We Need New Names
by NoViolet Bulawayo, in a new adaptation by Mufaro Makubika | directed by Monique ToukoEntrancing
Paradise. Home of 10-year-old Darling and her friends: four children on the edge of innocence.
A playground overflowing with mischief and games where they imagine countries a luxurious life away from theirs in Mugabe’s Zimbabwe.
But when Darling moves to Michigan, the Western world she encounters as a teenager is far from the American utopia of her dreams…
Based on the novel by the first Black African woman and first Zimbabwean to be Booker Prize-shortlisted, this defiant coming-of-age story is full of exuberance, humour and humanity.
Cover photograph © C.W. Griffin. Design © Suzanne Dean.
VISIT THE FREE EXHIBITION
During your visit, why not take a look at the interactive pop-up exhibition in our foyer space?
Presented by Fifth Word, the exhibition explores migrant stories from Zimbabwean-born Nottingham residents, featuring a gallery of portrait images that provide a snapshot of lived experiences of migrating to the UK, from different generational viewpoints.
The exhibition is curated by Saziso Phiri and the young people who took part in We Need New Stories. Find out more
POST-SHOW TALK | WED 31 MAY
Join us after the show on Wed 31 May for a free post-show talk. Audience members will have the opportunity to speak to the cast and ask any questions they may have about the process of making the play, as well as reflect on their own connections to the characters and story.
This talk will be hosted by Jayne Williams, Participation Director of New Perspectives Theatre Company.
the significance of this play [is] immeasurable
...pulsing with colour and energy
The Times on the novel We Need New Names
😍 STUDIO MULTI-BUY OFFER
*This offer is applicable on standard tickets only in a single transaction across 3 or more shows, or across 5 or more shows, on the following shows: CAttS, STARS, We Need New Names, Bacon, cheeky little brown, Project Dictator, The Colour of Dinosaurs, Dugsi Dayz and Four Seasons. Subject to change.
Entrancing
Guardian
the significance of this play [is] immeasurable
The Stage
We Need New Names is a wonderful look at the idea of belonging and is equally as heart-breaking as it is uplifting.
All That Dazzles
The play took us on a journey across time and continents in a way that made me feel as if I was literally transported out of my seat
Afridiziak
Gripping...a great piece of theatrical storytelling
The Times on The Fishermen (New Perspectives)
Compassionate, emotionally astute
The Stage on LAVA (Fifth Word)
...often heart-breaking, but also pulsing with colour and energy
The Times on the novel We Need New Names
Photography credit: Robert Day
Photography credit: Mark Senior
