The Pleasance and Camden People's Theatre are thrilled to announce the first ever CPT Main House Takeover at the Pleasance. DREAM BIG is a new development opportunity for artists who have successfully worked at studio scale through CPT to develop ambitious ideas for main stages, to take artistic risks and progress their professional practice.
We were beyond thrilled to be approached by our friends at the Pleasance last year, as they invited us to takeover their main stage with some of CPT’s most exciting artists. As CPT continues to grow on its journey with inclusion, we are really excited to platform some of our artists who are exploring integrated access (whether that’s audio description, British Sign Language, or creative captioning), and to give artists who’ve worked on our stages the chance to play in a big arena. There are so many barriers for artists moving from studio to the midscale, and this opportunity for companies to experiment is going to be so, so valuable, both in terms of being able to progress their professional practice and take artistic risks, but also as an opportunity to connect with midscale producers and programmers for future collaboration. Every piece is intersectional, political, joyful and ambitious, and we can’t wait to share them!
The four artists/companies selected are FUSE, Em Prendergast, Fish in a Dress and Carmen Collective. Each will present a work-in-progress sharing of an ambitious new project, each exploring integrated accessibility.
Friday 6th February, 7pm
Bury Me - Yerma Reimagined - by Em Prendergast (of BARRIER(S) fame)
A radical reimagining of Lorca’s Yerma through a working-class, lesbian lens, Em Prendergast's Bury Me explores obsession, reproductive justice and the lived experience of marginalisation. It reframes Yerma’s ‘madness’ not as hysteria, but as the reality of a person navigating a mental health crisis, recovery from alcoholism and the pressures of life and reproduction with systemic barriers. The play asks whether hope is a luxury beyond the reach of working-class LGBTQIA+ people, and how it can be transformed into something tangible, shared, and survivable. This sharing will include British Sign Language, spoken English, and be captioned for accessibility.
The Only Brown Deaf Man in England - by FUSE (CPT's newly announced Resident Company)
From 1970s Brick Lane to the post-9/11 present, The Only Brown Deaf Man in England follows Rajkumar, a Deaf Bengali man, as he navigates the chaos, comedy and contradictions of life in Britain. Fleeing genocide, dodging racists, clashing with his hearing parents, and somehow finding laughter in it all — Rajkumar's story is funny, fierce and deeply moving. This is a bold new one-man show blending British Sign Language, razor-sharp humour, and powerful storytelling. This event will be in BSL with spoken English interpretation.
Saturday 7th February, 7pm
bush (a lesbian romcom for two people and a plant) - by fish in a dress (the makers of City for Incurable Women)
Mariam is a writer; Bea is a biologist working on plant gender.
After their recent break up and in between rentals both find themselves in the flat of their mutual friend. Accidentally she had offered her place to both of them under the condition to plant-sit while she is away. Not only is this living situation dire, also the demands of plant-care get increasingly surreal. In this sharing, fish in a dress will be exploring creative captioning.
Following their critically acclaimed debut The City for Incurable Women (★★★★ Guardian, ★★★★★ Theatre Weekly) fish in a dress ask: what is the nature of love?
GAMEPLAY - by Carmen Collective (2025 CPT Starting Block cohort)
Racing through history, into the contemporary, and far into the future, GAMEPLAY is a powerful shot of experimental performance from acclaimed theatre-maker Sam Rees and world-renowned sound artist AJ Turner.
GAMEPLAY is a feverish love note for the end of days, a survival manual written in the borrowed time between the siren and the bomb. Come and be part of a rehearsal for the apocalypse. *The company is not liable for heart palpitations, existential dread, arousal (sexual, spiritual, other), or the sudden awareness of your own mortality. In this sharing, Carmen Collective will be exploring integrated audio description.
