Camden People’s Theatre is delighted to announce the return of The State We’re In – a three-week festival exploring UK democracy, politics and the public realm, which will run from October 22nd – November 10th 2024. The festival will be the centrepiece of CPT’s Autumn Season and 30th anniversary programme.
In 2015, Camden People’s Theatre staged a festival, the first incarnation of The State We’re In, in the year of a highly significant general election. In 2024, The State We’re In returns: three weeks of theatre and performance lifting the lid on Britain’s democracy, politics and public life.
Who gets to run the UK, and who doesn’t? Who does our society support, and who does it leave behind? What will this significant change in leadership and political direction mean for our country? And where does the climate crisis fit in – as a source of despair, or of hope?
Headlined by Zakiyyah Deen’s extraordinary debut play Why A Black Woman Will Never Be Prime Minister. picked up by CPT after a sharing at Tara Arts in 2023, and shepherded by CPT towards full (co-)production as a Home Run commission.
Performed and written by Zakiyyah Deen, it explores black female participation in the political process, and black maternal health. Zakiyyah Is interested in wraparound engagement with young black women to explore their political engagement.
Set over nine months, this piece delves into intersectionality, British politics, and Black women’s maternal health. Blending satire, spoken word, and narrative, Zakiyyah Deen’s debut play directly addresses the real reasons: Why A Black Woman Never Be Prime Minister.
The State We’re In will also feature penetrating new performances by Worklight Theatre, Andy Smith, Shybairn (originally commissioned by CPT in 2022) and Hacks
The festival aims to take the temperature of the UK as the new government prioritises the social/political issues that most need addressing. It also aims to reconnect to CPT’s history of radicalism and political engagement and concern for social justice in its 30th anniversary year.
Other Festival performances:
The plays programmed for the festival have one common desire – to explore the current state of the UK – where are we after 14 years of Conservative rule, and what is the condition of our public realm, and the social bonds that should unite us as a country? What state are they in – and what does the new government need to do to repair them?
Across the span of the festival, there are shows about the economy (It’s the Economy, Stupid), the benefit system (The Mute Messiah), the care system (The Daisy Chain), political participation/representation (Andy Smith’s Citizens’ Assembly), food banks (Carmen Collective’s The Food Bank Show), the climate crisis (Shybairn) and more. Offering audiences a new angle or way to engage with where the UK is now, where it’s been and what it’s becoming.
Full Programme:
Why A Black Woman Will Never Be Prime Minister – Zakiyyah Deen
22nd October – Sat 9th November – 7.15pm ( 3pm matinee on 9th November)
Exploring intersectionality, British politics, and Black women’s maternal health, in a thought-provoking and engaging theatrical format, Zakiyyah Deen’s debut play fuses satire, spoken word and narrative to directly address the real reasons Why A Black Woman Will Never Be Prime Minister.
Zakiyyah Deen says “I am a storyteller, a maker and somewhat modern griot. My work tackles everything from big socio-political issues to the nuances and everyday humdrum of human existence. No matter what story I’m telling or what emotion I am conveying – I aim to do it with honesty, humility and a sprinkle of humour.”
This is a co-production by Zakiyyah Deen and Camden People’s Theatre, and supported by the Paul Hamlyn Foundation and Arts Council England.
A Citizens’ Assembly – Andy Smith & Lynsey O’Sullivan
5th November – 7:30pm
What are we doing about the climate emergency? And what are we not doing? What more could we be doing? What more should we be doing? A Citizens’ Assembly is a new work by acclaimed theatre maker Andy Smith, created in collaboration with applied arts practitioner Lynsey O’Sullivan. It is part of a series of works called Plays For The People: plays written to be performed by the people in the room. This is a show for anyone interested in engaging in thought and discussion around the climate emergency.
It’s The Economy, Stupid – Worklight Theatre
25th and 26th October – 9pm
In this bold new show from the Fringe First winning creators of Labels and Fanboy, Joe Sellman-Leava and Dylan Howells uncover how economics wins elections, and why it’s so bloody complicated! Armed with bags, boxes and an old board game, Joe and Dylan calculate how their lives have been shaped by the economies they grew up in.
The Daisy Chain – Princess Bestman
6th, 7th, and 8th November – 9pm
What makes foster kids so “naughty”? This show follows a “trouble maker” turned independent young person through an exploration of the realities of the foster care system. Engaging audiences with participation, music and playful commentary, this slideshow of research is brought to life dynamically with stories based on lived experiences. The Daisy Chain focuses on transformative approaches and the restoration of hope, whilst displaying the impact that children’s social care workers could have on the lives of young people and families they engage with. The show’s main focus is for children social care practitioners, i.e: Social workers, foster carers and policy makers, to understand that it takes a village and dedication to raise a child and break through to their developing brains and make a change.
The Food Bank Show – Carmen Collective
31st October – 9pm
Join acclaimed theatre-maker Sam Rees for an evening of anarchic storytelling filled with rage, hope, and radical conversation. Sam and his theatre group Carmen Collective return with a searing new piece of documentary theatre, piecing together the personal and political stories of food poverty in the UK. Right now, over three million people use food banks in this country. What the f**k has happened? Based on over a year of in-depth research, The Food Bank Show is an electrifying exploration of a failing system, the people caught in its web, and those striving to change it. Carmen’s most recent show, Lessons On Revolution (created with Undone Theatre), was critically-acclaimed and enjoyed a sold-out transfer to Soho Theatre.
This Is What Utopia Looks Like – ShyBairn Theatre
9th and 10th November at 2,3,4,5,6,7,8 & 9pm (30 minutes)
THIS IS WHAT UTOPIA LOOKS LIKE is a performance installation to radically imagine a liveable future. From mushroom bricks and earthships, to teleportation in the blink of an eye, join us to visualise a future where we can survive and thrive – the first step in the fight for it. This show brings together the utopian visions of teenagers and the climate solutions of academics in this installation for climate hope. Awareness of the climate crisis & its impacts has grown hugely in recent years, yet the focus is on the horrors that unfold if we stick with the status quo. Unearthing these horrors isn’t igniting change fast enough; this show calls for a different approach focussed on hope, optimism and big ideas. There will be a 30-minute performance every hour, and audiences can move freely through the space, take a seat with a performer to share a story, or listen to a calming meditation of ideas. THIS IS WHAT UTOPIA LOOKS LIKE is a recipient of Camden People’s Theatre’s Outside The Box Commission and supported by the Royal Victoria Hall Foundation.
Beats & Elements 10 year birthday – Kinda. Not really. Things can only get better.
24th October at 9pm (60 minutes)
This one-off gig on Thursday 24th Oct is a special event marking CPT’s 30th anniversary and the fact that the company premiered their first show in our first ‘The State We’re In’ festival in 2015. Paul Cree and Conrad Murray (of BeatBox Academy fame) will perform songs and scenes from acclaimed shows No Milk and High Rise eState of Mind, as well as brand-new material. Expect beats, bars, dialogue, class-chat and laughs. As well as CPT supporting and co-producing their work over the years, Conrad is now on CPT’s board and has really made their mark in UK theatre through the BAC BeatBox Academy and his ongoing support of CPT.
