Black History Month Scratch Night

Join us for our third Black History Month Scratch Night.

Black History Month Scratch Night celebrates the work of local artists, showcasing a range of art forms and works in progress from theatre makers and creatives from African, Caribbean, Afro-Latinx, and mixed White and African or Caribbean diaspora heritage.

With a focus on work in progress, Scratch Night is about the process as much as the performance. Audiences will witness ideas taking shape on stage and enjoy an evening of creativity, experimentation, and fresh artistic expression.

A fantastic opportunity to discover and celebrate emerging local talent.

Running time: 90 minutes

Our performances and artists are:

BLACK PANTHER FOREVER performed by Angel Dance Academy

Inspired by the iconic story of Black Panther, the performance presents a powerful snapshot of the characters, themes, and spirit of the story through engaging choreography, theatrical storytelling, and high-energy performance.
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PLEASE TAKE A SEAT performed by Joy Ndoti and Fafalyn Agbefe

PLEASE TAKE A SEAT  is a ten-minute live art performance exploring the quiet labour of compliance, discomfort and resistance experienced by Black immigrants navigating institutional systems. Two performers, one male and one female, sit on deliberately uncomfortable chairs, smiling continuously while periodically moving from one chair to another. Sounds associated with waiting rooms accompany the performance, while a projected presentation reveals one line of text at a time, gradually revealing what the performance is about. Inspired by waiting rooms associated with immigration, employment and official processes, the work examines what it means to remain composed when circumstances are outside your control.
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SHARED PAGES performed by Imani Ahiro and Mimi Galban Allwright

SHARED PAGES is a spoken word and movement-based performance piece that explores the complex relationship between our older and younger selves and memories. Through two bodies, fragmented memory, poetry and physical storytelling, this piece asks what we carry with us as we grow, and whether we ever truly stop being the person we once were. Beginning in the language of breath and birth, Shared Pages moves through identity, rage, relationships and self-recognition towards a new form of acceptance.
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A SIMPLE (T)ASK? performed by Barbara Boateng

One woman. Three characters. A shared dilemma.
Ms B invites you to witness ‘A Simple (T)Ask?’ – a performance combining sketch comedy, poetry and allegorical dialogue. The piece explores the difficulty of accepting reality and the societal pressures that shape how we respond to it.
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“USE THIS GOSPEL” by HVNLY 
Performed by Zaphaneth Puplampu, Abigail Wamala, Kyria Oblitey and Harvey Kyagulani
“USE THIS GOSPEL” is the pilot performance by HVNLY. The HVNLY collective is a group of independent singers/artists who have come together to create gospel music that touches the heart. Use This Gospel is a two-song set that takes traditional church hymns and reconstructs them, giving them new life without losing the original intention. Featuring tight harmonies, heart-gripping solos, and energy-infused moments, Use This Gospel draws on gospel’s influence on modern music and reapplies those ideas to itself, bringing a new perspective to gospel and its message.
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SAME SKIN performed by Hadija Brittain and Alicia Stratford 
SAME SKIN is a contemporary dance duet performed by two mixed-race Black female dancers. The work explores the relationship between visual similarity, identity and individuality, asking what we assume about people based on what we see. The piece begins with two dancers who appear almost identical. Through mirroring, repetition, unison and partnering, they move as though they are one person reflected across two bodies. Their physical relationship draws on the social and partnering qualities of ballroom dance, alongside contemporary, Latin movement influences.