Favour

by Ambreen Razia

‘There’s going to be some changes round here, sugar and TV allowed whenever you want’

Leila is happy living at home with Noor, her loving but traditional grandmother. When Aleena, her fiercely independent mother, returns home from prison determined to deliver a new world of fun and excitement, their calm lives are upended in a blur of nail varnish and sweet treats. Family secrets come tumbling into the light, and Leila finds deciding on her future more difficult than she first thought.

Favour is a touching and hopeful family drama that tackles duty, addiction and the battle of putting yourself back together. Writer of Diary of a Hounslow Girl Ambreen Razia’s remarkable play, a Bush Theatre and Clean Break co-commission, tells a strikingly frank story of a working-class Muslim family in a way you’ve never seen before on stage.

House of Ife

by Beru Tessema

‘See that’s the problem with this family innit, we never wanna talk real about Ife.’

In the wake of the sudden death of their eldest son, Ife, one family is forced to confront the traumas they’ve long tried to bury. As the sun beats down on their cramped North London flat, and the head of the family arrives from Ethiopia for the funeral, tensions rise, cultures clash and past betrayals are unearthed.

A tense, funny and explosive drama exploring what it means to belong, and what happens when a family’s secrets shake its foundations.

House of Ife premiered at the Bush in April 2022, directed by Artistic Director Lynette Linton.

Beru Tessema is an Ethiopian-British writer based in London. His stage play, Exile in North Weezy, was shortlisted for the prestigious Papatango Playwriting Prize 2020. He began his relationship with the Bush on their Emerging Writers' Group, and House of Ife was written on commission.

Old Bridge

by Igor Memic

The Olivier Award winning Old Bridge is a beautiful, heart-wrenching play by British-Bosnian writer Igor Memic.

‘One day all you care about is music, fashion, and boys. The next day there’s no food. Piece by piece your world starts to change so you change with it.’

Mostar, Yugoslavia, 1988. Mili, a boy from out of town, dives from the famous Old Bridge. Mina, a local girl, watches. As he falls, she begins falling for him.

Mostar, Bosnia, 1992. In a town of growing divisions, Mina and Mili never doubt that their future lies together. But nor can they imagine the dangers that future will bring.

This love story is a bold, fresh and contemporary take on real events. An epic story exploring the impact of a war that Europe forgot and the love and loss of those who lived through it. It won the 2020 Papatango New Writing Prize.

Red Pitch

by Tyrell Williams

The way they’re changing endz is nuts.

Red Pitch. South London. Three lifelong friends Omz, Bilal and Joey are playing football. Like they always have. Living out dreams of football stardom. Beyond their football pitch, local shops are closing, old flats are being demolished as new flats shoot up, some residents struggle to stay while others rush to leave. When a small football pitch has been a home from home, a place you’ve laughed, fought and forged friendships, what happens when it’s under threat?

A coming of age story about what it means to belong to a place. Directed by Bush Theatre Associate Artistic Director Daniel Bailey (The High Table), Tyrell Williams’ fast-paced and sharp-edged new play tells a powerful story about gentrification or regeneration and the impact of this relentless change on London’s communities.