NYT Presents THE FALL, BITCHES and More at London's Finborough Theatre, August

For the first time in its history, the National Youth Theatre (NYT) will present a season of new writing at London's Finborough Theatre throughout August. The season is to include three world premiere productions: Olivier Award-nominated James Fritz will present The Fall, a new play looking at how young people come to terms with an ageing society, Olivier Award-winner Bola Agbaje's Bitches will explore the joys and challenges of being young, female and black in her new play about vlogging and the first ever stage production of Mohsin Hamid's Man Booker Shortlisted The Reluctant Fundamentalist will examine the ironies of prejudice and representation in a post 9/11 New York and Pakistan. The programme of work is part of the NYT's 60th anniversary celebrations this year and runs 9 - 27 August.

Written by James Fritz (Four Minutes Twelve Seconds, Ross & Rachel) The Fall runs 9 - 13 August and will be directed by Matt Harrison (NYT REP Bryan Forbes Bursary Director 2014). The play will be a miniature epic spanning a lifetime, taking a candid look at young people's relationship with the old and confronting the frightening prospect of ageing in a country undergoing a crisis of care.

From 16 - 20 August Bola Agbaje (Gone Too Far!) will give the world premiere of her witty and topical new play Bitches, following two young female vloggers talking racial political and popular culture in an unforgiving online world. In the year that Beyoncé broke the internet getting political and Azealia Banks was banned from Twitter amid accusations of homophobia and racism, Bitches is set to explore online trolling, cultural appropriation, the intersectionality between sexism and racism and the joys and challenges of being young, female and black. An energetic and human cliffhanger about young people, the production will be directed by NYT REP 2013 Assistant Director Valentina Ceschi.

The final production, The Reluctant Fundamentalist, will run between 23 - 27 August and will be the first ever stage production of Mohsin Hamid's Man Booker Prize shortlisted novel and Hollywood blockbuster film. The production will look at the ironies of prejudice and representation in a post 9/11 New York and Pakistan following Pakistani native Changez's disenchantment with the West and his journey back to Lahore. The production has been adapted for stage by Stephanie Street (Sisters) and will be directed by Prasanna Puwanarajah (Moth).

The NYT 60th anniversary programme will continue throughout the year. From September they will present a fourth West End REP season at the Ambassadors Theatre, giving two West End premieres including an adaptation Man Booker shortlisted novel Pigeon English by Stephen Kelman, inspired by the tragic killing of DamiLola Taylor, looking at the harsh reality of adulthood in modern Britain and William Shakespeare's Romeo & Juliet in post war London with Teddy girls and Teddy boys running amok. The NYT have also announced plans for a one-off anniversary gala 'Story of our Youth at 60' in the West End's Shaftesbury Theatre on 18 September 2016. The performance, which will celebrate 60 years of the NYT, will star over 80 members of the company alongside 40 renowned alumni. Other plans to mark the anniversary include two new commissions outside of theatre. Award-winning filmmaker Martin Stirling, known for his socially committed TV advertising such as Greenpeace's LEGO: Everything is NOT Awesome, will create a filmed portrait of NYT which will be released later in the year. Alongside Stirling current NYT member and celebrated artist Conor Collins has been commissioned to create a series of portraits of NYT alumni. Collins exhibits primarily through social media and is renowned for his 2014 portrait of Tom Daley and 2016 portrait of Donald Trump, both of which were reprinted across the globe.

Founded in 1956 the NYT is the pioneering force for youth theatre around the world and is recognised as the leading provider of free alternatives to formal theatre training, with alumni including Dame Helen Mirren, Daniel Craig,Chiwetel Ejiofor CBE and Sir Daniel Day Lewis. Since being founded the world's leading youth arts charity has nurtured the talent of over 100,000 young people.

More information at www.nyt.org.uk
@NYTofGB / @NYTREPcompany

NYT AT THE FINBOROUGH THEATRE
9 - 27 August 2016
Finborough Theatre, SW10 9ED
Press Nights: 10, 17, 24 August 2016

The Fall
Press Performance: 10 August, 7.30pm
9 - 13 August 2016
Evening performances 7.30pm
Matinee performances 3.00pm on Thursdays and Saturdays

Bitches
Press Performance: 17 August, 7.30pm
16 - 20 August 2016
Evening performances 7.30pm
Matinee performances 3pm on Thursdays and Saturdays

The Reluctant Fundamentalist
Press Performance: 24 August, 7.30pm
23 - 27 August 2016
Evening performances 7.30pm
Matinee performances 3pm on Thursdays and Saturdays

REP SEASON
Ambassadors Theatre, WC2H 9ND
23 September - 25 November 2016

Romeo & Juliet
Press Performances 27 & 28 September
Matinee performances (2:30pm): 23, 27, 30 September, 4, 7, 11, 14, 25, 28 October, 1, 4, 16, 23 November
Evening performances (7:30pm): 28 September, 5, 11, 18 October, 2, 16, 23 November

Pigeon English
Press Performances 27 & 28 September
Matinee performances (2:30pm): 26, 28 September, 5, 12, 18, 21 October, 2, 18, 22 November
Evening performances (7:30pm): 27 September, 4, 12, 25 October, 1, 22 November

DNA
No Press Performance
Matinee performances (2:30pm): 11, 14, 15, 21, 25 November
Evening performances (7:30pm): 9, 15 November

National Youth Theatre Anniversary Gala: 'The Story of our Youth at 60'
Shaftesbury Theatre, WC2h 8DP
7pm Sunday 18 September. Tickets details will be release in due course.

Box Office

www.theambassadorstheatre.co.uk
08448 112 334
or
www.nationaltheatre.org.uk
020 7452 3000

NOTES TO EDITORS

Biographies

Bola Agbaje graduated from the young writers programme at the Royal Court in 2007 and her first play Gone Too Far! was performed there in the same year. It won the Laurence Olivier Award for Outstanding Achievement in an Affiliated Theatre and her screenplay adaptation was released in 2014. Other theatre Credits include: Mouthful (Trafalgar Studios); Soap Opera (Open Court -Royal Court); Take a Deep Breath and Breathe (Oval House); Climate Week Play in a Day (Arcola); Off The Endz (Royal Court) and Reap What You Sow (Young Vic).

Valentina Ceschi was the Assistant Director for the NYT REP in 2013. Her directing credits include: We Can Make You Happy (VAULT Festival) and OperaUpClose's L'Elisir D'amore (UK tour).

James Fritz's first full-length play, Four Minutes Twelve Seconds was runner-up of the Soho Theatre's 2013 Verity Bargate Award. Four Minutes premiered at Hampstead Theatre downstairs and was nominated for an Olivier Award for Outstanding Achievement in an Affiliate Theatre before transferring to Trafalgar Studios. Four Minutes also won James the "Most Promising Playwright" award at the Critics Circle Theatre Awards 2015. Other credits include Ross & Rachel and Parliament Square. He will be on attachment to the National Theatre in 2016.

Matt Harrison is a director, devisor and theatre maker. His directorial credits include: Snowbird (Tristan Bates Theatre); Tales from the Bad Years (Landor Theatre); Futures (Lost Theatre); Please Wait Patiently (National Theatre Temporary Theatre) and Pirates of Penzance (Tabard Theatre). He has worked as the assistant director on productions such as +Sum (New Wolsey Theatre), Table 23 (Gilded Balloon) and on devised projects for the National Youth Theatre.

Prasanna Puwanarajah is a writer and director for film, TV and theatre. Prasanna's debut play Nightwatchman premiered at the National Theatre. His directing credits include Moth (HighTide Festival, Bush Theatre). His short film The Half-Light, which he both wrote and directed also received critical acclaim and awards in film festivals around the world.

Stephanie Street is an actor, writer, Literary Associate of HighTide festival and founder member of The Act for Change Project. Street recently appeared in Rufus Norris' production Behind the Beautiful Forevers (National Theatre). Other theatre credits include: King James Bible, Nightwatchman (National Theatre); Rough Cuts, Shades (both Royal Court Theatre), Sweet Cider (Arcola), Not the End of the World (Bristol Old Vic) Too Close to Home (Lyric Theatre)and The Vagina Monologues (UK Tour). Her TV credits include: Silk, Lewis, Apparitions and Primeval. Her writing credits include an adaptation of Wuthering Heights (NYT REP season 2015) and Sisters, a verbatim piece which re-opened the Sheffield Crucible Studio in March 2010.

---

To post a comment, you must register and login.