Unity Theatre Spring 2019 Brochure

JAN - MAR 2019

unitytheatreliverpool.co.uk

OUR PERFORMANCES

asking questions, reflecting on our society and investigating what makes us human.

EXPLORE THE W RLD IN WHICH WE LIVE

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BOOK NOW: 0151 709 4988 | unitytheatreliverpool.co.uk

AMBITIOUS

CONTEMPORARY

PRODUCTIONS

be inspired and entertained by performance at its most exciting.

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WELCOME TO YOUR

SPRING SEASON “A tender, powerful piece... perfect in its sensitivity.”

WINNER Pick of the Fringe

BritishTheatre.com

POP, page 13

Award – Greater Manchester Fringe 2018

A BRAVE FACE, page 8

Finalist for Alfred Fagon Award Best New Play of the Year 2017 SPARKPLUG, page 10

Scotsman Fringe First Award Winner 2018 Guardian , Time Out, The Scotsman, The Stage

STATUS, page 14 4

BOOK NOW: 0151 709 4988 | unitytheatreliverpool.co.uk

Ad Infinitum present

NO KIDS Thur 24 – Fri 25 Jan | 7.30pm £15 – £12 (Groups 8+ £5 tickets) Unity 1

“Compelling… rather fabulous.”

The Stage

No Kids is the latest energetic, hilarious, moving and thought-provoking play from Ad Infinitum.

Should we have kids, or not? George and Nir are a same-sex couple trying to answer a question many of us face. Every consideration – adoption, surrogacy, co-parenting, the environmental impact of childbirth, the fears and anxieties, how the past affects parenting and much, much more – brings with it a succession of ethical challenges. Together, George and Nir confront this chaos head-on.

And invite you along for the ride. @TheatreAdInf #NoKids

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AT UNITY Fri 8 - Sat 16 Feb For one week only, awardwinning Liverpool theatre company 20 Stories High will make their home at Unity.

20 Stories High have a long partnership with Unity and are dedicated to creating new and exciting work which attracts new audiences.

AN EVENING WITH LEMN SISSAY Sat 9 Feb | 7.30pm ÂŁ20 | Unity 1 Poet, playwright and broadcaster Lemn Sissay comes to the Unity for a very special one-off fundraising event for 20 Stories High.

Thurs 14 Feb | 7.30pm Suitable for ages 13+ ÂŁ5 All Tickets | Unity 1 A mash-up of beatboxing, live music and puppetry hosted by HOBBIT (Int. Beatboxing Champ) and world-class talents.

Guest spots from a host of local MCs, singers and poets and an after show open mic jam. @20StoriesHigh @TheatreRites

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BOOK NOW: 0151 709 4988 | unitytheatreliverpool.co.uk

Theatre-Rites and 20 Stories High presents

In association with Unity Theatre, Liverpool and Z-Arts Manchester

Fri 8 - Sat 16 Feb £9 Child | £14 Adult £7 Groups 8+ | £6.50 Schools Free Adult with every paying child.

Unity 1 For 3 to 6 year olds and everybody who looks after them.

What happens when a beatboxer, a singer and a puppeteer arrive on stage but nothing is ready for them? No set, no instruments, no puppets. No rules. Welcome to a world full of joy and chaos, where objects come to life and everything is possible.

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DATE TIME Fri 8 Feb

1:30pm

Sat 9 Feb

11am

Sat 9 Feb

2:30pm

Mon 11 Feb

4:30pm

Tues 12 Feb

7pm

Wed 13 Feb

11am

Fri 15 Feb

1:30pm

Sat 16 Feb

11am

Sat 16 Feb

2:30pm

@unity_theatre

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PU

BY MA CK DE BA A R L

PO

Vamos Theatre presents

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A BRAVE FACE Thur 21 – Fri 22 Feb | 7.30pm £14.50 (£12.50 Concs) (Groups 8+ £10 tickets) | Unity 1 Acclaimed mask theatre company explore the effects of war and conflict.

Award-winning Vamos Theatre brings its trademark, wordless, full mask style to a story that needs to be told. Set in Afghanistan in 2009, A Brave Face explores Post-Traumatic Stress with engaging storytelling, physical dexterity and emotional insight. @VamosTheatre #ABraveFace

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BOOK NOW: 0151 709 4988 | unitytheatreliverpool.co.uk

The Dukes and Red Ladder Theatre in association with Tamasha present

GLORY

By Nick Ahad

Thur 14 – Sat 16 Mar | 7.30pm £12 (£10 Concs) (Groups 8+ £5 tickets) Unity 1 A state of the nation British comedy.

Jim Glory used to be a somebody. A colossus. Now his empire has crumbled.

Dan, Ben and Sami are wrestling with demons, life and each other. But, do they want to restore Jim’s glory? Or do they have a different fight in mind?

Age Guidence 14+ contains themes and language of an adult nature.

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BOOK NOW: 0151 709 4988 | unitytheatreliverpool.co.uk

Box of Tricks presents

SPARKPLUG

By David Judge Directed by Hannah Tyrrell-Pinder

Tue 26 Feb – Sat 2 Mar | 7.30pm (Thur 28 Mar 11am – Baby Friendly performance) £12 (£10 Concs.) (Groups 8+ £5 tickets) Unity 1 A punchy and poetic exploration of family, race, identity and love.

Manchester, 1983. Dave loves Rod Stewart, Joanne and his Ford Capri. He’s all set for a new start. Only Joanne’s about to have someone else’s baby. Is Dave ready to become a Dad even though he’s not the father?

SparkPlug is the story of a white man who becomes the adoptive father, mother and best friend of a mixed race child, David.

“He’s got two Dads, my lad. One’s black.

That makes him black, I suppose.”

Finalist for Alfred Fagon Award Best New Play of the Year 2017

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Yellow Earth in association with Tamasha presents the Belgrade Theatre, Coventry production of

UNDER THE UMBRELLA

By Amy Ng, based on an original idea by Lian Wilkinson

Thurs 21 – Sat 23 Mar | 7.30pm £12 (£10 Concs) | (Groups 8+ £5 tickets) Unity 1 Family drama exploring outdated traditions in modern day China.

A young woman turns 27, and that brings with it the label of “shengnu,” or “leftover woman.” Her grandmother and her mother help in the search for love - affixing her dating profile onto an umbrella, they join the hundreds of parents at the Marriage Market of Guangzhou. Under the Umbrella explores tradition, trauma and triumph in the art of finding love.

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BOOK NOW: 0151 709 4988 | unitytheatreliverpool.co.uk

EVENTHORIZON. THEATRECO present

POP

By Will Hammond

Thurs 11 – Fri 12 April | 7.30pm £14 (£12 Concs) (Groups 8+ £5 tickets) Unity 1 Music, fashion and teenage friendship collide in a love letter to the 90’s.

A tender tale of teenage friendship in urban northern Britain. Set from the mid-Nineties through to the Noughties in London and New York, POP is an audacious mix of music and fashion in an unflinching and raw, funny and tender new play.

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BOOK NOW: 0151 709 4988 | unitytheatreliverpool.co.uk

China Plate & Staatstheater Mainz present

STATUS Written by Chris Thorpe Developed with and directed by Rachel Chavkin

Sat 30 Mar | 7.30pm £12 (£10 Concs) | (Groups 8+ £5 tickets) Unity 1 “… the words are eloquent, the music essential and powerful, and the performance full of a brilliant, prowling precision…” Scotsman Fringe First Award Winner 2018 Acclaimed production from multi award-winning theatre-maker and provocateur.

We all have a nationality.

Or almost all of us.

Status is a show about someone who doesn’t want his anymore.

About running away from the national story you’re given. About who is responsible for that story and what might happen to it if you give it up.

A globe-spanning journey of attempted escape, with songs along the way.

Age Guidence 14+

The Guardian

Time Out

The Scotsman

The Stage

@youroldchina #StatusPlay

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LAUNCH is a new Arts Council funded professional development programme for emerging theatre makers in Merseyside, from 20 Stories High in partnership with Unity. We’ve given emerging artists, theatre-makers and brand new companies the right tools to enable them to launch a career in the arts.

The 2018/9 LAUNCH cohort includes poets, artists, beat-boxers and theatre-makers. Meet the team and find out more at unitytheatreliverpool.co.uk/launch.

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BOOK NOW: 0151 709 4988 | unitytheatreliverpool.co.uk

Meeting Dates Tue 15 Jan, Tue 12 Feb, Tue 12 Mar, 10:30am - 12:30pm Mothers Who Make is a grass roots, national initiative, dedicated to supporting mothers who are artists. Monthly sessions are held at Unity, led by Tmesis Theatre’s Claire Bigley.

Sessions are open to all mothers who make - painters, writers, actors, dancers, producers, film-makers - every kind of maker, is welcomed, and every kind of mother. Those with babies and preschool children can bring them along.

Pay By Donation - Book online at: unitytheatreliverpool.co.uk/whats-on/mothers-who-make

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BRING YOUR FRIENDS DISCOUNTS FOR GROUPS OF 8+

HIRE OUR SPACE FOR CONFERENCES AND EVENTS. SEE UNITYTHEATRELIVERPOOL.CO.UK

UNITY BAR SERVES UNTIL 11PM ON SHOW NIGHTS DROP IN FOR A DRINK

THANK YOU

We are a registered charity (1062 463) and gratefully acknowledge the support of our funders, donors and audiences. A private company limited by guarantee - number 3333987.

A huge thank you to all of our supporters for their ongoing support and commitment.

Their remarkable generosity and indispensable advocacy is essential to the artistic flourishing of the theatre, and our work would simply not be possible without them.

CAPITAL REDEVELOPMENT FUNDERS

FOR THEIR ONGOING FINANCIAL SUPPORT

THE RAVENSDALE TRUST THE REX MAKIN FAMILY

UNITY THEATRE PATRONS

Bill Kenwright CBE

Josette Bushell Mingo OBE

David Morrissey

Andrew Lancel

John Bishop

UNITY THEATRE ANGELS Mr Terence Davis, Mr Joe Farrag, Mrs Frances Flooks, Mrs Carol Frood, Ms Mary Morgans, Mr Nicholas Orr, Mr Martin Powell, Mr and Mrs Stone, Mr Frank Thompson, Ms Vivienne Ruth Tyler, Mr & Mrs Mark White, Ms Sue Williams.

UNITY ASSOCIATE COMPANIES Unity proudly collaborates with companies Action Transport Theatre, DaDaFest, Homotopia, Travelled Companions, 20 Stories High, Tmesis Theatre and Big Imaginations.

SUPPORTED ARTISTS We support the creative development of artists Laurence Clark, Dorcas Sebuyange, Tooth and Nail, What A Little Bird Told Me and Alice Bunker-Whitney.

A very special thank you to all Unity Volunteers.

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Theatre-Rites and 20 Stories High present

Fri 8 – Sat 16 Feb £9 children | £14 Adults

Hip-Hop, Puppetry and live music for 3-6 year olds and everybody who looks after them

Free adult ticket with every paying child!

unitytheatreliverpool.co.uk 0151 709 4988

#BigUpShow In association with Unity Theatre, Liverpool and Z-Arts Manchester

Funded By

Unity Theatre is a private company limited by guarantee number 3333987. Registered charity number 1062 463