An Evening with an Immigrant
Overview of the production
Presented by Inua Ellams and Fuel.
Born to a Muslim father and a Christian mother in what is now considered by many to be Boko Haram territory, award-winning poet and playwright Inua Ellams left Nigeria for England in 1996 aged 12, moved to Ireland for three years, before returning to London and starting work as a writer and graphic designer.
Part of this story was documented in his autobiographical Fringe First Award-winning play The 14th Tale, but much of it is untold. Littered with poems, stories and anecdotes, Inua tells his ridiculous, fantastic, poignant immigrant-story of escaping fundamentalist Islam, experiencing prejudice and friendship in Dublin, performing solo at the National Theatre, and drinking wine with the Queen of England, all the while without a country to belong to or place to call home.
“Ellams’ account disrupts the prevailing insiders' perspective to provide the immigrant's perspective that often goes unheard”
What's On Stage ★★★★★
“He tells his story with passion and rich, warm humour”
The Guardian ★★★★
“His words are incredible… the poems are just stunning”
Everything Theatre ★★★★
General Information
Ticket prices
£29.50, £22.50, £15, £10
Download TodayTix to get exclusive £15 daily rush tickets
Length
Approx 90mins, including a short 10min interval
Performances
Extra performances w/c 2 Nov will be on sale to Priority Members Thursday 8 October, 10am & general public Friday 9 October 10am
Access Performance
BSL signed performance – Tuesday 3 November 7:30pm
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Additional content
Cast
Inua Ellams
Inua Ellams is an award-winning poet, performer, playwright, graphic artist and designer. He started performing in cafes in 2003 and has since worked in venues including the Royal Albert Hall, Sydney Opera House, Nuyorican Poets Cafe and Glastonbury Music Festival. He is the recipient of an Edinburgh Fringe First Award for his autobiographical award-winning play The 14th Tale. He has also undertaken several commissions, including those for Louis Vuitton and Soho Theatre. Following two sell-out runs at the National Theatre and a world tour, his play Barber Shop Chronicles (A Fuel, National Theatre and Leeds Playhouse co-production) also ran at the Roundhouse in 2019. His adaptation of Three Sisters was co-produced by the National Theatre and Fuel in 2019–2020.
August 2020
Creatives
Inua Ellams
Inua Ellams is an award-winning poet, performer, playwright, graphic artist and designer. He started performing in cafes in 2003 and has since worked in venues including the Royal Albert Hall, Sydney Opera House, Nuyorican Poets Cafe and Glastonbury Music Festival. He is the recipient of an Edinburgh Fringe First Award for his autobiographical award-winning play The 14th Tale. He has also undertaken several commissions, including those for Louis Vuitton and Soho Theatre. Following two sell-out runs at the National Theatre and a world tour, his play Barber Shop Chronicles (A Fuel, National Theatre and Leeds Playhouse co-production) also ran at the Roundhouse in 2019. His adaptation of Three Sisters was co-produced by the National Theatre and Fuel in 2019–2020.
August 2020