Criterion Theatre

Just like the Radio 4 Play for the Day! 

Brighton, 1862. A day in the life of Sarah, an African girl, adopted by Queen Victoria and raised in the Queen's circles. Today is the eve of her having to return to Africa, but will she go?

The Present. A day in the life of Sarah, a black middle-class woman living in a Cheshire village with her husband and small child. They are paid a visit by well-meaning neighbours who have something to confess.

The two Sarahs meet Queen Victoria for tea. This won't be your regular tea party…

An outrageous play about imperialism, cross-racial adoption, cultural appropriation – and tea – Janice Okoh's The Gift premiered at the Belgrade Theatre Coventry in January 2020, followed by a UK tour, including a run at the Theatre Royal Stratford East in London. It was a co-production between Eclipse Theatre Company and the Belgrade Theatre, and directed by Dawn Walton. 

The reading will be run using Zoom so please contact Lucy Hayton on lucyhayton@hotmail.com if you would like the URL link for the session.  Further information about the play can be found by clicking on the link below. 

 

If you would like to take part and read for any of the sessions it would be helpful if you could email Lucy Hayton on lucyhayton@hotmail.com so that we can do some prior arranging of parts.

 

You are very welcome to just come along and listen and take part in the discussion after the read. 

 

 The Gift by Janice Okoh

 

In line with our EDI policy, we undertake an EDI impact assessment of all our artistic programming. 'The Gift' by Janice Okoh has a central diversity message notably an exploration of what it means to be of African heritage in Britain and forms of historical and contemporary racism. The playwright specifies the race/ethnicity of particular roles as important to the narrative of the story. 

 

This reading is licenced as an amateur production by arrangement with Nick Hern Books