Tackroom Theatre Announces Full Casting For The World Premiere Of WHY IS THE SKY BLUE? (OR HOW TO MAKE SLIME)

tackroom theatre today announces full casting for the world première production, Why is the Sky Blue? (Or How to Make Slime). Abbey Wright directs Tiani Hoath, Marina Marchevska, Louis Holley, Oscar Bennett, Gracie Weldon, Reuel Guzman, Osian Thompson, Violet Tucker?Steel, Hal Gordon, Lewis Elliot, Harrison Slater, Sophie Alibert, Jamal Simon, Zachary Hing, Millie Thew, Michael Sookhan, Ruby Ablett, Annie Hawkins and Corey Peterson. Devised by the company around a collection of interviews with children from around the UK, it opens in The Little at Southwark Playhouse on 1 May, with previews from 26 April and runs until 19 May.

An extraordinary new show exploring love, connection and the impact of pornography on children.

"You know like in A Midsummer Night's Dream where they go to the forest and they explore all these different things - like the donkey and the different creations - porn is like that isn't it?" - 14 year old girl, Manchester, February 2018

Theatre-makers Abbey Wright, Shireen Mula and Matt Regan interviewed 10,000 6-22 year olds on what they think love is and the effect of pornography on their lives. Why is the Sky Blue? is the result of these interviews.

In the real words of young people, Why is the Sky Blue? is a blistering and funny new piece of verbatim theatre. With explicit references to pornography and masturbation throughout, this show contains verbatim songs, live music, improvisation and is performed by a company of 6-22 year olds.

Working with hundreds of theatres and schools across the UK and with Barnardo's this is the largest piece of research ever done on this subject. In addition to creating a production tackroom theatre will launch a digital platform to display their research, as well as a nationwide education project for parents, teachers and children in collaboration with Barnardo's to change the national conversation.

Emma Thompson said today, "I am so excited about this project. It is brilliantly vitally timely. Who isn't worried about the effects of such easily accessed porn on this generation of kids? Attaching it to discussions about love and connection is a masterstroke. I urge everyone to get behind it. It will help with so many mental health issues, and could actually save lives. Bravo."

Hattie Morahan commented, "Now, more than ever, does the conversation about porn and its effect on a whole generation need to be had. That tackroom theatre are tackling it with such rigour, on such a grand scale, and with the grace and imagination to transform their findings not only into a thrilling piece of theatre, but into a nationwide education project that could make a real difference to people's lives, is a cause of great celebration! Please get behind it and support all you can."

Louise Brealey added, "We desperately need to engage with the damage that online pornography is doing to our children - to how they feel about their bodies and themselves. We are sowing the wind by letting our young people learn about sex, about intimacy, about love, about consent, from porn. I know that this project will help every young person it touches."

Louis Holley: 9 years old. This production marks his professional theatrical debut. Other previous credits include short animation The Way to School.

Oscar Bennett: 10 years old. Theatre credits include Game (Almeida Theatre). Television credits include Holby City and Mini Chelsea; and for film, Hear the Doors, Perfect Skin, Shift and Out of Line.

Gracie Weldon: 11 years old. Theatre credits include Annie (West End), The Secret Garden (Ambassadors Theatre). Weldon has trained with Spirit Young Performers Elite Troupe since she was 9yrs old and has starred in musical theatre and dance pieces that have topped 7 million views on YouTube and her credits for television include Damned.

Reuel Guzman: 12 years old. His theatre credits include Woyzeck (Old Vic) and St George and The Dragon (National Theatre).

Osian Thompson: 12 years old. For television his credits include Ricky Zoom.

Violet Tucker-Steel: 13 years old. Her theatre credits include Dick Whittington (Playhouse Theatre) and Matilda the Musical (Cambridge Theatre). Further theatre credits include Sound of Music (UK tour), Mary Poppins (UK and International tour). In addition, she has performed on Friday Night is Music Night on Radio 4, West end Live in Trafalgar Square, the Houses of Parliament, the Olivier Awards and Children in Need Gala.

Lewis Elliot: 15 years old. Previous theatre credits include Singing in the Rain (Palace Theatre), Oliver (Theatre Royal Drury Lane), The Witches (Wyndham's Theatre) and Billy Elliot (Victoria Palace). Television credits include Splicers and Mr Selfridge.

Harrison Slater: 16 years old. His theatre credits include Charlie and the Chocolate Factory (Theatre Royal Drury Lane) and Finding Neverland (Curve).

Sophie Alibert: 16 years old. Her theatre credits include The Laws of War (Royal Court Theatre), The Secret Garden (Ambassador's Theatre), The Railway Children (King's Cross Theatre), The Sword and the Dope (King's Head Theatre) and Gulliver's Travels (Lyric Theatre, Belfast). Her television credits include Emma and Me and Mrs Jones.

Jamal Simon: 17 years old. His theatre credits include Oliver Twist (Lambeth Players), Pick 'n Mix Musical (Stratford Circus Theatre), Cheung, Fugee, Lidle Foot and Remote (Southwark Playhouse).

Zachary Hing: 20 years old. His theatre credits include Jubilee (Lyric Hammersmith), Taste of Love (Arcola Theatre), The Way I See It by (Frantic Assembly & Frantic Ignition) and Pericles (National Theatre).

Millie Thew: 20 years old. Her theatre credits include The Father (Trafalgar Studios).

Michael Sookhan: 21 years old. His theatre credits include Besieged (Arcola Theatre).

Ruby Ablett: 22 years old. Her theatre credits include Threepenny Opera, A Christmas Carol (Octagon Theatre Bolton) and Brass (Hackney Empire).

Corey Peterson: 22 years old. Most recently, Peterson founded his own theatre company Splinter with which he's written, choreographed and directed a show called You Must Learn To Understand that he's just taken to festivals at the Almeida Theatre and the Battersea Arts Centre, and which is set to be performed at The Roundhouse as part of The Last Word Festival. Having been homeless for 9 years from the age of 13, Corey now works with the London Youth Gateway charities going into schools to give homelessness prevention workshops, leading talks with round table panels of politicians, aiding in media campaigns and leading the youth panel.

Tiani Hoath: 6 years old, Marina Marchevska: 7 years old, Hal Gordon: 14 years old and Annie Hawkins: 22 years old, all make their stage debut in this production.

Abbey Wright is a theatre-maker and director. She is Artistic Director of tackroom theatre. Previously she was Associate Director at Nuffield Southampton Theatres and New Vic Theatre 2016-2017. Her theatre credits include The Cocktail Party (The Print Rooms), The Mentalists (Wyndham's Theatre), The Father (Trafalgar Studios), Mrs. Lowry and Son (Trafalgar Studios), Dublin Carol (Donmar Trafalgar), Diana of Dobson's, Talent, The Mountaintop, Ghosts (New Vic Theatre) and The Grapes of Wrath (UK tour). Her upcoming work includes The Outsider in a new version by Ben Okri at the Coronet.

Shireen Mula is a theatre-maker and making Why is the Sky Blue? alongside Abbey Wright and the company. She is also a writer and her writing credits include The Rise & Fall (Somerset House), Soon Until Forever (Theatre503), Nameless (Arnolfini) and Same Same (Ovalhouse and international tour) which was also shortlisted for the Royal National Theatre Foundation Playwriting Award. She was previously an Associate Artist at Ovalhouse and is currently an Associate Artist of fanSHEN with whom she created Lists for The End of the World (Summerhall) and Disaster Party (UK tour). She is also on residency with the New Musical Development Collective at Theatre Royal Stratford East.

Matt Regan is a musician and theatre-maker. As a Music Director his credits include The Grapes of Wrath (Nuffield Southampton Theatres), Spectretown (Edinburgh Fringe Festival/UK tour). Other credits include Theology (The Arches) - for which he was nominated Critics Award for Theatre in Scotland - Within the Shadows (The Beacon Arts Centre) and under the alias Little King, Greater Belfast (Edinburgh Fringe Festival/Tron Theatre). Most recently Matt has been selected by National Theatre of Scotland for support through the NTS Starter for 10 programme, and contributed music to a Mark Cousins' feature documentary.

Please note the production is rated: PG.

The production's partner theatres and organisations include: National Theatre, National Theatre of Scotland, National Theatre Wales, Almeida Theatre, Dundee Rep, Royal Lyceum Theatre, Derby Theatre, Sheffield Theatres, Chichester Festival Theatre, Arcola Theatre, Southwark Playhouse, Brit School, Mosaic, Gendered Intelligence, Nuffield Southampton Theatre, Royal & Derngate Northampton, Newcastle Live, Hull Truck Theatre, Belgrade Theatre Coventry, the Duke's Lancashire and many more across the UK.

tackroom theatre was formed in 2013 by Abbey Wright to create new work which speaks to the moment. Their first production, Mrs. Lowry and Son, opened at Trafalgar Studios and received critical acclaim. Tackroom presented a double bill of two new Australian plays, Raimondo Cortese's Holiday and Lally Katz's The Eisteddfod at The Bussey Building as part of the city-wide Australia and New Zealand Drama Festival in 2014 and The Glass Supper at Hampstead Theatre.

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