Hedda Gabler, The Comedy Lab, Period Parrrty, The Table, The Chai Queens, Elmet – theatre offerings
There are rich pickings for theatre culture vultures from mid-October…
By Suman Bhuchar
Hedda Gabler – Merle Oberon makeover
THE WRITER, Tanika Gupta has taken Ibsen’s play ‘Hedda Gabler’, about a rich bored housewife who meddles in the lives of others, and transposed it to London 1948, where Hedda is a retired film star and her husband is a film director.
Inspired by the story of Anglo-India star, Merle Oberon, this is a story about blackmail, secrecy and power.
Directed by Hettie Macdonald, it features Pearl Chanda as Hedda and Joe Bannister as George Tesman. The show opens at Orange Tree Theatre, Richmond.
It officially opens on October 27 and runs until November 22, and starts in preview from October 18.
‘Hedda’ by Tanika Gupta at Orange Tree Theatre, 1 St Clarence Street, Richmond TW9 2SA
https://orangetreetheatre.co.uk/whats-on/hedda/
The Comedy Lab 2025 – Nish Kumar headlines
A FAMILIAR face from the TV where he fronted ‘The Mash Report‘ stand-up Nish Kumar lends his comedy chops to the next generation about to break through and is the main act.
In association with Brown Sauce, a South Asian comedy collective created and run by Sharlin Jahan, this is an opportunity to be entertained and enlightened by a group you may not have seen before but are about to step into the comedy bright lights. Jahan comperes. ACV saw Brown Sauce in August 2023 and there is talent out there and Jahan is a wonderful host.
Period Parrrty – Kali showcase award pleaser
TAMIL teenager, Krish is preparing for their period party – a traditional ritual meant to mark womanhood – but Krish identifies as non-binary so the event will be no ordinary coming of age story!
Kali first presented ‘Period Parrrty’ as a short play in its Discovery Programme, where it won the audience vote and then as a script-in-hand performance in their 2023 International Plays Festival.
Nominated for Soho Theatre’s Tony Craze Award, ‘Period Parrrty’ is by Gayathiri Kamalakanthan – a Tamil writer and performer. It is directed by Gitika Buttoo whose film work www.asianculturvulture.com covered earlier this year. (See our YouTube channel).
The cast features Elizabeth Green as Krish, Rani Moorthy as the mum, Brintha, and Tanvi Virmani as best friend, Brenavee.
It runs from October 23 to November 22 at Soho Theatre in London.
‘Period Parrrty’ by Gayathri Kamalakanthan at Soho Theatre, 21 Dean Street, London W1D 3NE
https://sohotheatre.com/events/period-parrrty/
The Table – Refugee, migrant or asylum seeker
THIS is a new play by artist, Aisha Zia who was recently announced as the new artistic director for Kali Theatre and she will take up her post in at the start of 2026.
Zia is a playwright and this new work, ‘The Table’, directed by Suba Das looks at the question of how you become a refugee, migrant, or asylum seeker today. It is drawn from interviews and testimonies from economic and war migrants in the Bournemouth and Peterborough area.
The show will be on at the Key theatre, Peterborough from October 14 to 16 and is part of the Platforma Festival 2025 which takes place in October across the East of England.
‘The Table’ by Aisha Zia, Key Theatre, Embankment Road, Peterborough Road, Peterborough PE1 1 EF.
https://keytheatre-peterborough.com/events/the-table-by-aisha-zia/
https://counterpoints.org.uk/event/platforma-festival-2025/
The Chai Queens – UK premiere for Indian queer show
INDIA’S Forbidden Productions invites audiences into the soul-stirring world of ‘The Chai Queens’, a vivid, sensuous portrait of queer life for women in India.
This evocative new play directed by Ramanjit Kaur, explores the quiet tension between societal expectations and personal truth. Set against the ceremonial grandeur of an Indian wedding, the performances delicately unpack love, longing, and the invisible scripts of tradition that dictate who we’re allowed to be in India.
The play hovers delicately over memory, intimacy, and the unspoken bonds that shape a life.
It is on from October 25 –29. Part of Colchester Fringe.
The Chai Queens, Headgate Theatre (Rehearsal Room), 14 Chapel Street N, Colchester CO2 7AT
https://colchester.ssboxoffice.com/events/the-chai-queens-a-tale-of-love-longing/
Elmet – world premiere stage adaption
REVENGE and the price of freedom feature strongly in this work.
‘Elmet’ is a gutsy story set in the wilds of the West Riding, (Yorksire). It is based on a novel written by Fiona Mozley which was shortlisted for the Booker prize.
‘Elmet’ is created by Bradford-raised writer-director Javaad Alipoor and its world premiere is part of Bradford 2025.
The show runs at the Loading Bay from October 22 to November 2.
‘Elmet’ adapted by Javaad Alipoor at Loading Bay (a temporary pop up venue for Bradford 2025 events), Thornton Street, Bradford BD1 2EP.
https://bradford2025.co.uk/event/elmet/
Black Hole Sign – Nurse trials
THE WRITER Uma Nada-Rajah had the world premiere of her play, ‘Black Hole Sign’ at the Tron Theatre in Glasgow (September 19 to October 4 ) and now arrives at the beautiful Traverse Theatre in Edinburgh.
Nada-Rajah who is a nurse in her day job, presents a dark comedy set during a night shift of a NHS Hospital in Scotland. Overworked and understaffed, it’s an observational drama about working in the health system. If you enjoy hospital dramas like ‘Resident’, ‘Casualty’, ‘Doctors’, then definitely add this to your diary.
Nada-Rajah said: “I have been a nurse for a long time. There is something so funny and tragic about day-to-day life in hospital, the way that routine and paperwork brush up against the grand processes of human existence. And at a time when there are a lot of questions circulating about the future of the National Health Service, I hope ‘Black Hole Sign’ will make audiences think about the significance of care in modern society.”
It’s started and runs till October 18.
‘Black Hole Sign’ by Uma Nada-Rajah, Traverse Theatre, 10 Cambridge Street, Edinburgh EH1 2ED
https://www.traverse.co.uk/whats-on/event/black-hole-sign-autumn-25
Dial 1 for UK – Undocumented: friend or foe?
WRITER-PERFOMER Mohit Mathur presents his solo show ‘Dial 1’ for UK where he is a call centre worker, Uday Kumar who dreams of experiencing the high life in UK until one day he sets foot in Hounslow as an undocumented migrant worker.
There are two shows next week at Tara Theatre, South London then the show goes touring across UK and www.asianculturevulture.com will be running an interview with him about this work – soon.
‘Dial 1’ by Mohit Mathur at Tara Theatre, 356 Garratt Lane, London SW18 4ES
https://taratheatre.com/whats-on/dial-1-for-uk/
We are the Lions, Mr Manager – History and Politics collide
JAYABEN DESAI is a well-known name to many.
She was a formidable woman who led the Grunwick’s strike in 1976-78 and put Asian women centre stage as they stood on the picket line unbroken in the face of intimidation and possible arrest.
The title, ‘We are the Lions, Mr Manager’ is drawn from Desai’s riposte to the manager Malcolm Alden, when she told him he was running a zoo not a factory. Rukhmini Sircar plays Jayaben Desai in this show.
The Grunwick strike was a defining moment in trade union and UK politics and it “put centre-stage the issue of the exploitation of immigrant workers, nailing the myth that Asian workers were passive and unorganisable”.
We Are The Lions is touring across the UK and it will be at the Lantern Theatre Sheffield from October 14-18. ACV will be running an interview with Sircar soon.
https://www.ticketsource.co.uk/thelanternsheff/e-ykljxd
For tour information see link below
https://www.townsendproductions.org.uk/
Bring It Back – Natalie Davis, old times and good memories
PART of Bradford 2025 Bradford City of Culture, the newly opened Bradford Arts Centre (article link below pending) presents ‘Bring it Back’ by Natalie Davies, which is an immersive show, celebrating the musical heritage of the city.
Mixing film, live stream video and a DJ live on the decks, ‘Bring It Back’ will feed the souls of Bradfordians who long for the booming nightlife they once had. This will be followed by post show DJ sets after every show. Runs from October 23-25
