A series of new Monday Monologues written and recorded during lockdown by UK and Irish writers including Travis Alabanza, Natasha Brown, Shaun Dunne, Sophie Ellerby, Tristan Fynn-Aiduenu and performed by actors including Patrick Gibson, Ibinabo Jack, Maymuna Abdi, Anjana Vasan, and Stefan Adegbola will be released by the Bush Theatre, fortnightly from today (18 May).
Funny, sad, heart-warming, and poignant, this series of Monday Monologues will be available to watch on IGTV, Twitter, Youtube and the Bush Theatre website for the next twelve months.
Monday Monologues
18 May – Ibinabo Jack in Skype d8 by Travis Alabanza
It is hard to focus on what you are saying because I am imagining what my image looks like – as big on your side of the screen, as it is tiny on mine.
Dating is tricky at the best of times but what happens when you can only see each other online?
Travis Alabanza’s Skype d8 is a hilariously honest look at the pitfalls of dating in isolation, starring Ibinabo Jack, who recently appeared as Leah
The High Table at the Bush.
1 June – Patrick Gibson in Beds by Shaun Dunne
From that first night I think we both regretted it.
Laying there stiff and quiet.
On a bed like a rock.
They should be hard. Relationships. Beds. Hard is good for you. Isn’t it? Patrick Gibson (Sweat in the West End) performs Shaun Dunne’s bittersweet reflection on the end of a relationship.
15 June – Maymuna Abdi in Clarissa by Tristan Fynn-Aiduenu
I woke up in the most psychedelically wallpapered home I had seen since I went to my Gran’s yard when I was 10. I said, “Heaven is clapped man.”
Takeshi provides vibes upon vibes in her infamous Instagram live stream, but memories of a fight gone wrong and an unearthly chance encounter keep surfacing in Tristan Fynn-Aiduenu’s Clarissa, starring Maymuna Abdi.
29 June – Anjana Vasan in Contradictions by Natasha Brown
I keep telling myself I’m not in love with you and I’m not so don’t worry. It’s just I don’t skip over all the love songs that come up on my shuffle anymore…
Okay, the mornings do seem brighter. Phone calls with family members aren’t such a chore. And, yes even food tastes better right now. But Natasha Brown’s protagonist, played by Anjana Vasan (A Doll’s House) is definitely, definitely not in love.
13 July – Stefan Adegbola in Anything for Cash by Sophie Ellerby
You see him more than I do! On your television. Stood behind a little podium. Looking all smart and sexy and serious in his suit.
Absence makes the heart grow fonder? Not when your lover is busy keeping the country calm in a time of crisis. In Sophie Ellerby’s monologue, Stefan Adegbola (Bush Theatre’s The High Table) plays a man left on hold by his high-flying boyfriend, wondering when his personal life got so political. Sophie’s previous productions include Lit (HighTide Festival and Nottingham Playhouse) and Three (Arcola).
Find out more on the Bush Theatre website.
The Bush Theatre is currently closed due to the Coronavirus. The previously announced theatre season is postponed, and new dates will be announced later in the year.
During this difficult time any donation, big or small, will play a part in ensuring the Bush Theatre can continue to support writers. Please donate via the link at bushtheatre.co.uk if you can.