Soho Theatre has been at the forefront of discovering the UK’s top theatre and comedy talent for years; with various alumni having gone on to establish successful careers within the arts. Having completed a successful run at this year’s Edinburgh Fringe Festival, Soho Theatre favourite Archie Maddocks returns with his latest stand up show, Matchstick. Performed as part of this year’s Soho Rising Festival, a festival celebrating new writing, Archie tells us more about the show…

Hi Archie, you’ll be showcasing your latest stand up show Matchstick as part of Soho Theatre’s Soho Rising Festival on Friday 14 December. How are you feeling ahead of the show?

Pretty good. The show is good so I’m feeling confident that it will go well – just need to remember the damn thing!

There’s more than just euphemism to unpack in Ellie Kendrick’s Hole at the Royal Court. Featuring an electric line up of actors, burlesque babes and music artists– fierce, fabulous women are aplenty. Running at 60 minutes, Kendrick’s writing debut bubbles with rage and spits in the eye of patriarchy.

Courtesy of The Other Richard.

Providing visitors news, reviews and interviews on or with the UK’s brightest talents on stage and screen as well as behind the scenes, The British Blacklist has championed the contributions of black British creatives for the past 6 years. Its founder, Akua Gyamfi has helped to craft a movement that very rightfully has gone from strength to strength. Here, Akua discusses what inspired the site’s creation, accessing press opportunities that initially wouldn’t have been made available and suggests theatre creatives and events to look out for!

Hi Akua, you’re the founder of influential website The British Blacklist. What inspired you to create the resource?

An indulgent dinner with Dionysus is always going to be a hard invite to turn down but I really did get lucky – proverbially – when I picked one of the show’s two clothing optional dates in November.

Out in an abandoned back alley, four girls play in the muck. They inhabit different eras across the twentieth century but through the gap in a wire fence they’re born again into a timeless no-man’s land as their childhood selves. This is the wasteground of Charlotte Keatley’s play, an abstract and non-linear setting where all four characters can see themselves as equals. Their camaraderie is discarded here, forgotten in the main action of the play which pits women against one another.

Having Recently won the Evening Standard Award for Most Promising Playwright, Natasha Gordon has enjoyed critical acclaim with her thought provoking debut show, Nine Night.

For every ridiculous scrape P. G. Wodehouse’s hapless hero Bertie Wooster lands himself in, the ever resourceful Jeeves is able to fish him out. That’s the premise that’s kept Wodehouse’s most well-loved double act entertaining readers for generations- but how to translate it to stage? It goes to follow that just as Wooster seems almost too nonsensical to function, this adaptation of Code of the Woosters would require a little suspension of disbelief. Jeeves’ ability to conjur up a number of solutions is akin to high society fairy dust, and the result is a pretty magical.

On Wednesday 14th November, Love Theatre Day, I conducted a Critical Thinking Workshop at the English National Opera. The aim was simple, to encourage a future generation of thinkers to break down their ideas critically.

Synonymous with female empowerment, warrior queen Arawelo (pronounced Caraweelo) is an ancient Somalian queen said to have ruled approximately in 15AD. Renowned for championing a matriarchal society, Arawelo, prior to assuming the role of queen would take on patriarchal roles such as gathering sustenance for her community. Laying the foundations for dismantling issues we still find ourselves talking about today, it’s a case of questioning the pace in which societies have moved forward. In a time where we are still discussing gender pay gaps and other inequalities, Arawelo’s defiant tenacity knows no end. Theatre Company Queen of Sheba International have taken on the powerful queen’s story in their eponymous production. Producer Shukri Ibrahim discusses the show’s development and timely issues.