Fighting for survival: Juma Sharkah (Martha/Frisky)and Weruche Opia (Finda). Photo credit: Johan Persson Play: Liberian Girl Theatre: Royal Court Theatre Playwright: Diana Nneka Atuona Director: Matthew Dunster Review by Joy Francis Diana Nneka Atuona’s award winning debut takes no prisoners as it uses the plight of a teenage girl to highlight the horrors of the… Continue reading Liberian Girl

Book: Vendetta Author: Dreda Say Mitchell Publisher: Hodder Paperbacks Price: Paperback £6.99 Review by Andrea Enisuoh Vendetta, Dreda Say Mitchell’s sixth novel, is a fantastically fast paced read, as expected, but it’s also a departure from her usual style. Though still a crime novel, it is chiefly a murder mystery that keeps you guessing from… Continue reading Vendetta

The highs and lows of love: Susan Stanley (Marci) and Hamish Clark (Phil). Photo credit: Harry Grindrod Play: Almost, Maine Theatre: Park Theatre Playwright: John Cariani Directors: Simon Evans Review by Esha Chaman Premiering for the first time in the UK, American playwright John Cariani’s acclaimed Almost, Maine is a heart-warming wintery treat featuring nine… Continue reading Almost, Maine

Future imperfect: Charlie Ashanti (Martins Imhangbe). Photo credit: Mark Douet Play: Lion Boy Theatre: Tricycle Theatre Playwright: Marcelo Dos Santos Directors: Clive Mendus and James Yeatman Review by Natalie Gormally Award-winning theatre company Complicite’s Lionboy is an ambitious adaption of Zizou Corder’s popular trilogy about a boy called Charlie Ashanti who can speak to cats… Continue reading Lion Boy

A modern take on Jack and the Beanstalk: Left – Omar Ibrahim (Jack) and Michael Cahill (The Dame), and right – Gloria Onitiri (Grimm) and Paige Round (Grenthel). Photo credit: Ben Broomfield Panto: Jack and the Beanstalk Theatre: Park Theatre Playwrights: Jez Bond and Mark Cameron Director: Jez Bond Review by Esha Chaman Fee Fi… Continue reading Jack and the Beanstalk

Award-winning novelist Yvvette Edwards doesn’t fit the stereotype of a traditional writer. With a varied career covering housing and benefits, the Barnet-born, Hackney-based writer only started to take her career seriously at 40 years old. Her first book, A Cupboard Full of Coats – the story of Jinx whose mother was stabbed to death in… Continue reading Interview with Yvvette Edwards

Words of Colour Productions executive director Joy Francis explains why she felt it was time to challenge the underwhelming image of Black British love relationships by forming a partnership with former publisher and director of Write on Track Patsy Antoine-Isles to launch an innovative new online project.

There ain’t nothing like a panto Dame: Clive Rowe as Mother Goose. Photo credit: Robert Workman Panto: Mother Goose Theatre: Hackney Empire Playwright: Susie McKenna Director: Susie McKenna Review by Joy Francis Panto season has launched with an almighty bang in Hackney with the return of Mother Goose, Susie McKenna’s acclaimed camp-fest, played by the… Continue reading Mother Goose

Talawa Theatre Company will be touring its hugely successful production of Arthur Miller’s All My Sons, starring Ray Shell and Dona Croll. Talawa’s artistic director Michael Buffong will direct the classic tale set in 1947, about Joe and Kate Keller, an all American couple living with the ghosts of WWII. A self made businessman, Joe… Continue reading Talawa tours Arthur Miller’s All My Sons

The winners of the Search for a verse competition, a collaboration between Words of Colour Productions and Color blind Cards, were presented with their winning verses in specially designed cards at the Grand Connaught Rooms, London.