The play, written by local poet and playwright Ian Henery, has been in script development since April and featured in 4 festivals including the Black Country Festival earlier this month.
“We have a fantastic cast of actors of Chinese heritage, “ explained Ian Henery, “and they have worked extremely hard to bring this project to life. They have dedicated a lot of their time and energy voluntarily to portray this play. Their passion, enthusiasm and love for their heritage is projected in their acting in the play."
The play is called “Coming To Birmingham:Making Of A Modern City” and is set in the 1940/50s. It’s the second play in a trilogy of plays called Home for China West Midlands that’s managed by the Chinese Community Centre Birmingham.
“The objective is to strengthen connections between the West Midlands and China,” said Ian, “through cross-cultural events involving the arts, education, business and sports.”
The first play in the trilogy was called 'The Chinese Labour Corps' and it was performed in a successful week-long run at The Blue Orange Theatre in Birmingham featuring in the Chinese New Year Festival Online 2022.
“The second play is about the lives of Chinese immigrants and the contribution they made to our region after the Second World War” said Ian. “The third play, the details to be decided later, will be about Chinese lives in contemporary Britain”.
Ian’s play will feature at The National Trust’s Back-to- Backs on 25th July at 5.30pm. Tickets are £2.50 per head which is a donation to the National Trust.
Further details: https://www.nationaltrust.org.uk/birmingham-back-to-backs
