Play by Leeds graduate shares stories of immigration

Recently revived work on the London stage by successful playwright and MA Writing for Performance and Publication graduate Zodwa Nyoni has been featured in The Guardian.

Nine Lives offers a glimpse of what it’s like to be a refugee from Zimbabwean refugee in the UK fleeing homophobia. The play was originally commissioned by Oron Mor and Leeds Playhouse for A Play, A Pie and A pint in 2014 during Zodwa’s residency as Channel 4 playwright in residence at the Playhouse. In 2015 it was remounted by Leeds Studio for a highly successful national and international tour. It was featured on BBC Arts Online as part of a special season of short films and features shining a spotlight on theatre within refugee, migrant and asylum-seeking communities.

Zodwa’s compassionate piece of theatre earned excited national and local reviews.

★★★ 'This is a snapshot, but it’s a truthful one and suggests that Nyoni, who has already made her mark with Boi Boi Is Dead, is a playwright well worth watching.'  The Guardian

★★★ A compassionate, engagingly performed monologue about the experience of being a refugee. The Stage 

After graduating from the University of Leeds in 2013, Zodwa has shot to prominence as a poet and playwright, with major awards and nominations to her name. Nine Lives was the first major production by Zodwa at Leeds Playhouse, and was followed by the successful Boi Boi is Dead in 2015 and Ode to Leeds in 2018. Zodwa is also a visiting lecturer on two MA courses in the School of Performance and Cultural Industries: MA Writing for Performance and Publication, and MA Applied Theatre and Intervention.

Find out more about postgraduate courses in the School of Performance and Cultural Industries.

Nine Lives  runs in repertoire at the Bridge theatre, London, 22-31 October.