smith, said: “We’re over the moon to be working with the communities of Gipsyville to create a new piece of theatre together, about the neighbourhood and its history.

“We look forward to not only meeting people to bring their stories to life, with the help of experienced writer and theatre maker, Rachael Abbey, but also learning from residents about the power of storytelling to bring generations together.

“This project is an opportunity for people from different backgrounds and experiences to make a collaborative piece of art and we can’t wait to get started.”

The Gipsyville project will run alongside another Absolutely Cultured heritage project on Spring Bank, inspired by the zoological gardens that used to be in the area from 1840 to 1861.

Working with Handmade Parade, an award-winning community arts and parade specialist Community Interest Company based in Hebden Bridge, residents will be able to participate in a range of creative, heritage-focused sessions and workshops built around this theme.

Stephen Munn, CEO and Artistic Director of Absolutely Cultured said: “It is fantastic to receive this support from The National Lottery Heritage Fund. It’s a really exciting project that everyone in these communities can be a part of.

“The project is an expansion of the work we’ve been doing in Spring Bank and Gipsyville over the last couple of years, ensuring people have opportunities to take part in creative activities in a way that is meaningful and relevant to them and supporting residents to produce their own opportunities to be creative!”

Like what we do? Here’s how you can support our work

Join our community of Middle Child Mates by subscribing to our pay what you can supporters’ scheme and help create a world where anybody’s story can be told or heard.

An excitable seated audience bathed in pink-red light, in front of giant lit-up letters that spell NSDF

National Student Drama Festival 2022: a “utopia that theatre could be”

By | Artist Development, Blog, Uncategorised

Middle Child company member, Marc Graham, writes about his experience of attending this year’s National Student Drama Festival as an associate – and why the festival matters so much

This was the first National Student Drama Festival back in-person since 2019. In the time between then and now it went digital, winning a Digital Trailblazer Award at the Digital Culture Awards and continued to do what it does best: working with young people and allowing a space for the future generation of theatre makers to flourish.

I first came to NSDF as a student in 2009. I straightened my hair for the show and was mainly carried around on the shoulders of my mates, while we reached for stuff in the distance.

I came back to do another show with the same mates a few years later, after we had graduated and were at the start of our careers, this time with curly hair and this time I shouldered their weight, whilst reaching for more stuff in the distance.

I became an associate in 2019, after having worked with that year’s festival director, James Phillips, in 2017, on Flood. I sacrificed my body by jumping into a freezing cold body of water in an old dock in Hull that winter, while a heavy set, boats and fire swirled around me. That was the job interview. They took two years to get back to me, but I got it.

So, April 2022. NSDF is back for its 66th year, it’s survived the pandemic, it’s a digital award winner, back in Leicester at the Curve and I arrive for kick-off. That in itself is a remarkable achievement and all down to the tireless effort of James Phillips, Lizzie Melbourne and Ellie Fitz-Gerald. JLE.

Under team JLE, NSDF has shifted from a competition to a festival that celebrates and cultivates great work.

This year the festival was free to attend. This year the festival also had access at its heart.

An excitable seated audience bathed in pink-red light, in front of giant lit-up letters that spell NSDF

NSDF 2022. Photo by Beatrice Debney.

First show, DJ Bazzer’s Year 6 Disco, from Chewboy Productions. As I sit down for this I realise that I haven’t seen any live theatre since the pandemic began. I was feeling a little emotional about this, but then the year six tunes began, I settle in, I’m a little too enthusiastic on the audience call and response stuff and I’m just enjoying a night out at the theatre. Then I get really sucked into this world, this character, the performance, the sound design, lights, everything. The show is great, see it if you can.

My first workshop, “Creating a Character from Very Little”, was the next morning. I was led to the space by one of the many incredible NSDF management team, who had forgone writing her dissertation to be at NSDF, a decision I wholeheartedly approve of.

The workshop basically uses some rehearsal techniques that Middle Child use today and some from our early years – before the police fines for disturbing the peace (not joking).

The session ends with me asking the performers to “take their characters for a walk” around Leicester on a sunny Sunday morning, before coming back to partake in a group improvisation. No one gets fined and they all approach the workshop with such drive and passion. Of course they do. They are all excellent.

Next I’m on a panel discussing “Is Theatre Shit? And How Do We Fix It?”

Topics discussed include de-funding the Royal Opera House and subjects of heavier weight, and a lot of this came from students themselves. That’s the best thing about these. Young theatre makers are unafraid to ask the big questions, the necessary ones. They’re inquisitive and it’s needed.

One of the big things here was, where are the routes for emerging theatre makers now? Edinburgh is unaffordable and Vaults has been shut down again. From 2020 we have lost two years of crucial development for emerging companies and, unfortunately, we have lost many companies completely. We didn’t have a specific answer for this right now.

Two performers on stage in front of a multicoloured kaleidoscopic background.

NSDF 2022. Photo by Beatrice Debney.

In between the scheduled programme, films are filming, emerging critics are critiquing, tech teams are teching. Conversations are happening: in the bar, in cafes, in outside venues, in the toilets, between associates, emerging theatre makers, students, professionals, writers, designers, academics and the people of Leicester. This is the real value of NSDF.

Ali Pidsley and I are treated to a viola rendition from Chris Thorpe. Without the viola. He declines every request I make. It’s fine, another show is starting and we’re gonna be late.

It’s also here where you meet emerging theatre makers of NSDF past who have now emerged. I meet the brilliant Definitely Fine Theatre, here with another show. I saw Ezra at Edinburgh uni pre-pandemic. They’re a company finding their voice, experimenting and it’s wonderful. We say hi, they tell me I’m the reason that they’re here, I play it down but only half-heartedly. I discovered them first okay… no I didn’t. But, you know, I sort of did. No, I’m joking. But also yeah, it was me.

RESERVATION. DaDaFest x NSDF. Box of Frogs. A group of young disabled, Deaf and neurodivergent performers having FUN on stage, sometimes at each other’s expense. Is some of it uncomfortable to watch? Absolutely, and that is the point. It is genuinely one of the most joyous experiences I’ve ever had in a theatre.

At the Q&A I’m buzzing and say things really loudly about how I just wanted to join in and dance with them onstage at the end. I later raise a second point which is basically the same as the first because I’m just so pumped up.

This show must have a further life.

It’s captioned, audio-described and BSL-interpreted – as is every show this year. #PissOnPity

An audience invades the stage to dance with their hands in the air under various coloured stage lights

Reservations. Photo by Beatrice Debney.

After their last show, I meet Nickie Miles-Wildin in the bar, on the way to hosting the spoken word night. She says she encouraged the audience to do what I suggested in the Q&A and they joined the performers on stage. She said she got in trouble, something about the Curve’s health and safety protocols. That’s rock’n’roll. I’ll take responsibility for that.

Nadia Emam and I host the spoken word night. It’s on the purpose-built NSDF stage in the bar at Curve. The mic is live and ready to go. Nickie Miles-Wildin is now halfway through a bottle of champagne and is trying to heckle me from the front row, but unfortunately for her 11 years of being a panto dame means I shut her down without giving it a second thought.

The standard is phenomenal. We have actors, producers, technical staff, NSDF alumni, management staff all standing up in front of 100 people and speaking their words. Then we have Viktor. Viktor asks me at the side of stage if they can perform, I say absolutely. Viktor is second from last, Viktor steps up to the mic. Viktor says:

“I’ve never performed my work in front of anyone before. I’m a dentist from Leicester. I don’t know what this is. I’ve been out drinking and was passing by and saw the lights and heard the noise. Sorry, I’m nervous. This poem is Untitled. Thank you.”

It was about how they thought they could never be loved, that they didn’t fit in, in a strange body and a foreign land.

It was one of those true moments of magic.

The day after I ran a second workshop on drama school auditions, with a last-minute offer of help from Hannah Miller, head of casting at the RSC. The second panel discussion was also about drama schools. The main takeaway from that: schools are not doing enough to push for access. It must start there, they could be the industry leaders, if they step-up.

A group of people chatting with drinks in hand at NSDF 2022

NSDF 2022. Photo by Beatrice Debney.

NSDF is partly about the shows, but it’s more about the conversations over coffee, the sharing of experiences, providing a safe platform to experiment and discover.

It’s a place where theatre professionals meet student theatre makers as equals. I mean, many of us were all them at some stage. And if we weren’t students, we had to learn somewhere.

This does not happen in this industry enough. Some of the professionals I met 13 years ago I still work with today. I always say: find the people who share your values and opinions and hold on to them tightly. NSDF is a place where this happens.

It is the utopia of what the theatre industry could be. Every year that goes by in this career I get a little more jaded, a little less hopeful, but each year the next generation of theatre makers at NSDF revitalises that. It may only last a week, but I take the values of NSDF with me for the rest of the year.

On my last morning I’m sitting with Chris Thorpe at breakfast. We both have our phones in hand. He looks at me across his plate of hash browns, he slumps his phone down after losing to me at chess online and says:

“The reality is, is that we probably get more out of this than the young people do.”

Rehearsal photos from There Should Be Unicorns

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Rehearsals for There Should Be Unicorns, our new hip hop family musical, are well under way, with just one week left until we premiere in Hull.

Last week photographer, Tom Arran, nipped in to our rehearsal room to capture the action and give you a taste of what to expect at Stage @TheDock, from 7-8 May.

Tickets are sold out, but follow Middle Child on social media for updates on any returned tickets.

If you were lucky enough to bag a set of free tickets, don’t forget to prepare your fancy dress outfit for the big day!

Book free tickets for There Should Be Unicorns

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Free tickets are now available for There Should Be Unicorns, our new hip hop family musical, coming to Stage @TheDock in Hull over the weekend of 7-8 May.

Check out our show page for more details about the production, or head straight to the ticketing page by clicking one of the links below.

  • Saturday 7 May, 11am (SOLD OUT*)
  • Saturday 7 May, 2pm (SOLD OUT*)
  • Sunday 8 May, 11am (BSL interpreted) (SOLD OUT*)
  • Sunday 8 May, 2pm (BSL interpreted) (SOLD OUT*)

Please note that we are aware of issues with the Safari browser when attempting to book tickets.

If you have any problems, please try an alternative browser, or call the box office team at Hull Truck Theatre on 01482 323638 to book over the phone.

*Sold Out Performances

As a free ticket show, we expect there to be a small number of tickets returned prior to the performance.

Follow us on Twitter, Facebook or Instagram for updates about any tickets that become available.

A white woman with long dark hair, in lilac dungarees, yellow jumper, gold party hat and pink cape makes a superhero pose, against blue background with white clouds and text that says "There Should Be Unicorns"

There Should Be Unicorns to open in Hull

By | Events, News, Shows, Uncategorised
A white woman with long dark hair, in lilac dungarees, yellow jumper, gold party hat and pink cape makes a superhero pose, against blue background with white clouds and text that says

Flutter your capes and zhuzh up your rainbows – we have a new show coming to town!

There Should Be Unicorns is a hip hop family musical coming to Stage @ The Dock in Hull from 7-8 May, made in association with Beats Bus.

Join 11-year-old Jasmine on an adventure to make the world a better place, powered only by her imagination and a belief in unicorns.

Come dressed as the superhero version of yourself and help Jasmine take on the bullies, villains and ideas that shape the world around her.

There Should Be Unicorns is inspired by the story of Beats Bus co-founder, Steve Arnott, who was the subject of Sean McAllister’s 2018 documentary, A Northern Soul.

Steve stars as Jasmine’s dad, alongside Beats Bus co-founder Kobby Taylor, who you may also recognise from The Canary and the Crow and The Little Mermaid.

In the show Jasmine’s dad inspires her to rebel against the pressure to conform and put herself first as she gets ready to move to senior school.

We’d love to see families from across Hull turn out in fancy dress to support Jasmine in her quest and free face painting will be available all weekend, from Fantastic Faces.

A Black man applauds a white boy on a microphone. In the background lots of children watch.

Kobby Taylor leading a Beats Bus workshop

Free tickets, available 30 March

Free tickets have been made possible thanks to the support of Wykeland Group, Without Walls and Freedom Festival Arts Trust.

They go on-sale through the Middle Child website at 12 noon, Wednesday 30 March.

For the first time at a Middle Child show we are providing integrated audio description in all performances, alongside BSL interpretation on Sunday 8 May.

The venue also opens an hour before the show and you’re welcome to bring in food from the many independent shops and cafes around the Fruit Market.

There Should Be Unicorns premieres in Hull, before heading on a national tour of outdoor festivals, including a return to Freedom Festival, so come join us for a kick-ass opening weekend!

There Should Be Unicorns is supported by Wykeland Group, Without Walls, Freedom Festival Arts Trust, Hull City Council, Foyle Foundation and Garfield Weston.

Fantastic Faces logo
Panto Dame Name Generator

What’s your panto dame name?

By | Uncategorised
Panto Dame Name Generator

Ever wondered how we came up with the name of our panto dame, Pattie Breadcake? With our patented Panto Dame Name Generator!

Simply take the title from the month you were born in, alongside two names from the lists below and voila! Instant panto celeb-dom.

Birth month

January-March: Lady
April-June: Queen
July-September: Dame
October-December: Our

The first letter of your first name

AB: Pattie
CD: Marina
EF: Ferry
GH: Welly
IJ: Fishy
KL: Larkin’
MN: Tiger
OP: Chippy
QR: Mafting
ST: Tenfoot
UV: Croggy
WX: Gravy
YZ: Humber

The first letter of your last name

AB: Breadcake
CD: Turbine
EF: Gristle
GH: Codhead
IJ: Foreshore
KL: Trawler
MN: Headscarf
OP: Oss Wash
QR: Ave a Skeg
ST: Spiders
UV: Big Wheel
WX: Chip Spice
YZ: Dead Bod