Playwrights Inua Ellams, Neil LaBute, Bola Agbaje, Clare Bayley, Lydia Adetunji and Pedro Miguel Rozo have joined forces with a team of scientists to present the world premiere of Mouthful, a series of plays tackling the global food crisis, at the Trafalgar Studios in September.
Featuring a cast including Posh’s Harry Lister Smith, Mouthful will bring its sextet of darkly comic tales to the intimate Trafalgar Studio 2 from 8 September (press night 11 September) to 3 October.
Forming the centrepiece of Metta Theatre’s 10th anniversary celebrations, the project follows four very different individuals. Sebastian is travelling to Nigeria in search of his steak-loving missing friend, GoGo is sacrificing everything for a glass of water, Erica is trying to win her daughter’s affections with the rare delicacy of the last potato and Rashida just wants to eat her chocolate bar in peace.
The cast, which sees Lister Smith joined by Alisha Bailey (Moon On A Rainbow Shawl, NT), Robert Hands (Scenes From An Execution, NT) and Doña Croll (The Archbishop And The Antichrist, Soho Theatre), will play multiple roles across the six plays.
Directed by Poppy Burton-Morgan, the politically provocative piece was produced in collaboration with six of the world’s top scientists – Professors Tim Benton, Kamal Bawa, Suzanne Filteau, Ilkka Hanski, Molly Jahn and Tim Lang – and aims to explore the global food crisis in a “theatrically imaginative production”.
Talking about the project, Professor Benton, UK Champion for Global Food Security, said: “Our food impacts on our health and well-being, the planet’s well-being and our eating habits affect the livelihoods of others throughout the world. Mouthful innovatively explores our food system and the way our demand may affect our futures.”
Mouthful will open at the Trafalgar Studio 2 following the current run of the Steven Webb-led As Is and forthcoming apartheid drama My Children! My Africa. It will be followed into the Whitehall venue by Paul Andrew Williams’ debut play Ticking starring The Game’s Tom Hughes.