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POSTPONED UNTIL FURTHER NOTICE

A LIVE THEATRE production in association with BRIGHTON FESTIVAL

TO BE A YOUNG MAN  

IMPORTANT INFORMATION (WED 12 APR 2023)

We are very sorry to announce that we have taken the difficult decision to postpone our upcoming production of To Be A Young Man. Both Nadine Shah and Live Theatre have agreed that more time is needed to realise such an ambitious and personal project in the way that it deserves. We were greatly looking forward to this unique collaboration and we hope to be able to announce its return in the future. Our priority now is to support everyone working on the production including our fantastic cast and creative team, and we will be in touch with ticket holders to issue a refund.
 

Written by NADINE SHAH AND JACKIE THOMPSON
Starring NADINE SHAH, DAVID ALADE, JOE BLAKEMORE & JANE HOLMAN

The phenomenal musician's stunning playwriting and Live Theatre stage debut.

Strangers meet at the funeral of a friend.  But is it their friend who is the real stranger?

One of the most important voices in contemporary music and proud exponent of the North East, Nadine Shah's debut album Love your Dum and Mad turns ten this year.  To mark this major cultural moment, Shah has been working with writer Jackie Thompson to develop an original play that takes a deep dive into the themes and influences of that remarkable album, giving them a whole new theatrical life.

The result is a play both haunting and hilarious, a story of grief, mental health, the complexities of friendship and the power of creativity.  Digging deep into a defining personal and creative relationship in Shah's life, this play for four actors will be saturated with sounds from that mesmerising first album.

Buy more, save more!

If you want to buy tickets for more than one of our 50th birthday highlight productions:

  • Love It If We Beat Them
  • To Be A Young Man
  • The Cold Buffet
  • Three Acts Of Love

you will automatically qualify for a discount (applies to full priced tickets only).

The more you buy, the more you save!
Buy tickets to two of these productions and save 10%
Buy tickets to three
 of these productions and save 20%
Buy tickets to all four
 of these 50th birthday highlight productions and save a generous 30%

Discount will automatically apply when tickets are added to your basket.

Photograph of Nadine Shah side profile looking to camera

Nadine Shah - co-writer and cast member - Sidra

Nadine Shah is a songwriter/musician/artist who hails from the North East of England and born of Pakistani/Norwegian heritage.

Shah released her debut album ‘Love Your Dum and Mad’ in 2013. She has since released a further three critically acclaimed albums, the most recent being 2020’s ‘Kitchen Sink’, an album that explored her own story as a women in her 30’s and the societal pressures and expectations that come with that. Shah was nominated for the Mercury Music Prize for her 2017 album ‘Holiday Destination’. Nadine is currently working on a book to be published in 2024 and her 5th studio album

Photograph of Jane Holman looking to camera

Jane Holman - Rita

Theatre credits include: ‘Lush Life’, ‘Oh What A Lovely War’, ‘Twelve Tales of Tyneside’, ‘Cabaret’, ‘Lenya’ and ‘In Blackberry Time’ (Live Theatre); ‘Tyne’ (Live Theatre/Theatre Royal Newcastle); ‘Looking For Buddy’ (Bolton Octagon/Live Theatre/Customs House); ‘Close The Coal House Door’ (Northern Stage); ‘Beyond The End of the Road’ (November Club); ‘My Granny is a Pirate’ (New Writing North); ‘Maggie’s End’ and ‘Beamish Boy’ (Gala Theatre); ‘Sleeping Beauty’ and ‘Dick Whittington’ (Tyne Theatre); ‘Get Santa’ (Northern Stage); ‘The Revengers’ and ‘Cuddy’s Miles’ (Customs House).
Television credits include: ‘Vera’, ‘Inspector George Gently’, ‘Undercover and ‘The Dumping Ground’ and films ‘School For Seduction’, ‘Harrigan's Nick’ and ‘Billy Elliot’.
Jane was singer, songwriter and guitarist for rock band JAZAWAKI and she has been musical director and arranger for a number of theatre and television productions.

Photograph of David Alade wearing a checked shirt - looking to camera

David Alade - Dean

Theatre credits include: 'Sunnyside Up' (Theatre Peckham); 'The Boss Of It All' (New Perspectives); 'The Fisherman' (New Perspectives); 'Fox Hunting' (Sunny Productions).
TV credits include 'Undisclosed Series' (Apple TV+); 'Casualty' (BBC); Documentary Now! S4' (Broadway Video).
He recently performed a dramatic reading alongside Ruth Wilson and Toby Jones at The South Bank Centre for Max Porter’s new novel 'Shy'. David is an actor and writer with his one man play 'Sunnyside Up' receiving critical acclaim.

Photograph of Joe Blakemore looking to camera

Joe Blakemore - The Artist

Joe Blakemore graduated from RADA in 2014. His previous Film and Television credits include:
'Jackdaw' (Jamie Childs/Anton Ltd), 'Hijack' (AppleTV), 'The Hunt For Raoul Moat' (ITV), 'The Third Day' (HBO), 'Last Christmas' (Paul Feig/ Universal), 'Emmerdale' (ITV), 'Next of Kin' (Mammoth Screen/ITV), 'Stan Lee’s Lucky Man' (Carnival/Sky), 'Vera' (ITV), 'The Drug Trial: Emergency At The Hospital' (Raw), 'The Levelling' (Hope Dickson Leach/ Wellington Films),' Banged Up Abroad' (Raw/NatGeo), 'Doctors' (BBC).
Previous Theatre: 'Hyem' (Theatre503 & Northern Stage), 'The Duchess Of Malfi' (Arc Stockton)

To Be A Young Man

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  • Arts Council England
  • Community Foundation
  • European Regional Development Fund
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