Rod Dixon Archives - North West End UK

Cheryl Martin joins Red Ladder Theatre Company as new Artistic Director

9Dec

By Paul ClarkeNo Comments

NEWS

Cheryl Martin joins Red Ladder Theatre Company as new Artistic Director

Director and writer Cheryl Martin joins radical theatre company Red Ladder as their new Artistic Director from January 2024 replacing Rod Dixon who stood down after 17 years leading the company. Alongside her work writing and directing award-winning theatre productions, Cheryl has also fulfilled a variety of roles including supporting writers and practitioners at Contact Theatre, Traverse Theatre Edinburgh, and Oldham Coliseum. She has also worked with Community Arts Northwest on a series of community plays devised with, and starring, mostly women refugees and asylum seekers. In 2015 she co-founded LGBTQ+ Global-Majority performance arts company Black Gold Arts creating a week-long celebration in choreography, writing, directing and cabaret, which was part of the Eurovisio...

Red Ladder heads home to Leeds with timely new play

17Oct

By Paul ClarkeNo Comments

NEWS

Red Ladder heads home to Leeds with timely new play

This November Red Ladder Theatre Company is heading home to Leeds with a very timely new play My Voice Was Heard But It Was Ignored exploring race and identity. It opens with 15-year-old Reece, played by Jelani D’Aguilar, being roughly accosted by police. Misha Duncan-Barry’s young, Black teacher Gillian Misha witnesses it all but doesn’t question or intervene as the disturbing scene plays out. The consequences of her lack of action erupt the following day when Gillian finds herself locked in a classroom with Reece. As a radical theatre company Red Ladder are always looking to challenge audiences, and this time take the audience to the centre of a discussion that asks ‘if you see something you do not agree with, do you intervene?’ This new work is the stage debut from writer N...

Homebaked the Musical – Liverpool’s Royal Court

30Sep

By Blathine MaguireNo Comments

North West

Homebaked the Musical – Liverpool’s Royal Court

The doors of Liverpool’s much loved Royal Court Theatre are back open and tonight we witness a new show “Homebaked the Musical” which has been produced by Liverpool’s Royal Court alongside Red Ladder Theatre Company. Written by Boff Whalley, ‘Homebaked the Musical’, is a new piece of theatre based on the well-known bakery that borders Anfield and Everton. It celebrates the historic and heroic story of the Liverpool residents who fought to save their local bakery from demolition and evolves into a huge inspiring project that brings the whole community together. Boff Whalley has done a fantastic job in writing something funny, heart-warming and emotive. The music is both touching and humorous which blends perfectly into the script. I particularly enjoyed the choral sound of ‘we rise’,...

Another fixture for The Damned United at York Theatre Royal

1Jun

By Paul ClarkeNo Comments

NEWS

Another fixture for The Damned United at York Theatre Royal

With Leeds United riding high in the Premier League it’s the perfect time for another tour of The Damned United charting Brian Clough’s disastrous 44-day period as manager at Elland Road, which plays at York Theatre Royal on 16 June. It’s 1974 and Brian Clough, the enfant terrible of British football, wants to revive his managerial career by winning the European Cup with his new team Leeds United. It’s a team full of seasoned international he has openly despised for years who loved their old boss Don Revie, and they all loathe the brash newcomer. Anders Lustgarden’s adaptation of David Peace’s novel takes audiences inside the tortured mind of ‘Old Big ‘ed’ battling his own demons and a team he can’t tame. The Damned United is performed by Luke ...

Red Ladder are back with new show Homebaked – The Musical

7Apr

By Paul DownhamNo Comments

NEWS

Red Ladder are back with new show Homebaked – The Musical

Radical theatre company Red Ladder’s first post lockdown show is Homebaked – The Musical co-produced with Liverpool’s Royal Court. It’s a musical comedy based on Liverpool’s famous co-operative bakery inspired by the real-life group of local residents coming together to save their neighbourhood bakery - and their homes - from demolition. Back in 2012 the people of Anfield faced losing a huge slice of their local community to property developers. Things were looking bleak until a group of like-minded individuals got together to say ‘enough is enough’. They wanted a place for locals to earn a crust so they transformed a crumbling old bakery into Homebaked. What started with a half-baked idea rose and rose until it had spawned a thriving community business with plans to transform th...

23Nov

By Paul DownhamNo Comments

Interviews

My Voice Was Heard But It Was Ignored

Nana-Kofi Kufuor discusses his debut play My Voice Was Heard But It Was Ignored Fair play to Nana-Kofi Kufuor who has decided to take on an interrogation of black identify in modern Britain for his debut play. My Voice Was Heard But It Was Ignored began life during a year-long writing commission for Manchester based Box of Tricks. Misha Duncan-Barry is teacher Gillian who finds herself in a tricky situation with student Reece played by Jelani D’Augilar. “It sounds a bit heavy, but to me the themes are race, gender, black masculinity black femininity, toxic masculinity” says Nana-Kofi. “It’s a two hander about a teacher and student, both black, and she sees the student stopped and searched outside of work. “He calls for her to help, and she doesn’t, so the next day with a...