Paines Plough’s 50th Birthday Gala

A bumper celebration of new writing and writers, to celebrate Paines Plough’s 50th birthday and raise funds to secure our future.

The evening featured an exclusive new piece entitled ‘The Next 50’, written by our patron James Graham and performed by Monica Dolan.

Followed by extracts from some of Paines Plough’s seminal productions, performed by guest stars:

• Crave by Sarah Kane – featuring Thomas Coombes, Alfred Enoch, Siobhan McSweeney and Rebekah Murrell directed by the play’s original director Vicky Featherstone.
• After the End by Dennis Kelly – performed by TV royalty, Meg Bellamy (Princess Kate in The Crown) and Hugh Skinner (Prince William in The Windsors), directed by Matthew Dunster.
• Love, Love, Love by Mike Bartlett – performed by Lesley Sharp, Iain Glen and Jessie Cave, directed by Charlotte Bennett.
• Sea Wall by Simon Stephens – performed by Tom Sturridge (The Sandman), who received a Tony nomination for his performance in the Broadway production of Sea Wall in 2019, directed by Charlotte Bennett.
• Hungry by Chris Bush – featuring Heather Agyepong (Shifters; The Power) and Sophie Melville (Cowbois; The Way), directed by Katie Posner.
• A filmed segment with Olivier Award-winner Amy Trigg, who will record a scene from Reasons You Should(n’t) Love Me (winner of the Women’s Prize for Playwriting in 2021), in the venue where it all began for us as a company 50 years ago: the Plough pub in Bolnhurst, Bedford.
• Bullring Techno Makeout Jamz by Nathan Queeley-Dennis – performed by Kola Bokinni (Ted Lasso), directed by Katie Posner.
• Every Brilliant Thing by Duncan Macmillan with Jonny Donahoe.

Appearances will also include Indhu Rubasingham (Director Designate of the National Theatre), and playwrights James Graham, Roy Williams, Mark Ravenhill and Ryan Calais Cameron.

This event is part of Paines Plough’s 50 for 50 Campaign which aims to raise £50,000 to support its work at at time when new writing is under threat. There are so many stories in danger of never being heard, and we want to make sure we can spend the next 50 years finding them.