Theatre News

New Bryony Kimmings show and Daniel Kitson in Battersea Arts Centre Phoenix season

The south London venue announces the reopening of its Grand Hall with its new season

Battersea Arts Centre
Battersea Arts Centre
© Graham C99 / Flickr

Bryony Kimmings is to stage her first new solo show in ten years as part of Battersea Arts Centre's new season.

The Phoenix Season, which marks the reopening of the building's Grand Hall after a fire destroyed it in 2015, will host the world premiere of Kimmings' piece I'm a Phoenix Bitch. The piece is an exploration of renewal after disaster, with Kimmings drawing on body building and events from her own life to parallel what happened at Battersea Arts Centre. The show runs from 3 to 20 October.

Theatremaker and comedian Daniel Kitson will also return to the venue with a month-long residency throughout January 2019. Kitson also hosts variety night A Grand Night Out on Monday 28 January, in support of the theatre.

The London premiere of National Theatre of Scotland's Adam will also run between 18 and 29 September. The show, which is the story of a trans man from Egypt, is performed by Adam Kashmiry and Rehanna MacDonald. The show opened at the Traverse Theatre in August 2017 as part of the Edinburgh Festival.

Theatre company Gecko will open the season with their show Missing, the run of which was interrupted when the fire in the Grand Hall happened. The fire destroyed all the company's set, costumes and props. The revived show will run from 6 to 15 September.

Lekan Lawal's new piece Superblackman will run from 15 November to 1 December and explores power, mental health and representation. Lawal is one of the artistic directors taking part in Up Next, the collaboration between the Bush Theatre, Battersea Arts Centre and Artistic Directors of the Future.

Dead Centre will present the London premiere of Chekhov's First Play, an absurd take on Chekhov's writing and the nature of performance. The production will run from 31 October to 10 November.

A new immersive production from Battersea Arts Centre will take audiences around the venue, exploring its history and hidden the secrets. The family-friendly show, entitled Return to Elm House runs from 1 to 30 December.

Little Bulb Theatre will return to the venue with a new production of their show Orpheus, reimagining the Greek classic tale with added '30s Parisian jazz vibes. The show runs from 5 to 30 December.

The BAC Beatbox Academy will mark their tenth anniversary with a special gig performance of their show Frankenstein on 24 October. The event will feature a number of additional guests. On 25 October the urban music platform I AM NEXT will host a night in the newly opened Grand Hall.

Furthermore, Battersea Arts Centre will, for the first time, be the location for the UK Beatboxing Championships from 26 to 27 October, bringing together artists from across the country battling for the crowns on offer.

Station House Opera will present a new mix of live-streaming, recorded video and performance in At Home in Gaza and London, which brings together performers in both London and Gaza in a single performance space. The piece will run from 27 June to 1 July.

Also announced today is the Phoenix Award, an opportunity for small-scale theatremakers to present their show on the Battersea Arts Centre main stage.