The Plays of Rob Hayes reach Birmingham

Two strangers discover a unique bond whilst paying their respects at a funeral; a young man comes up against a nightmare bureaucrat when lodging a complaint about an horrific encounter; a snack machine ponders the futility of human existence; and a desperate couple go to extreme lengths to secure their financial wellbeing.

These are The Plays of Rob Hayes and show life as seen through the eyes of the award winning young playwright. Shocking, grotesque, moving, often hilarious and always original, these four stories – ‘A Wake’, ‘Sandy123’, ‘Vending Machine’ and the award-winning ‘Selling Clive’ – offer a unique view into the bizarre world of Hayes.

This project brings together some of the most exciting young theatrical talent in the country, with Hayes reuniting with director Ned Bennett (Apprentice Director to Sean Matthias on ‘Breakfast at Tiffany’s’ and director of David Mamet’s ‘Edmond’, both at the Theatre Royal, Haymarket) for the first time since they scooped Best Overall Production in the 26th Lost Theatre Annual One Act Festival.

The pair, along with actors Mark Weinman, Ciaran Owens and Tristan Shepherd (all appearing in The Plays of Rob Hayes), received critical acclaim for ‘Selling Clive’, with the play described by The Times critic Jeremy Kingston as “a wonderfully macabre comedy,” adding that Hayes is “stunning…an extraordinary talent.” Fi Russell, who designed the original ‘Selling Clive’ set and is Resident Designer for Above The Stag Theatre Company, also joins the group. Russell was recently nominated for an Off West End Theatre Award for her design on ‘High Society’ at Upstairs at the Gatehouse.

The cast is made up of Owens (Soho Theatre’s ‘White Boy’, Channel 4’s ‘The Inbetweeners’), Weinman (Judges Award for Acting, Sunday Times NSDF, Kneehigh Theatre Company’s ‘FastBurn’), Shepherd (West Yorkshire Playhouse’s ‘Hay Fever’ & ‘As You Like It’, ITV’s ‘Poirot’), Sam Gardner (Royal Shakespeare Company’s ‘Dunsinane’, National Theatre’s ‘Greenland’, Mark Ravenhill’s Southwark Playhouse production ‘The Exclusion Zone’) and Alex Croft (LAMDA graduate and star of two acclaimed Edinburgh Festival Fringe productions).

The group behind The Plays of Rob Hayes – many of whom have been involved in sell-out productions in Birmingham, Edinburgh, Leeds and Manchester among others – are looking to develop audiences for their new writing productions outside of London. The production is brought to mac in partnership with Multitude Media, a PR company that helps to develop new talent in the arts around the UK from bases in Leeds, London and Manchester.

The Plays of Rob Hayes are at the MAC on 18th and 19th December.

www.macarts.co.uk