In the dialogue, In-Sook Chappell uses a host familiar and unfamiliar words and phrases to pepper the language and dialect of the characters, with some brilliant comic and dramatic effect. We’ve put together a short glossary for Mountains: The Dreams of Lily Kwok to help along your understanding. 

For the Black Theatre Live, Yellow Earth and Royal Exchange Theatre national tour of Mountains: The Dreams of Lily Kwok we interviewed the shows Director, Jennifer Tang.

In advance of the Black Theatre Live, Yellow Earth and Royal Exchange Theatre national tour in spring 2018, we've interviewed In-Sook Chappell writer of Mountains: The Dreams of Lily Kwok

Black Theatre Live with our venue partner, Lightouse in Poole is excited to be piloting a new Associate Artist model with Phoebe McIntosh.

Joseph Barnes-Philips of Big Foot blog on his experience of touring with Black Theatre Live this autumn. First appeared in the  for the Huffington Post, 10 November 2017

Hermione McNamara, age 17, from the Queen Elizabeth High School in Hexham, reviewed Big Foot while it was on national tour to the Black Theatre Live consortium venue partner Queen's Hall Arts in Northumberland. 

Hermione said: I’ve always loved going to the theatre and fully admire the actors as it’s something I could never do, but in recent years I never had the time with working and forgot. In 2016, I took my Gold Arts Award and as part of my volunteering began to review. I’ve since passed my Arts Award but still enjoy attending and reviewing as many shows as possible.

Big Foot uses a host of dynamite words and phrases to pepper the language and dialect of the characters, some with brilliant comic and dramatic effect. We’ve put together this sik short glossary with HighRise Theatre for Big Foot to whet your appetite for the show on tour

7 touring theatre productions, 8 consortium venues and many partners later and Black Theatre Live (BTL) will be coming to the end of its’ first phase in 2018; a 3-year programme of national touring, structural support and audience development.

We had a chat with writer and performer Joseph Barnes-Phillips about the ideas behind his new touring show Big Foot.

Read Michael O’Brien-Britton’s charming interview with Joseph Barnes-Philips about writing Big Foot. The Black Theatre Live, HighRise Theatre and Stratford Circus Arts Centre’s autumn tour in 2017.

Cathy Tyson talks about her inspiring experience of touring She Called Me Mother with Black Theatre Live and the company she co-founded with Michelle Inniss and Cara Nolan, Pitchlake Productions.

As he prepares to step down as Executive Producer for Tara Arts, Jonathan Kennedy looks back over the steps of his career so far. Blog first featured in Arts Professional, March 2017.

Actor Raphael Sowole tells us about playing the title role in Shakespeare's greatest Tragedy.

Offue Okegbe who plays Horatio in Black Theatre Live's upcoming adaptation of Hamlet tells us about growing up in Stratford.

Legendary actor Jeffery Kissoon talks to us about Shakespeare and directing Britain's first all-black cast of Hamlet for the Black Theatre Live consortium..

Blog commissioned by What's on Stage. National tour Black Theatre Live in association with Watford Palace Theatre & Stratford Circus Arts Centre. Mark Norfolk the writer of Britain's first production of Hamlet with an all-black cast and creative team talks about 'serving Shakespeare's text as much as possible', and working with director Jeffery Kissoon

Butterflies from Open Clasp Theatre Company, Cartina McHugh artistic director.

This project started life as part of the Outreach Programme for the Black Theatre Live tour of She Called Me Mother by Michelle Innis and starring Cathy Tyson. Lucinda Meredith (Artistic Associate for Engagement), Theatre Royal Bury St Edmunds approached the Women's Refuge asking: “What can we do for you?”

Filmed in partnership between the Theatre Royal Bury St Edmunds and YMCA Suffolk.

*This was a guest post from Jonathan Kennedy, Executive Director of Tara Arts for Spektrix's blog*

When Jonathan first asked me if Theatre Royal Bury St Edmunds wanted to be part of Black Theatre Live, I had no hesitation in saying yes and was really clear as to why we should be part of such an innovative touring project. 

By Hardish Virk

Engaging and sustaining new audiences is more than just going to see a play as it’s about a process: from print engagement to venue experience. Nothing happens in isolation and the whole experience can have an impact on the audiences’ decision to return. 

Firstly, I’ll introduce myself, I’m Emma and I recently started as Marketing Manager for Tara Arts. Previously to this I was Marketing Manager for the rather lovely Theatre Royal Bury St Edmunds, one of the 8 consortium venues for Black Theatre Live.   

Black Theatre Live aims to effect a long-term transformation for Black and Asian theatre through national touring, audience and sector development. This is the driving ambition of the Black Theatre Live consortium.

Amanda Gould, the Engagement & Development Manager at Queens Hall Arts Centre, Hexham shares the story about the exciting outreach work for young people done around the Tara Arts'  national tour of Macbeth in spring 2015.

I received an email from Cathy Tyson in December 2014 saying, what do you think of this? The email was an application of interest to Black Theatre Live. She was surprised when I said, yes, let’s go for it! Well, why not? What did we have to lose? 

Cathy Tyson is a BAFTA and Golden Globe nominated actress with over three decades of experience in the creative industries. She is known for her roles in film television and theatre. She began her career at the Liverpool Everyman at the age of 17 before joining the RSC in 1984. She is best known for her role in Mona Lisa (1986) alongside Bob Hoskins.  Cathy will be playing the protagonist Evangeline in She Called Me Mother on national tour, Oct - Nov 2015

Lizzie Watts (Outreach Worker, Key Theatre) reports on her experience of  Black  Theatre Live participation for the tour of Macbeth in Peterborough..

One of the objectives of Black Theatre Live (BTL) is to develop new audiences for a range of venues across the UK.

DIRECTOR’S NOTE ON STAGING MACBETH

Overweening ambition, jealousy, murder even, are as common in families as they are in the corridors of power. There’s hardly been a noble or low-born family in world history immune to the lure of ambition.

Soon after arriving to the Black Theatre Live launch at Derby Theatre, I was suddenly surrounded by so many new faces; all these people with different roles and all sorts of specialties and tasks. It felt like witnessing a start of a huge road works project with all the heavy machinery and workforce lining the road.

Last week I started my new job as a Tour Manager for the Black Theatre Live.  One of the first tasks I was asked to do was to start a blog about the project and its last week’s launch at Derby Theatre. Haven’t blogged before, so I’ll stick to logic and try to explain, in my own words, what this project is and what makes me excited about it.