A
semi-autobiographical coming of age story about learning to take care of the
ones we love
Black Theatre Live and Stratford Circus Arts Centre present
Big Foot
Hexham Queens Hall
Wednesday
18th October 2017
Written by Joseph Barnes-Phillips
Directed by Dominic Garfield
With grime music and Guyanese folk stories, Joseph
Barnes-Phillip’s semi-autobiographical story is a comic, tragic and honest
portrayal of becoming a man. The story follows Rayleigh as he
negotiates the tensions of growing up and taking responsibility: to his
pregnant girlfriend, to his sick mother, to his church, to the multi-cultural
community he grew up in and somewhere in the mix to himself. The show has been
created by HighRise Theatre to be the sixth touring production for consortium
Black Theatre Live.
 |
| Photo: Camilla Greenwell |
When the euphoric highs of teenage life in south London collide
with his mum’s terminal illness, all Rayleigh wants to do it watch anime in his
pants and eat indomie. Love, life and masculinity meet head-on as Rayleigh
tries to find his feet, torn between the new girl in his life and being there
for his mum, while trying not to make the same mistakes as his dad.
 |
| Photo: Camilla Greenwell |
Big Foot follows Black Theatre Live’s all-black Hamlet,
new play She Called Me Mother, one-woman show The Diary of a Hounslow
Girl, Inua Ellam’s An Evening with an Immigrant and Macbeth. The
show will tour the consortium’s eight venues across England, which
have come together to commission and showcase excellent theatre of BAME
companies. HighRise’s show was selected from a range of productions
by emerging artists put forward by the venues: Big Foot was championed
by Stratford Circus
Arts Centre.
HighRise Theatre is a collective of diverse artists with
family roots that span five continents, resulting in an
eclectic and dynamic approach when telling stories, keeping an ear to the
street and the communities they work in. Their work has included
collaborations with Arts Council England, CHICKENSHED, London Bubble, Tangled
Feet, Oval House, The Yard, artsdepot, CONEY, MUJU, Fun Palaces,
Croydon Council, BAC and
many more. They will appear at the Edinburgh Festival Fringe with The
Concrete Jungle Book.
 |
| Photo: Camilla Greenwell |
Black Theatre Live is a pioneering national consortium of
eight regional theatres led by Tara Arts, committed to effecting change for
BAME touring theatre through a sustainable threeyear programme of national
touring, structural support and audience development. Black
Theatre Live is a partnership of Tara Arts, Derby Theatre, Queen’s Hall Arts
(Hexham), the Lighthouse (Poole),
Theatre Royal Bury St. Edmunds, Theatre Royal Margate, Stratford Circus Arts
Centre (London) and
Key Theatre (Peterborough). Black
Theatre Live works with emerging and established BAME companies across England to
commission and tour high quality productions to the consortia theatres. The
structured audience development and community engagement programmes will
include live digital streaming and cinema relay.
 |
| Photo: Camilla Greenwell |
Stratford Circus Arts
Centre provides
world-class, accessible creative experiences and performances on the doorstep
of people in Newham and East London, driven by the belief that access to art
brings joy, empowers people, and draws them together.Stratford Circus Arts
Centre is a vibrant place to create and experience art through world-class
theatre, dance, music and circus and visual exhibitions, with work for families
and young people.Its extensive creative learning programme works with local
schools and community organisations to introduce local people to artistic
experiences through workshops and bespoke creative projects.A modern and
versatile building, it receives more than 125,000 visits a year and is a key
resource for the local community. Stratford Circus Arts Centre is a National
Portfolio Organisation of Arts Council England and a registered charity.
@blacktlive | www.blacktheatrelive.co.uk
@StratfordCircus | stratford-circus.com
@HighRise_UK | www.highrisetheatre.com
Tickets:
Queen’s
Hall Arts Centre, Hexham
Beaumont
Street, Hexham, Northumberland,
NE46 3LS
Box
Office: 01434 652477 | www.queenshall.co.uk
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