Cast And Creative Team Set For Selina Thompson's TWINE at the Yard Theatre

Award-winning artist Selina Thompson (Salt;The Royal Court Theatre and BBC) will return to The Yard Theatre, London with the world premiere of Twine, from 30 August to 21 September (Press Night: 3 September) prior to a national tour. The production will be directed by Jennifer Tang and the cast is Nandhi Bhebhe, Angelina Chudi and Muki Zubi. 

With support from ‘Support Not Separation' and the foster parents, adopters, social workers, academics, artists and activists who have shared their stories, Twine is a show haunted by Stuart Hall, bell hooks, Kat Slater (yes, that one from Eastenders) and Medea (yes, that Greek woman scorned). Taboos will be broken. Yearnings and desires will grow deeper—richer and riskier - than we ever could have imagined. 

Meet Bark, Sapling and Seed, they will take the Writer on a journey showing us all what our families are and all they could be. Set in a forest of bloody eggs, ghost family members, vaudeville politicians and broken TVs, this is a twisted liberation. A story of how one shattering moment can transform multiple family trees for generations to come. 

A broken promise ignites an unconventional theatrical journey, delving deep into the heart of adoption. Through a fantastical, folkloric narrative, Twine' unravels and reweaves the very fabric of what family means, challenging audiences to reconsider their notions of kinship and belonging.

“I don't want to make an adoption show! Too private, too personal, too intimate, too triggering, too scary, and too many ramifications you can't control!” 

The Writer has broken this promise; this show is the consequence.

Selina Thompson said, “I'm so excited to bring Twine to The Yard, having spent time developing and nurturing the show since our sharing at The Yard last year. Staging the work in front of a generous, responsive audience has been such a key part of shaping it, and I'm really delighted to build on that with director Jennifer Tang and the creative team. It's the company's first show as part of the Arts Council of England's National Portfolio - we can't wait!”  

The Yard Theatre's Artistic Director Jay Miller said, “Selina Thompson is one of the most exciting and innovative artists working in the UK today. Their body of work has consistently wowed audiences with its bravery and uniqueness. This production of Twine started as a ‘Live Draft' at The Yard in 2023 to support Selina's scaling up of their work. Twine is a story about how to be a daughter when the State is your parent, and it'll be told in a totally unique way.'

Jennifer Yang is an award-winning theatre maker and stage director, specialising in making new work and fusing theatre with music. Jennifer trained at the University of East Anglia, the Young Vic and on The National Theatre Studio Director's course. She was Genesis Fellow / Associate Director at The Young Vic Theatre 2020-22 and resident director for Tina: The Tina Turner Musical at the Aldwych Theatre. Director selected work includes: The Odyssey (Unicorn Theatre); The Tempest (Regent's Park Open Air Theatre and Unicorn Theatre); Further Than The Furthest Thing; AI; The New Tomorrow (Young Vic); Gwei/Mui/Ghost Girl (Camden People's Theatre); Mountains (Royal Exchange and National Tour); We Are You (Young Vic, British Museum); Clytemnestra (The Gate), Constellations & One Day When We Were Young (GEST, Sweden). Forthcoming / in development: Bindweed (Mercury Theatre, Colchester); Fundamental (NDT), and Ghost Girl for TV. 

Nandhi Bhebhe who plays ‘Seed' trained at Liverpool Institute for Performing Arts. Theatre credits include: Robin Hood: The Legend Re-Written (Regents Park Theatre); Mimi's Shabeen (KVS Brussels); Wuthering Heights (St Anne's Warehouse Brooklyn/National Theatre); Bagdad Café, A Monster Calls (The Old Vic); Europeana (RSC); Faultline (Gate Theatre); Mid Life (Diverse City); Ubu, The Tin Drum, 946 (Kneehigh); Torch (ANU Productions); Twelfth Night, A Midsummer Night's Dream (Globe); Boy Breaking Glass (Sadler's Wells Theatre); A Season In The Congo (Young Vic); Fela! (Al Hirshfeld Theatre, New York/The Royal National Theatre); 5,6,7,8 (The Royal Court Theatre). Film includes: Cyrano (MGM/Working Title Films); The Jetty (BBC1); Emmerdale (ITV). 

Angelina Chudi who plays ‘Sapling', is an actor, voice actor, puppeteer and occasional writer from East London. She trained at Royal Central Speech and Drama.  Her theatre credits include: Midnight Tattoos ( The Drayton Arms Theatre); Dead Girls Rising (Northern Stage); A Christmas Carol – A Ghost Story (Nottingham Playhouse & Alexandra Palace); Alice in Wonderland (New Vic Theatre); Henry VI: War of the Roses (RSC); Henry VI: Rebellion (RSC); Dear Elizabeth (Gate Theatre); Patricia Gets Ready (For A Date With The Man That Used To Hit Her) (Pleasance Theatre London; Edinburgh Fringe, Vaults Festival, White Bear Theatre); Messiah (Holm/ Bear Trap Theatre); Welcome to Thebes (Filter Theatre); Galvanise (Vaults Festival); A Christmas Carol (RABBLE/Reading Between the Lines); The Caucasian Chalk Circle (RCSSD/Engineer Theatre); The Sound And The Fury (RCSSD/Complicité); Her Naked Skin (Royal School of Speech and Drama); My Beautiful City (National Youth Theatre); Lie With Me (Talawa Theatre Company). 

Muki Zubi who plays ‘Bark' is an actor, writer and singer. She has played several roles across TV, Film and stage. These include projects with BBC/AMC (This Is Going to Hurt), Amazon Studios (The Devil's Hour) and Netflix (Shadow and Bone). The short film Go For Alayna, in which Muki played the lead role, made the rounds in a number of film festivals including the Brooklyn Women's Film Festival and was nominated for a number of awards. She recently finished a sold out run of Nouveau Riche's Queens of Sheba at Soho Theatre before taking the show on a successful US Tour. Her upcoming projects include AMC's Nautilus and Amazon MGM Studios Levon's Trade.

Following the performances at the Yard Theatre, Twine will appear at the Fierce Festival, Birmingham from 16 - 19 October, https://wearefierce.org/event/twine/ 

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