A popular theatre in Manchester will kick off its anniversary year with some of its most distinctive work and projects to date. Multidisciplinary arts venue Contact Theatre will showcase a variety of new work and the best of the UK’s new touring shows.
Keisha Thompson Contact’s new Artistic Director and CEO said: “It is Contact's 50th year from August. During this time, we have established a unique place for young people to forge creative careers.
“The autumn season will celebrate dynamic new work from some incredible talent and highlight some of our precious alumni. Our artists are making work about the most prescient issues - from climate justice to motherhood, football to queer stories.
“We hope our audiences will enjoy digesting these topics via visually stunning and vibrant performances. Whether you fancy spoken word, theatre, comedy or dance or ingenious new multi-media works, we will have something for you. You have my word!”
First up, Contact's Young Company will premiere its new show, Halo, directed by Contact's new artistic director Keisha Thompson. The show is inspired by the Halo Code, a campaign which fights for the protection and celebration of Black hair and hairstyles in schools and workplaces.
In November, 14%, a play written by Thompson and directed by Kwame Asiedu will take to the stage, following protagonists Nadia and Nik as they seek to quantify their Britishness. Elsewhere, a tennis and poetry bonanza, in the form of Roma Havers’ Lob will explore moving through sporting spaces as a queer body, and Demi Nandhra's ‘The Trauma Show’, will explore the impact of adverse childhoods, therapist culture and how ‘TikTok can heal us all’.
Special events include Black Angel 25, which heads to Contact in October, celebrating 25 years and the birth of the Black and Asian LGBT+ club scene in Manchester. ‘With My Ear to The Wall’, meanwhile, offers an intimate and tactile audio experience, and features interviews with Contact participants.
The autumn season will kick off on September 29 with Sadler’s Wells touring a full-length ensemble production from Spoken Movement. Family Honour blends hip hop and theatre from internationally award-winning choreographer Kwame Asafo-Adjei. Elsewhere, fresh from a sell-out show at Soho Theatre, Not F**kin Sorry from Not Your Circus Dog, is brought to life by a collective of learning disabled and neurodivergent performers who are 'unapologetic', performing 'shameless sexy, punk cabaret'.
‘Hot In Here’ - a carbon-neutral dance party - will celebrate action for climate justice that has developed from interviews between tongue people in the UK and climate activists around the world.
Contact is a vibrant multidisciplinary arts venue in Manchester, recognised nationally and internationally as a game-changer in the field of youth leadership and creativity. The theatre recently reopened following a £6.75million redevelopment, which has transformed the building for the next generation of audiences, artists and young people with new performance spaces, a new recording studio, and an arts and health development space.
Tickets go on sale at 10am on Friday 24 June. For full listings, tickets and more information click here.
Get the latest What's On news - from food and drink to music and nightlife - straight to your inbox with our daily newsletter.
Read more of today's top stories here
READ NEXT:
Two-day beer party with street food and live music returns to Manchester this weekend
Sacha Lord launches free drinks ‘happy hour’ across Manchester over the summer
- ‘Neighbourhood bar’ and Thai BBQ Neon Tiger is a slice of New York in Manchester
- LGBTQ+ cocktail den set to open in ‘historic warehouse’ location
