The National Theatre, The Royal Central School of Speech and Drama and the AHRC London Arts and Humanities Partnership are pleased to announce the launch of a new Podcast Series: That Black Theatre Podcast. 

Hosted by Arts and Humanities Research Council-funded PhD candidate Nadine Deller,Nadine is a PhD candidate undertaking a Collaborative Doctoral Award between Central and the National Theatre. The aim of her thesis, ‘Deviancy and Potential in the Heterotopias of Black British Women’s Theatre’, is to shed light on the position and work of black women playwrights in the National Theatre’s Black Plays Archive. Nadine also writes for leading film magazine, Sight & Sound.

Starting on the 28 September, over the course of 12 weekly episodes, Nadine will delve into the Black Plays Archive, discussing the leaders of Black British theatre and the political and social events of the 20th and 21st Century that influenced their work.

Beginning with the earliest black theatre practitioners Una Marson and Errol John, the podcast will discuss the works of these trailblazers and the writers who followed, Mustapha Matura and Alfred Fagon, who wrote against the backdrop of the Civil Rights and Black Power movements both in Britain and America.

The barriers faced by black women playwrights will be debated with the leading academic, Lynette Goddard. With the plays of Valerie Mason-John and Jackie Kay discussed in relation to the under representation of black queer and lesbian experiences on stage.

Nadine Deller will conclude the series with an episode dedicated to Winsome Pinnock, conversations about debbie tucker green and Roy Williams, as well as discussions with lead theatre makers both looking to the past of Black British theatre and to the future, including Mojisola Adebayo and Ola Ince.

Speaking about the podcast, Central PhD candidate Nadine Deller said:

“This podcast started as a way to share what I have learnt about black British theatre with as many people as I could. I never learnt about black theatre in school, so this podcast is a celebration of black British theatre and the stories I have found in the archive. Through a mix of history, interviews, and casual discussion, I hope to show that black theatre is for everyone.”

That Black Theatre Podcast will be available for free via Apple podcasts, Spotify, Google podcasts, and all major podcasts platform.