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  • David Labi presents

    Pieces of a Man

    Thurs 29 Sept at 9pm
    Tickets £12 (£10)
    ARCHIVE
    David performs the rollercoaster story of his late father, a Libyan-Italian Holocaust Survivor. A hilarious and powerful one-man show examining fatherhood, identity, trauma, and joy.

    In this hilarious and powerful one-man show, David performs the rollercoaster story of his late father. A Libyan Jew imprisoned as a child in the Nazi concentration camp of Bergen-Belsen, Marcello brought lifelong wonder, madness, joy, and pain to those around him.

    The show explores questions of identity, persecution, forced migration, and liberation. It questions notions of masculinity, as an old-school alpha contrasts with a millennial progressive. The stories of father and son span unimaginable conflict and vertiginous social change.

    Pieces of a Man is an interactive, mixed-media show delving into shifting pasts and parallel presents, using photos, clips from Marcello’s Holocaust Survivor testimonial, anecdotes of soldiers, gangsters, and casinos… And his five most treasured objects, entrusted to David, and subsequently lost.

    Little known histories are recounted – such as the Holocaust plight of Libyan Jews, and the values clash of a Sephardi-Ashkenazi marriage. Yet this piece reaches beyond Jewry, with its story of unresolved parental trauma touching diverse communities, and leaving every spectator just a little bit transformed.

    Content Notice
    Running Time 90 minutes
    Wheelchair Accessible
    Wheelchair Accessible
    Assistance dogs welcome
    Assistance dogs welcome
    Content Notice
    Content NoticeInvolves discussion of the Holocaust
    "Gripping and extremely moving."
    Mike Radford, Executive Producer, BBC
    "David draws you in to the labyrinth of his father's world. The solo show makes you question the past, present and future. A moving and soul-searching piece"
    Rosanna Lewis, Culture & Programming, British Council
    "The show entertainingly combines humour, drama, and intrigue to tell real-life events you can scarcely believe. You question how well you know your own parents"
    Edward McMillan, Artistic Director, The Bridge Theatre Brussels
    "A completely brilliant, truthful, moving piece. It’s ringing in my ears and heart"
    Charlie Westenra, Olivier Award-winning theatre director

    "Welcoming, friendly, the best bits of London in a cool venue."

    Audience member