Solape Alatise

Malindadzimu is the story of a mother and daughter duo, Faith and Hope, who transition faster than the speed of light from a life in Nottingham to one in Bulawayo, Zimbabwe. This sudden move comes after Hope tries to end her life by suicide. The lighting and stage setting make the distinction between the two worlds clear. The scenes set in Nottingham are full of harsh, bright light, cold colours and next to no furniture. For example, in the hospital scene where Hope has just had her stomach pum

Hymn is the story of step brothers, Gilbert and Benny, discovering each other after the passing of their father. Their father lived a less than ‘holy’ life, having an extra-marital affair and telling his mistress to never show her face again once she became pregnant with Benny. On the eve of his 50th birthday Benny catches the end of Augustus Clarence Jones’ funeral and meets his step brother Gilbert. The play sheds light on them trying to create a relationship in the midst of both men failing t

Little Simz’s new single ‘I Love You, I Hate You’ is a powerful insight into the conflicting feelings she has about her father. It is clear that she has had years to process these feelings, yet reaching no conclusive decision about how she feels. The interchanging of the words “I love you, I hate you” almost mirrors the childhood games we play with daisy petals: “He loves me, he loves me not”. It also invokes Hamlet’s soliloquy when he says: “To be or not to be, that is the question.” ‘I Love Y

The stage is a lone perfect square, slightly elevated and covered with what appears to be gravel. The sight of it conjures up the saying ‘ashes to ashes, dust to dust’—a line from the Book of Common Prayer recited at burial services. and breathe… is a string of poems narrated by actor David Jonsson about the blanket of grief that covered writer Yomi Ṣode and his family when his mother’s sister—fondly referred to as Big Mummy—died. The complexities of illness and family appear to be ever more c