Shows
Arts & IdeasNew Thinking: Black British Theatre. An Afro-Cuban starWho complained about Olivier's Othello? Stephen Bourne has been mining the archives to find out who raised questions about Laurence Olivier's blacked up performance in 1964. It's one of the stories he tells in his new book, which also includes memories of meeting performers including Carmen Munroe, Corinne Skinner-Carter and Elisabeth Welch. Nadine Deller hosts a podcast linked to the National Theatre's Black plays archive and she's particularly interested in women playwrights whose work deserves to be better known including Una Marson. They talk to performer and historian of women in theatre Naomi Paxton. Plus New Generation Thinker Adjoa Osei...2021-10-1943 min
Arts & IdeasNew Thinking: Black British TheatreNames to put back into the conversation about the history of British Theatre are suggested by Naomi Paxton’s guests in this New Thinking podcast. Stephen Bourne is the author of Deep Are the Roots – Trailblazers Who Changed Black British Theatre. Nadine Deller is an academic whose research focuses on the place of Black women in the Black Plays Archive. She hosts That Black Theatre Podcast in collaboration with the National Theatre and is based at the Royal Central School of Speech and Drama.Naomi Paxton is also at the Royal Central School of Speech and Drama. She...2021-10-0734 min
That Black Theatre PodcastThat Black Theatre Podcast: An interview with Ola InceIn the final episode of Series 1, we have a very special guest, the exceptional theatre director Ola Ince. We talk about her past and upcoming work, the future of Black theatre and what she wants to see change in the British theatre industry.Ola Ince is a director and dramaturg, who is an Associate Director at the Royal Court. She has directed many brilliant plays, including Appropriate at the Donmar Warehouse, The Convert and Dutchman at the Young Vic. Thank you so much Ola for your generosity and for speaking with us!If you want...2020-12-2859 minThat Black Theatre PodcastThat Black Theatre Podcast: 2010s, Nine Night, Seven Methods of Killing Kylie Jenner and Jasmine Lee-JonesThis week we look at the last decade of Black British theatre and ask: have things really changed for Black theatre practitioners? We focus on two different plays: Natasha Gordon’s Nine Night, which is the first play on record by a Black British woman to be transferred to London’s West End, and Jasmine Lee-Jones’ Seven Methods of Killing Kylie Jenner. We talk about how Nine Night captured the imaginations of both Black and white audiences, portraying three generations of a Black British family in the wake of the 2018 Windrush ‘scandal’, while discussing death, racial politics and funeral ri...2020-12-2154 minThat Black Theatre PodcastThat Black Theatre Podcast: Mojisola Adebayo, Afri-queer theatre, climate change and colonisation.This week we have a really special guest, Mojisola Adebayo. We discuss ‘Afri-Queer Theatre’, Black queer stories in theatre, climate change and colonisation. Mojisola discusses their play Moj of the Antarctic, which was performed at the Lyric Hammersmith theatre in 2006 and Wind/Rush Generations. Mojisola Adebayo is a writer, playwright, poet, performer, workshop leader, facilitator, and educator. Moj is a prolific theatre-maker, and has worked on projects all around the globe, including, Brazil, Britain, India, Malawi, Norway, Palestine, Sweden, South Africa, Syria, the USA, and Zimbabwe. They have written many plays, which have been published in Mojisola Adebayo: Play...2020-12-1458 minThat Black Theatre PodcastThat Black Theatre Podcast: 2000s, the 'state of the nation' & Roy WilliamsThis week we're continuing our discussion of the 2000s. We talk about how theatre can address the 'state of the nation', through the work of the brilliant playwright, Roy Williams. We were lucky enough to have an interview with Roy, who brilliantly discusses his plays 'Sing Yer Hearts Out for the Lads', 'Death of England' and 'Death of England: Delroy'. We discuss the connections between nationalism, football, race, class, and Brexit, which Roy's plays tackle with wit, humour and realism. Born in London, Roy Williams is an award-winning playwright. He was the first winner of the...2020-11-3051 minThat Black Theatre PodcastThat Black Theatre Podcast: 2000s, the ‘renaissance’ in Black theatre, debbie tucker green and Lynette GoddardThis week we discuss the question of whether there was a ‘renaissance’ in Black theatre during the 2000s and the work of debbie tucker green, with the prominent academic, Professor Lynette Goddard. We talk about the unprecedented mainstream presence of several Black playwrights in Britain during the 2000s, with specific focus on debbie tucker green’s play ‘random’, which details a day in the life of a Black British family which is tragically shaken through a random act of violence. Thanks so much to Lynette for offering your time and wisdom to this episode!Email archive@nationaltheatre.org.uk&nbs...2020-11-2357 minThat Black Theatre PodcastThat Black Theatre Podcast: An interview with Winsome PinnockThis week we have a really exciting episode: an interview and discussion dedicated to the brilliant and prominent playwright and academic, Winsome Pinnock. Winsome is one of the best-known playwrights working in Britain today. We were lucky enough to speak to her about what it means to be a Black playwright, the history of her work in theatre, how the British theatre industry has changed and what more work needs to be done, and her latest play, Rockets and Blue Lights. Sometimes referred to as the 'godmother' of Black British theatre, Winsome's plays are far-reaching in the themes...2020-11-1654 minThat Black Theatre PodcastThat Black Theatre Podcast: Black Women Time,1980s -1990s, Jackie Kay, Valerie Mason-John and Lynette GoddardThis week, we discuss the position of Black women playwrights in the 1980s and 1990s. We talk to Professor Lynette Goddard (Royal Holloway University) about the politics of representation and Black lesbian and queer playwrights, including Jackie Kay and Valerie Mason-John. We talk about Jackie Kay’s Chiaroscuro, which looks at sisterhood and the plurality of Black women’s experiences. We also include a clip and discussion from Valerie Mason-John’s play, Sin Dykes, which discusses inter-racial lesbian relationships, BDSM and legacies of racial trauma.Email archive@nationaltheatre.org.uk Social @nationaltheatre Refe...2020-11-0954 minThat Black Theatre PodcastThat Black Theatre Podcast: 1980s, Michael Abbensetts, Winsome PinnockThis week we are looking at the 1980s, a time when there was a ‘boom’ in Black theatre production in Britain. We discuss the political and social changes that occurred in 1980s Britain, a decade of Thatcher’s Tory government, recession, and institutional racism. We look at Michael Abbensetts’ In the Mood, and Winsome Pinnock’s A Hero’s Welcome. Both of these plays talk about migration and the legacies of the Second World War in very different ways. Michael Abbensetts asks how radical black politics can work within conventional political institutions, while Winsome Pinnock creates a female-cen...2020-11-021h 00That Black Theatre PodcastThat Black Theatre Podcast: 1970s, Black Power Politics, Mustapha Matura & Alfred FagonThis week we are looking at the 1970s, a time of resistance and rebellion. We talk about the work of Mustapha Matura and Alfred Fagon amidst the realities of police brutality, anti-racist politics and Black Power in Britain and the USA. Mustapha Matura’s ‘Welcome Home Jacko’ and Alfred Fagon’s ‘The Death of a Black Man’ discuss Black politics, disenfranchisement, Black masculinity, Pan-Africanism and the appropriation of Black cultures during the 1970s. We discuss the legacies of these two great writers, with archival recordings from the Black Plays Archive. Email archive@nationaltheatre.org.uk ...2020-10-2657 minThat Black Theatre PodcastThat Black Theatre Podcast: 1960s, Colonisation and Class, Barry Reckord & Wole SoyinkaThis week we are looking at the tumultuous 1960s, a time of civil unrest, civil rights, anti-colonial struggle, and international conflict. We talk about the work of Barry Reckord and Wole Soyinka amidst the political, social and cultural contexts of Britain, the USA and Nigeria during the 1960s. Wole Soyinka’s ‘The Lion and the Jewel’ and Barry Reckord’s ‘Skyvers’ discuss the contrasting social and political issues affecting people in South London and Nigeria respectively. While Reckord battles with class and gender amongst working-class youth, Soyinka critiques colonisation and celebrates traditional Yoruba culture. We delve into the sig...2020-10-1949 minThat Black Theatre PodcastThat Black Theatre Podcast: 1950s, The Windrush Generation, Errol John and Barry ReckordThis week we are delving into a seminal point in Black British theatre, the 1950s. We look at the historical backdrop of the post-war period, mass immigration, and the Windrush Generation. Two important playwrights who were part of that generation were Errol John and Barry Reckord. Their plays ‘Moon on a Rainbow Shawl’ and ‘Flesh to a Tiger’, look at the lives of Black people in the Caribbean under colonial rule, and the motivations many people had for making the journey to live and work in Britain. We listen to an audio clip from the National Theatre’...2020-10-1245 minThat Black Theatre PodcastThat Black Theatre Podcast: Black Women in the 1930s, Una Marson & Delia Jarrett-MacauleyThis week we are looking at the 1930s and the first black woman playwright in the Black Plays Archive, the legendary Una Marson, and how she flourished in 1930s Britain. A trailblazer in every sense, Una Marson was a Jamaican poet, playwright, writer, activist. She was also the first black woman to be hired by the BBC. We interview the brilliant academic and novelist, Delia Jarrett-Macauley, about Una Marson’s legacy and two of her plays, ‘At What a Price’ and ‘Pocomania’. Una’s plays talk about religion, gender politics, and racism at a time where black women...2020-10-0542 minThat Black Theatre PodcastThat Black Theatre Podcast: Plurality of Black Stories, The Black Plays Archive & Natasha BonnelameIn our first episode of That Black Theatre Podcast we talk about the wonderful Black Plays Archive, the focal point of our journey into black theatre history in Britain. We chat to a leading academic and previous manager of the Black Plays Archive, Natasha Bonnelame. We ask Natasha what the Black Plays Archive is, and why it’s important to tell a plurality of black stories on the stage. We talk about who is given access to knowledge and power, and what needs to change in the British theatre industry to represent black experiences. Black Play...2020-09-2845 minThat Black Theatre PodcastThat Black Theatre Podcast: TrailerWelcome to That Black Theatre Podcast! Hosted by PhD student Nadine Deller and her sister Nadia Deller, we’re here to chat all things past, present and future about Black theatre and creativity. The first series launches on Monday 28 September 2020 with twelve episodes taking you through different decades of Black British theatre-making. We’ll be speaking to leaders of Black British theatre and sharing exclusive clips from plays in the Black Plays Archive. Guests include Mojisola Adebayo, Lynette Goddard, Ola Ince, Roy Williams, and more! Join us on Mondays for That...2020-09-2501 min