THE GIFT

Mapping Brent

The Gift

by Simon Brett
directed by Dionne Reid

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‘Look. This person is like 37 years old or summat. I tried to talk to him about that film on Netflix. Man don’t even know what Netflix is! I don’t know what more there is to say!’

Dr Fera isn’t exactly popular with the young people in school. In fact, there’s a bit of a revolt going on. For the young people, Dr Fera represents everything they’re not. For Dr Fera, young people are simply a waste of time. When school detention reaches tipping point between them both, something needs to give, fast.

The Gift is a journey of deeper understanding, ambition and unveiling more than what meets the eye.

Important Information

This production will take place in the James Baldwin Studio at Kiln Theatre.

Cast

Sammy

Shiloh

Carine

Maksymilian

Kaiaa

Tia

Donae

Summer

Melody

Creative Team

Simon Brett

Writer

Simon was born in North West London and his childhood was spent a stones throw away from the Kiln Theatre! He is a graduate of the University of Kent in Canterbury where he did a Masters degree in Drama. He started taking himself seriously as a writer after being selected for the Royal Court Theatre’s Critical Mass writers programme.

Simon’s first play, ‘White House’ explored unemployment in the older generation whilst addressing race, displacement and cultural identity, was long listed for the Alfred Fagon Award in 2015 and the Papatango New Writing Award. His second ‘father – son’ two hander play, ‘Man-Child’ was performed at the Space Arts Centre in London in 2017. Simon’s writing has since caught the attention of High Tide, Talawa Arts, Orange Tree Theatre and Soho Theatre and has recently worked with ex Artistic Director of the Soho Theatre, Lisa Goldman on rewriting play workshops at the Arcola Theatre.

Dionne Reid

Director

Katie Greenall

Assistant Director

Lucy Sierra

Designer

Theatre design work includes Wilderness, Every Day I Make Greatness Happen and Giving (all Hampstead Downstairs); The Winter’s Tale, Macbeth, Another World (all National Theatre); Icarus (Unicorn Theatre); Shift (London Mime Festival); Hansel & Gretel (Uchenna Dance);  Education, Education, Education (Wardrobe Ensemble, Shoreditch Town Hall); Ramona Tells Jim (Bush); If You Don’t Let Us Dream (Royal Court); Young Vic 5 (Young Vic); Snow White & Rose Red (Rash Dash); Cathy (Soho Theatre/Tour); The Grand Journey (Bombay Sapphire Immersive Experience); A Ducky Summer Tea Party (Hull City Centre); Ode to Leeds (Leeds Playhouse); This Tuesday and A Kid, Abyss( all Arcola); The Tempest (Royal & Derngate); Calculating Kindness (Camden People’s Theatre); Benefit  (Cardboard Citizens/Pleasance/tour); We Have Fallen (Underbelly); Royal Court Gala (Trafalgar Pub); We Are All Misfits (48-29 Tanner St); We Have Fallen (Underbelly); The Bear (Improbable tour); Sign of the Times (Bury St Edmunds); Sweeney Todd and David Copperfield (both Octagon Bolton)

Jai Morjaria

Lighting Designer

Previous lighting designs include: Mary’s Babies (Jermyn Street Theatre); Glory (Duke’s Theatre, Lancaster/Red Ladder); Cuzco, Scrooge and the Seven Dwarves (Theatre503); The Hoes (Hampstead Theatre); Losing Venice (Orange Tree Theatre); King Lear, Lorna Doone (Exmoor National Park); Sufi:Zen (Akademi Dance); No Sound Ever Dies (Surrey Arts); Superhero: The Musical (NYMT); Engine Break (The Plasticine Men); Kanye The First (HighTide); Robin Hood (Greenwich Theatre); Alice in Wonderland (Birmingham Old Rep); Bitched (Kali Theatre); A Lie of the Mind, A Midsummer Night’s Dream (Southwark Playhouse); The Cunning Little Vixen (Arcola Theatre/The Opera Company); My Name is Rachel Corrie (The Other Room, Cardiff); 46 Beacon (Trafalgar Studios with Rick Fisher); Out There on Fried Meat Ridge Road (White Bear Theatre/Trafalgar Studios 2); Acorn (Courtyard Theatre.  Off-West End Award nomination for Best Lighting); Red Riding Hood Versus The Wolf (Stantonbury Theatre); Sleeping Beauty (Capitol Theatre, Horsham); The Man Will Kill Us All, The Crucible (ALRA); The Legend of Charlie Peace (Central); The Beggar’s Opera, Pains of Youth, Obama-ology (RADA).

Alix Rainsby

Technical Stage Manager

Gareth Howells

Production Manager