Ntombizodwa Nyoni – författare

There’s always a pause,between the inhale and the first word.The room is silent. Butterflies collide.The words begin to rise up inside of you;Metaphors and similes contort like question marks.Your mouth unhinges,You speakFive young poets from Leeds are selected to compete at the world’s most prestigious international poetry slam competition in New York City.Fuelled by love, pride and passionate protest, their words light fires to show the world who they are and what they can be. But the determination to be crowned International Slam Champions threatens to overwhelm everything. As the competition draws closer, the poets are forced to discover not just their voices, but what they must find the courage to say.Ode to Leeds is a funny and moving coming-of-age story; a celebration of Leeds and language; and an ode to the art that changed Nyoni's own life. It blends spoken word poetry, heart and soul to provide a poignant and uplifting portrait of the city of Leeds. The play received its world premiere at the West Yorkshire Playhouse, Leeds, on 10 June 2017.

A bold play collection representing Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Trans, Intersex and Queer (LGBTIQ+) experiences, from Black British perspectives, this anthology contains seven radical plays by Black writers that change the face of theatre in Britain. With an international reach connecting Africa, the Caribbean and the Diaspora, these plays address themes including same-sex love, sex, homophobia, apartheid, migration and space travel. The collection captures the historical scope and range of Black British LGBTIQ+ theatre, from the 1980s to 2021. Including a range of forms, from monologue to musicals, realist drama to club-performance, readers will journey through the development of Black Queer theatre in Britain. Through a helpful critical introduction, this book provides important socio-political and historical context, highlighting and illuminating key themes in the plays. Each play is preceded by an intergenerational ‘in-conversation’ piece between two Black British LGBTIQ+ artists and writers who will talk about their own work in relation to the play, looking back at the history and on into the future. Through these rare conversations with highly acclaimed award-winning practitioners, readers will also gain an insight into the theatre industry, funding, producing, venues as well as the politics of identity, the diversity of LGBTIQ+ lives and the richness of Black British cultures.

A bold play collection representing Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Trans, Intersex and Queer (LGBTIQ+) experiences, from Black British perspectives, this anthology contains seven radical plays by Black writers that change the face of theatre in Britain. With an international reach connecting Africa, the Caribbean and the Diaspora, these plays address themes including same-sex love, sex, homophobia, apartheid, migration and space travel. The collection captures the historical scope and range of Black British LGBTIQ+ theatre, from the 1980s to 2021. Including a range of forms, from monologue to musicals, realist drama to club-performance, readers will journey through the development of Black Queer theatre in Britain. Through a helpful critical introduction, this book provides important socio-political and historical context, highlighting and illuminating key themes in the plays. Each play is preceded by an intergenerational ‘in-conversation’ piece between two Black British LGBTIQ+ artists and writers who will talk about their own work in relation to the play, looking back at the history and on into the future. Through these rare conversations with highly acclaimed award-winning practitioners, readers will also gain an insight into the theatre industry, funding, producing, venues as well as the politics of identity, the diversity of LGBTIQ+ lives and the richness of Black British cultures.

You’ve got to learn how to keep it inside. We have to. The world doesn’t like us acting out. They’ll put you down any chance they get. You can’t be doing all this screaming. As siblings Shirley and Dwight bury their mother, they remember their upbringing in 1980s Chapeltown Leeds differently. In the height of racial discrimination, police brutality and poverty, the struggle for survival ripped through their family.Now as adults, they need to bring together the fractured pieces of their past in order to move forward.Zodwa Nyoni’s gripping and heartfelt drama explores the complexities and beauty of what it really means to care for one another.

Shortlisted for the Alfred Fagon Award 2025. To liberate anyone, you must first overthrowwhat you fear within yourself, Nkrumah.(Beat) It was never going to happen over oneweek in Manchester. (Beat) It is your life’swork. (Beat) It is a marathon.It’s 15 October 1945, Manchester. Africa’s freedom and future is in the hands of her descendants at the Fifth Pan-African Congress at Chorlton-on-Medlock Town Hall. Emerging African & Caribbean activists and scholars offer new radical ideas of liberation. However, the organiser, Trinidadian activist George Padmore is unsure who to pass the baton to. Kwame Nkrumah is fuelled by an idealistic desire to become the first Black president of the Gold Coast. Resourceful Jamaican social worker Alma La Badie is grappling with who must be sacrificed for the cause. And what of the revered Amy Ashwood-Garvey how does she ensure the voices of Black women are heard? With generational shifts and gender politics added to a swirling mix of power dynamics, Liberation asks timeless questions about revolution, freedom, and what it means to be an activist. This edition of Liberation commissioned by the Royal Exchange Theatre was published to coincide with the world premiere produced by Royal Exchange Theatre and Factory International Manchester in June 2025.