Hive City Legacy Announces Cast of Fierce Femmes of Colour

Nine sensational female performers of colour, selected from over 250 applications, are announced to create Hive City Legacy for a unique new show all about the world's greatest hive city - London.

To tell the stories of the unseen and the unheard in a riotous, high-octane performance, Hot Brown Honey's Busty Beatz and Lisa Fa'alafi have teamed up with the Roundhouse and hip hop artist Yami 'Rowdy' Lofvenberg to scour London and bring together an extraordinary new league of femmes of colour. With over 250 applications for the paid opportunity from young artists with skills ranging across circus, beatboxing, spoken word, cabaret, dance and everything in between, Hive City Legacy brings intersecting tales from a new London Town to the Roundhouse stage. This unapologetic, uncensored and genre defying experience brings together performance and social activism to challenge, uplift, boundary break and celebrate.

Make way for the Matriarchy.

The cast are:

Afro Polynesian artist from New Zealand Shakaiah Perez - a dancer, choreographer, photographer, videographer, writer and creative

Elsabet Yonas, a movement artist who creates, performs and teaches dance

Born and bred North West Londoner Koko Brown, a theatre-maker & spoken word artist, who uses her loop station as an additional limb.

Dorcas Ayeni-Stevens is an actress and a writer who has previously worked with Talawa Theatre and the Young Vic Theatre

Farrell Cox is physical theatre actress and aerialist who has studies Dell Arte and Clown internationally. Her pervious credits include London 2012 Olympic ceremonies and You Me Bum Bum Train

Krystal Dockery is an actress, and 'Bunni Morretto' is her burlesque counterpart. An expert in twerking, Bunni blends film mash ups, burlesque and twerk with flawless comic timing - she also teaches Twerkshops

Rebecca Solomon is a circus performer who loves being upside down

And classically trained Aminita Francis most recently appeared in Suffregeddon for The Guilty Feminist and the acclaimed Frankenstein - How to make a Monster at BAC

South London singer-songwriter and street performer Sherika Sherard has opened for British soul singer Seal on his world tour and also had her music chosen by Spike Lee to feature on his Netflix Series "She's Gotta Have it".

Hot Brown Honey are a fierce collective of Femmes of Colour from Australia. Hot Brown Honey is headed into its third year at the Edinburgh Festival Fringe after becoming a breakout, sell-out smash in 2016. The company are in the midst of a world pollination tour smashing stereotypes in Canada, Manchester and at home in Australia. As creators of the show and leaders of the fierce HBH ensemble, Busty Beatz is Musical Director and Queen Bee, and Lisa Fa'alafi is director, designer, choreographer and performer.

Lisa Fa'alafi said, "Time to Activate: HIVE CITY LEGACY!!!!! We are off, Week 1. Working with this league of extraordinary femmes, what an amazing time of workshopping and creating!! Pollinate :: Activate :: Liberate. Let the legacy begin!!! It's such a joy to be on the ground and making work"

The Roundhouse are known for nurturing performers in the early stages of their careers, providing a net of support that ranges from creative projects across music, circus, theatre and digital, to providing rehearsal space, financial support and mentoring from established professionals.

Ruth Hawkins, producer at the Roundhouse said, "The Roundhouse is lucky to be situated in one of the most vibrant and diverse cities in the world and we are incredibly excited to be working with a fresh troupe of talented young London Femmes of Colour in collaboration with Lisa, Busty and Yami on this fierce new show. The production will open up the Roundhouse for a new company to tell their stories, exploring important political and social issues intended to interrogate and encourage conversation around race, gender and identity, whilst also providing a night of serious entertainment!"

The Cocoa Butter Club (20th July) steps back into Roundhouse this time for an interactive night of performance, makeovers and catwalks in the Roundhouse Bar and Cafe Drag in 5 minutes, tassel workshops and the best of QTIPOC cabaret.

We Are Here: British BME Women, an artist-led and artist-run platform founded by illustrator Erin Aniker and run by Jess Nash and Erin Aniker will showcase a curated exhibition of art works by British Women of Colour.

Extra talks, workshops and events to be announced soon

The Roundhouse is a hub of inspiration where artists and emerging talent create extraordinary work and where young people can grow creatively as individuals. We believe in the power of creativity to change lives. By giving young people the chance to engage with the arts through our music, media and performance projects, we inspire them to reach further, dream bigger, and achieve more. For more information, visit www.roundhouse.org.uk

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