From Freedom Studios, the producers of the acclaimed Brief Encounters at Bradford Interchange and When We Were Brothers comes Black Teeth and a Brilliant Smile, award-winning screenwriter Lisa Holdsworth’s new stage adaptation of Adelle Stripe’s compelling novel which recounts the brief and defiant life of the celebrated playwright Andrea Dunbar.
The Beacon, Buttershaw, Bradford, 1990. Andrea Dunbar, acclaimed writer of Rita, Sue, and Bob Too, mum, sister, best friend, is struggling with her latest work. Her aching head is full of voices, stories from her past which have to be heard.
Adapted for the stage by Screenwriter Lisa Holdsworth (Ackley Bridge, Waterloo Road and Call the Midwife) Black Teeth and a Brilliant Smile, will open at The Ambassador in Bradford from the 30 May-8 June and then tour until the 27 June.
Andrea Dunbar was raised on the Buttershaw council estate in Bradford, one of eight siblings. Her first play, The Arbor, which premiered at the Royal Court in London when she was just 18, originated as a CSE English assignment. She was, according to one tabloid newspaper at the time, ‘a genius straight from the slums’. Rita, Sue and Bob Too (1982) was also a hit at the Royal Court and was subsequently filmed by the director Alan Clarke. Dunbar wrote one more play, Shirley, and died of a brain haemorrhage in 1990. She was 29.
Bradford-based Freedom Studios is an award-winning intercultural theatre company, which connects different people and communities through story-telling and making theatre. Engagement is intrinsic to their work, and communities are at the heart of what they do. Their recent site-specific productions include The Mill – City of Dreams; Brief Encounters at Bradford Interchange; Home Sweet Home, North Country and most recently When We Were Brothers.
Black Teeth and a Brilliant Smile will tour from the 30 May – 27 June 2019 including performances at Cast, Doncaster and Oldham Coliseum. More venues will be confirmed in the coming months.
To book tickets and for more information on Black Teeth and a Brilliant Smile and Freedom Studios visit https://www.freedomstudios.co.uk/production/black-teeth-and-a-brilliant-smile/
OPENING VENUE LISTINGS
Dates: 30 May – 8 June (no performances 2 June)
Venue: The Ambassador, 90 Sunbridge Road, Bradford, West Yorkshire, BD1 2AQ
Times: 7.30pm (Mat perf on 1 & 8 June at 2pm)
Tickets: Pay What You Decide £3, £6 or £12 (with a free drink)
To book: go to www.freedomstudios.co.uk
TOUR DATES
Thu 20 June at 7.15pm – Cast, Doncaster – Box Office: 01302 303959 / www.castindoncaster.com
Wed 26 – Thu 27 June at 7.30pm -Oldham Coliseum- Box Office: 0161 624 2829/www.coliseum.org.uk
Further dates to be confirmed at https://www.freedomstudios.co.uk/
