Following its sold-out run at The Young Vic, Joe Murphy and Joe Robertson’s The Jungle will be transferring to the West End.
The Jungle, directed by Stephen Daldry and Justin Martin, is set in Europe’s largest unofficial refugee camp – known as the Calais Jungle – which became a temporary home for more than 10,000 people in 2015.
It tells stories of loss, fear, community and hope, from the camp’s creation to its eventual destruction. Join the residents over freshly baked naan and sweet milky chai at the Afghan Café, and experience the intense, moving and uplifting encounters between refugees from many different countries and the volunteers who arrived from the UK.
West End’s Playhouse Theatre is undergoing a wild transformation so it can host the transfer of the universally acclaimed play. The traditional proscenium theatre will be metamorphosed so it can house Miriam Buether’s critically-acclaimed in-the-round set design, where audiences can sit on the benches and at the tables of the Afghan café in the Calais camp. The dress circle will be renamed “Cliffs of Dover” and will give audiences members a unique view of the performance space. The modifications will reduce the theatre’s capacity to 450 seats to recreate the intimate and immediate experience audiences had at the Young Vic.
The Jungle at the Young Vic (Photo: David Sandison)
Previews start on 16 June, and opening night will be on 5 July. 40% of tickets across the whole house will be £25 or under, and a proportion of tickets will be held off sale to be offered to refugees and targeted groups in order to maximise diversity and accessibility.
The majority of the original cast will transfer with the production, including actors from refugee backgrounds, some of whom came through the Jungle. The full cast includes: Ammar Haj Ahmad, Mohammad Amiri, Girum Bekele, Elham Ehsas, Trevor Fox, Moein Ghobsheh, Ansu Kabia, Alex Lawther, John Pfumojena, Rachel Redford, Rachid Sabitri, Mohamed Sarrar, Ben Turner and Nahel Tzegai.
Official charity partner, Help Refugees, will be supported by the production, with fundraising efforts taking place at the venue throughout the entire run.