Leeds Playhouse celebrates new work by Global Majority artists at its annual Furnace Festival

Leeds Playhouse is celebrating new work by Global Majority artists in an exciting programme of performances at its annual Furnace Festival from 28-30 November.

The festival is an engaging, experimental and interactive event that gives early career artists an opportunity to share and get valuable feedback on their work. It also gives audiences the chance to experience new voices and to explore their own creativity.

Focusing on Global Majority voices, the festival includes generational stories, Caribbean culture, traditional food and music, and a Scratch Night.

Linda-Ray Ndlovu, Furnace Co-Ordinator, said: “I am particularly excited about this festival because we have some exciting stories and pieces that focus on the culture in black communities; stories that talk about the generational effects of colonization and being born into this economy. The Scratch Night also gives more local artists space to explore a variety of topics and accessibility within theatre. It’s inspirational to see all this work happening on a Playhouse stage and for these artists to have that voice.”

The festival is a key part of the Playhouse’s Furnace programme, which works with hundreds of locally rooted artists and organisations every year, generating and creating new performance work while supporting and nourishing the local creative community. Click here to find out more.

FURNACE FESTIVAL PROGRAMME
The Lives We Carry
By Leah Francis
Thursday 28 November, 7.30pm
Bramall Rock Void, Leeds Playhouse
Journey with Black British Northern Woman, Patsy, as she unearths the layers of her heritage, uncovering how trauma, strength, and resilience echo through generations. Through the lens of epigenetic inheritance, this powerful production sheds light on the often-unseen forces shaping black women’s lives today. With themes of wellness and self-care woven throughout, the show aims to empower, offering a space where black women can feel truly seen and heard.
There will be a Q&A after the performance.

Scratch Night
Friday 30 November, 7.30pm
Bramall Rock Void, Leeds Playhouse
Local artists informally share their work-in-progress for audience feedback in the Playhouse’s studio space. Furnace Festival is a positive and supportive opportunity for people to give script-in-hand readings or early excerpt performances of their current project. This year’s artists include Dan Loops, Letty McHugh, Xolani Rose and Brogan Rigby.

As I Am Naturally
By Tania Camara
Saturday 30 November, 2pm
Bramall Rock Void, Leeds Playhouse
A journey of self-discovery and reclamation, embodying and intertwining themes of identity, landscape, touch and memory. This moving new production features compelling spoken word, dance and live music using the traditional music and dance style Batuko, Kora, clarinet and electronic sound to transport audiences from the urban landscape of Salford to the African island of Cape Verde. Delivered in English, Portuguese and Cape Verdean Creole, it amplifies the voices of generations of Black women, creating space for their stories to be heard and experienced while celebrating their bodies through a collective act of liberation and reclamation.
Commissioned by The Lowry as part of the artist development programme ‘Developed With’ with additional support from Arts Council England, LusoConnection UK and hÅb.

A Love Letter to Our Sistas
By Sistahood
Saturday 30 November, 7.30pm
Bramall Rock Void, Leeds Playhouse
The Sistahood is a safe place where a group of black women meet to talk, share, relate and create. The group started with many and was led by a few. But then there came a day when only two showed up, as the rest were pulled away by life, commitments, and the pressures of running the group.
This piece follows the journey of how the women reached this place of uncertainty and disconnect. All whilst exploring the challenges and experiences of being a black woman, the importance of a ‘sistahood’, and how they can reconnect again.

Furnace Festival Social
Saturday 30 November, 8.30pm
Bramall Rock Void, Leeds Playhouse
Join us for an informal get-together with music and drinks.

All events at Furnace Festival are either free or Pay What You Can.

Box office 0113 213 7700
Book online at leedsplayhouse.org.uk