News

As part of our upcoming Blueprint Festival, a fortnight of extraordinary, new and unusual theatre, Mawa Theatre Company has announced the cast for ‘Shakespeare-On-Sea’, a short film project exploring Shakespeare’s maritime imagination through the gaze of Black female artists in Essex. The project will run at Queen’s Theatre Hornchurch from 12 to 24 September 2022. Sharon Rose (Hamilton, Jingle Jangle) will play Prospero in The Tempest, Mia Jerome (Squad Goals, A Christmas Carol) will play Adrianna in The Comedy of Errors, Deborah Imhogiemhe (To Whom It May Concern, One Last Goodbye) Will Play Juliet in Romeo & Juliet. The film will be directed by Mawa’s Artistic Director Maisey Bawden and Executive Director Danielle Kassaraté, their first collaboration with us since they joined the creative leadership team this year. Maisey Bawden says: “Following our first digital project last year, we are so excited to put Shakespeare on film once again, this time honouring some of the fantastic talent we have here in Essex. Making Shakespeare digestible and accessible is so important to us and we hope by giving our audiences free access to Shakespeare as it has never been seen before, in bitesize chunks will inspire a new generation of theatre-goers.” Sharon Rose says: “Having grown up deep in the heart of Essex and experiencing a drought of representation in the arts growing up, seeing and now being a part of Mawa Theatre Company is pure joy. It reminds me that I matter, that my stories matter, and that I am not entirely invisible to the thing I love. Mawa Theatre Company is food for the soul. A safe space to refresh, replenish and spring forth.” Mathew Russell, Chief Executive says: “We were thrilled when Maisey and Danielle recently joined the creative leadership team, as we are huge admirers and supporters of the important work of Mawa. ‎It's therefore even more exciting to have the opportunity to work together on this clever approach to making Shakespeare accessible to many more people and to be working with such an extraordinary group of Black female artists from Essex. Blueprint offers the perfect opportunity to enjoy these newly made films intimately or on the large screen.” Entry to Shakespeare on Sea is free but advance booking is required, book for the Foyer Seating here or the Main House seating here. To book your tickets and to find out more about the full programme of exciting shows and experiences on offer as part of Blueprint festival, click here.