SESSIONS rehearsals are well underway and we are so excited to bring this production all over the UK! The brilliant creative team are getting ready for their previews on 24 and 25 September at Soho Theatre which are on sale now.

From the Isle of Wight to Berwick upon Tweed, we’ll then be touring all over the country from 24 September to 30 October, before returning for a four week run at Soho Theatre 08 November – 04 December. Check out our full upcoming tour dates and locations to find where we are coming near you.

With only a few weeks until SESSIONS opens to audiences, we wanted to introduce you to the fantastic team behind it.

What’s happening?

Paines Plough, one of the UK’s leading theatre companies, are working with Lambeth Council to bring our pop-up venue Roundabout to Slade Gardens for ten days in August.

Paines Plough will put on plays and a musical, with some tickets to every Paines Plough show free to local residents, and concession prices available to all SW9 residents.

There will also be plays and events from visiting companies, and free community events every day, including free activities for young people.

When is it happening?

The Roundabout Festival will last from 19 August to 29 August.

Our team will start setting up in Slade Gardens on 17 August, and we’ll have left the gardens as they were by 30 August.

Where will Roundabout be?

Roundabout will be put up in Slade Gardens. We’re currently talking to Lambeth Council and community partners about where to place the site to make sure that:

• We leave as much of Slade Gardens free for local residents as possible
• We don’t prevent people exercising, playing ball sports of socialising
• We don’t make noise for local residents, especially in the evenings

If you want to be a part of this conversation, email our Producer, Matt, at matt@painesplough.com

What time will events be?

Most events will start at around 11am each day, but we might have some free events for the local community in the mornings.

Events will finish by 10.15pm on weekday evenings, and by 10.45pm on weekend evenings.

What shows will be on?

Paines Plough will perform four plays in Roundabout during the festival:

• REALLY BIG AND REALLY LOUD, by Phoebe Eclair-Powell
  • This is a new show for young people about losing your voice and going on a big adventure to find it again.

• BLACK LOVE, by Chinonyerem Odimba, with music by Ben and Max Ringham
  • This is a new R&B musical about a brother and sister living in London asking what it means to love whilst Black.

• HUNGRY, by Chris Bush
  • This is a new play about food, class, and if we are what we eat.

• MAY QUEEN, by Frankie Meredith
  • This a new play set on May Day; sixteen-year-old Leigh is the May Queen and she’s buzzing, but an encounter during the day’s festivities will change everything.

How much will tickets be?

Tickets to the shows will be between £5 and £15. Some tickets for each Paines Plough show will be available for free to SW9 residents, andt SW9 residents will never have to pay more than £10 for a ticket.

Most community events will be totally free. We’re talking to our partners who run these events, including local organisations, to arrange this at the moment.

What free events will there be?

We’re going to have a lot of free activity for young people, including a week-long holiday activity programme with free packed lunches, and free workshops after performances of REALLY BIG AND REALLY LOUD.

We’re working with local organisations and arts companies to arrange other activities and will announce these soon.

How will you make the festival COVID-safe?

We have been granted the use of Society Of London Theatre & UK Theatre’s ‘See It Safely‘ mark. The mark certifies that we are complying with the latest Government and industry COVID-19 guidelines, to ensure the safety of our staff and audiences.

We’re really excited to welcome you to Roundabout and it is our priority that you have as safe and enjoyable a visit as possible

Please see our COVID SAFETY INFORMATION PAGE which covers all information on what we are doing from July 19 in line with government guidance to keep you, our staff, and artists safe as we reopen.

If you have any more questions about what we’re doing in order to ensure that we’re keeping our audiences safe, please contact us –  office@painesplough.com.

Will the festival be accessible?

Roundabout is fully wheelchair-accessible and step-free. We can provide three wheelchair spaces per performance, with space for one companion seat next to each wheelchair space.

Roundabout has a built in T-loop available for every performance.

Roundabout has closed caption units, and we’ll have a number of captioned performances.

We will have one relaxed performance of REALLY BIG AND REALLY LOUD, our show for young people.

What is Roundabout?

You can read all about Roundabout and its journey so far here.

This year Roundabout will also be a food bank donation point, with all donations given to local food banks and food poverty organisations.

Who are Paines Plough?

You can read all about us and we do here.

How can I get in touch?

If you’re a local resident and you’d like to talk to us about how to make Roundabout work for you, or you work with young people and want to see how they can access our events, email our Producer, Matt, at matt@painesplough.com.

If you’re a local organisation and want to work with us to put on a community event in Roundabout, email our Associate Producer, Christabel, at christabel@painesplough.com.

If you’re a press or media organisation, and would like to talk more about the festival, contact our Marketing Manager, Cherise at cherise@painesplough.com.

If you have any queries regarding box office or tickets, please email boxoffice@painesplough.com

We have been ‘See It Safely’ approved

We have been granted the use of Society Of London Theatre & UK Theatre’s ‘See It Safely‘ mark. The mark certifies that we are complying with the latest Government and industry COVID-19 guidelines, to ensure the safety of our staff and audiences.

We’re really excited to welcome you to Roundabout and it is our priority that you have as safe and enjoyable a visit as possible

Please see our COVID SAFETY INFORMATION PAGE which covers all information on what we are doing from July 19 in line with government guidance to keep you, our staff, and artists safe as we reopen.

If you have tickets to see a Paines Plough production at one of our partner venues please visit the theatre’s website to see what measures they have in place.

If you have any more questions about what we’re doing in order to ensure that we’re keeping our audiences safe, please contact us –  office@painesplough.com.

Roundabout Tour 2021: We’re back!

Roundabout rehearsals are well underway for our summer tour across the UK. Today we’re announcing the full UK tour and our brilliant cast and crew for four brand new shows: BLACK LOVE, HUNGRY, REALLY BIG AND REALLY LOUD, and MAY QUEEN.

We will tour the UK as follows:

27 July – 07 August: Moathouse, Wood End, Coventry

12 – 15 August: Northern Stage, Newcastle

19 – 29 August: Slade Gardens, Brixton, London 

9 – 12 September: The Lowry, Salford

16 – 19 September: Creative Civic Change Newington, Ramsgate

30 September – 03 October: Cast, Doncaster

07 – 11 October: LPAC, Lincoln

14 – 17 October: Lighthouse Poole, Bournemouth and Poole

We can’t wait to welcome audiences across the UK back to Roundabout this year. You can read all about what we’re doing to keep you safe right here.

And introducing Team Roundabout 2021…

We’ve just announced the full tour dates for SESSIONS by Ifeyinwa Frederick, a co-production between PP and Soho Theatre, which will be directed by Philip Morris and will tour the UK from 28 September to 31 October, before a four-week run at Soho Theatre 08 November to 05 December. Tickets for SESSIONS at Soho Theatre are onsale for members from today and onsale to the general public from Thursday – you can book them here: https://sohotheatre.com/shows/sessions/

In 2019 we co-commissioned a new play by Ifeyinwa Frederick, one of the 2019 Soho Six, in a yearlong attachment programme for artists run by Soho Theatre.  This play is the result of that commission.

We’re partnering with Trybe House Theatre, a newly formed company which seeks to actively build resilience and self well-being, particularly with young black men aged 16-25, to deliver a programme of workshops to our national audiences alongside the tour.

About SESSIONS:

“30 just matters, init. Like there’s no doubt you’re a proper adult then. Like 25 to 29 is just training but 30, it’s real.”

 Tunde’s 30th birthday is fast approaching. So he’s just started therapy because he hasn’t been able to get to the gym for weeks and a recent one night stand ended in tears – his.

Interrogating the challenge of opening up and accepting our own vulnerabilities, SESSIONS by Ifeyinwa Frederick is a raw, funny, bittersweet deep-dive into the complexities of masculinity, depression and therapy.

About Ifeyinwa:

Ifeyinwa is a fervent believer in the power of storytelling and human connection, which fuels her work as a writer and entrepreneur. In need of a creative outlet outside of her business, she began writing and joined Soho Theatre Writers’ Lab. Supported by the programme, she wrote her debut play THE HOES which received a full production at Hampstead Theatre in 2018. The play was shortlisted for the Tony Craze Award and Character 7 Award and longlisted for the Verity Bargate Award. Writing alongside her full-time job as co-founder of Chuku’s – the world’s first Nigerian tapas restaurant – she’s a Young British Foodie award winner and has been featured in Forbes’ list of 100 Female Founders in Europe. 

About Philip:

Philip Morris has been a Trainee Director at the Royal Court. He was previously Senior Youth Theatre Director at the Birmingham Repertory Theatre (The REP). After graduating from the Royal Birmingham Conservatoire Philip began work as an intern at the Birmingham Repertory Theatre and the Birmingham Hippodrome. Approximately halfway through his 6-month internship he was asked to deliver a pitch for Mind Charity for a pilot project named Up MY Street working closely with vulnerable young black men on behalf of The REP. He was successful in the pitch which then led to him creating Lightpost Theatre Company. He has since gone on to direct work for the National Theatre, Company Three, the Young Vic and is the now Artistic Director of his own theatre company Trybe House Theatre.

We will tour the UK as follows…

29 September

SELBY TOWN HALL

30 September

ARTS CENTRE WASHINGTON

01 October

THE MALTINGS, BERWICK

02 October

ROSEHILL THEATRE , WHITEHAVEN

04 October

MIDDLESBROUGH TOWN HALL

05 October

CAST, DONCASTER

06 October

MILL ARTS, BANBURY

07 October

THE HAT FACTORY, LUTON

09 October

THE EDGE, MANCHESTER

12 October

ARTS DEPOT, LONDON

13 October

THE OLD MARKET, BRIGHTON

14 October

MARINE THEATRE, LYME REGIS

15 October

VENTNOR EXCHANGE

16 October

THE SPRING ARTS CENTRE, HAVANT

19 October

THE GARAGE, NORWICH

20 October

KEY THEATRE, PETERBOROUGH

22 October

NORDEN FARM

23 October

DERBY THEATRE

25 October

UNITY THEATRE, LIVERPOOL

27 October

SOUTH HILL PARK

28 October

POUND ARTS

29 October

TRESTLE ARTS BASE

30 October

YVONNE ARNAUD

You can keep up with the tour using the hashtag #SESSIONS.

Thanks to the brilliant Rebecca Need-Menear and Thread Design for the cracking new image.

Paines Plough have adopted the Anti-Racism Rider as a statement of intent to promote anti-racism throughout the sector. We are dedicated to making positive change and to creating welcoming, safe environments for our artists, creatives and workforce, collaborating with colleagues from across the industry to implement this. We are committed to enshrining the actions within the rider to our practice and sharing this resource with our participants and peers.

Anti Racism Touring Rider

Anti-Racism Touring Rider Easy Read

Anti Racism Touring Rider Large Print

Anti-Racism Touring Rider Checklist

Anti-Racism Touring Rider Large Print Checklist

This rider and checklist is supported by companies in the National Touring Network including:

China Plate

English Touring Theatre

Fuel Theatre

Graeae

High Tide

Improbable

New Earth Theatre

Northern Broadsides Theatre Company

Stockroom (formally Out Of Joint)

The Theatre Centre

Pilot Theatre

Tamasha

1927

20 Stories High

Actors Touring Company

Boundless Theatre

Complicite

Frantic Assembly

Headlong

Kneehigh

Oily Cart

Spare Tyre

Talawa

Wise Children

Inspector Sands

Kali Theatre Company

HOME

Crucible Theatre

ITC

UK Theatre

We’re running Open Auditions again, this time in collaboration with Northern Stage!

As usual, we’re looking to meet actors previously unknown to Paines Plough with a passion for new writing, this time in Newcastle and the surrounding area. You can apply from now (16 April) until 10am on Monday 03 May.

We will be seeing approximately 85 actors living in the following postcodes: NE, SR, DH, DL or TS.

Selected actors will be met by a selection of artistic staff from Paines Plough and Northern Stage as well as producing companies from the North East, selected by Northern Stage through an open call-out.

Audition panellists on Friday 14 May will include Katie Posner (Paines Plough’s Joint-Artistic Director), Natalie Ibu (Northern Stage’s Artistic Director), Annie McCourt (Northern Stage’s Associate Producer), and selected panellists from producing companies in the North East.

Audition panellists on Saturday 15 May will include Natalie Ibu (Northern Stage’s Artistic Director), Annie McCourt (Northern Stage’s Associate Producer), and Kaleya Baxe (Paines Plough’s Trainee Director), and selected panellists from producing companies in the North East.

On Sunday 16 May the panel for auditions will be a North-East only panel – including Natalie Ibu (Northern Stage’s Artistic Director), Annie McCourt (Northern Stage’s Associate Producer), and selected panellists from producing companies in the North East.

When applying, you will be asked to indicate which day you would like to audition on.

Sound good? This is how to apply…

• Register by filling in this form by 10am on Monday 03 May. There’s no need to send in anything else in advance.

• If you are selected to audition, we’ll get in touch with you by Friday 07 May with an audition time – make sure you let us know if you can make it or not as soon as possible. If we don’t hear from you by midday on Tuesday 11 May we will reallocate your slot to someone on the waiting list.

• Don’t worry, you’ll hear from us whatever the outcome. If you’re not selected to audition this time, we may keep you on a waiting list and may offer you an audition if a slot becomes available.

• Once everything’s confirmed, please prepare a three-minute monologue from a play written in the last 15 years.

Some things to bear in mind:

• If you have auditioned for Paines Plough before (either at an Open Audition or as part of casting for a specific show), unfortunately we won’t be able to see you this time round.

• We are specifically looking to audition actors who do not have an agent and we will prioritise seeing actors who

– Are Black and ethnically diverse
– Identify as disabled

• Places are all allocated in advance. Due to high demand we can’t accommodate requests for a different time, and we will be unable to see people on a walk-up basis. In the application, you’ll be able to indicate what time of day you’re available and we’ll try our best to accommodate this.

• If for any reason you can’t make your audition please let us know ASAP by emailing office@painesplough.com. If you don’t turn up to your audition without letting us know in advance, you won’t be able to apply for future Paines Plough Open Auditions.

• We can only accept applications made with this form before the deadline.

• Due to the large volume of people we’ll be seeing, we unfortunately won’t be able to offer feedback.

• We aren’t casting for a particular show at the moment – we just want to meet some new actors so that we can bear you in mind for future productions.

• Ping us an email at amccourt@northernstage.co.uk or office@painesplough.com if you’re not sure about anything.

• Don’t worry if you don’t live in the area specified – we try to hold as many Open Auditions as we can throughout the year all around the UK. Join our mailing list or keep an eye on our social media for details of the next ones…

Hope to see you there!

Team PP and Northern Stage

Submissions for The Women’s Prize for Playwrighting 2021 are now open! The deadline for submissions is 12 July at 5pm.

The winning playwright receives £12,000 in respect of an exclusive option for Ellie Keel Productions and Paines Plough to co-produce the winning play.

The judges for this year’s Prize are…

Mel Kenyon (Chair)
Arifa Akbar
Lucy Kirkwood
Jasmine Lee-Jones
Winsome Pinnock
Indhu Rubasingham
Jenny Sealey
Nina Steiger
Nicola Walker
and
Jodie Whittaker.

Last year the prize was awarded to two plays: REASONS YOU SHOULD(N’T) LOVE ME by Amy Trigg and YOU BURY ME by Ahlam. Both were awarded the £12,000 prize and REASONS YOU SHOULD(N’T) LOVE ME will premiere at The Kiln 21 May – 12 June. Tickets are on sale now and you can book them right here.

We’re also delighted to announce today that Audible will produce an audio production of REASONS YOU SHOULDN’T LOVE ME.

Find out more about how to submit your play for the 2021 prize here.

You are eligible for the prize if you are over the age of 16, based in the UK or Ireland, and if you identify as female.

Good luck!

The Women’s Prize for Playwriting has been created by Ellie Keel Productions (EKP) and Paines Plough, with 45North and in association with Sonia Friedman Productions. Sponsored by Samuel French Ltd, a Concord Theatricals company, who are the official publishing partner of the prize. The founding sponsor of the Prize was PER People.

“This year we’re making a Promise to 2021 because the world has changed and so have we.

If anything, 2020 has taught us there are no definites but that there is always hope. We are artists, we are activists and 2021 is about discovering how best we can reconnect and serve our national communities after the year we have all been through.

Our Promise to 2021 is a promise of hope. A hope to make some plays, a hope to make them with some people and a hope to share them with our national audiences.

In 2021, we promise to share the stories that should have been shared in 2020 as they are powerful, vital and need to be celebrated, along with new voices and a whole heap more.

We recognise that the world in which we will deliver these plays is now radically different. Our communities will lay at the heart of what we deliver with bespoke spin-off projects that respond to the present moment.

We will always put artists and audience’s safety first. We will only make and share work where it is safe to do so.

And finally, we will make some heart-stopping, feet-stomping, hair-raising, amazing shows. It’s been a while. Let us at it.

Hope to see you there.”

– Charlotte and Katie, Joint Artistic Directors of PP

Once upon a time, Charlotte Bennett and I stood outside the Paines Plough office in Aldwych in the rain and said ‘can you imagine if we ever got the chance to be the new Artistic Directors of this incredible company?’ So we took this picture and joked ‘yeh and this could be our press picture!’ Both of us hoping, praying and wishing that one day this would come true. As we travelled home on the bus that night we cooked up what our first season would be, promised we would laugh every day, use the rage we felt about our industry to make radical change, and went to be bed dreaming of all the artists we would be able to work with.