Gripping Leeds-based thriller launches new Bramall Rock Void season at Leeds Playhouse

Shellshocked, a gripping cat and mouse thriller that will keep audiences guessing until the final explosive scene, launches the Spring/Summer 25 season in the Bramall Rock Void studio theatre at Leeds Playhouse.

Set after the Second World War, it explores the horrors of those who served and the horrors of those who did not. It also investigates loyalty, relationships, and the desire to make great art.

“We are absolutely thrilled to be presenting Shellshocked at Leeds Playhouse,” said Leeds playwright Philip Stokes. “The play is inspired by the city and set in Morley. It’s a very Leeds-centric piece, referencing the area, the dialect, the attitudes, and the uniqueness of two Loiners with very different lives. Watch Mr Lupine and young Wesley battle it out, showing how youth and maturity clashed generations ago. There’s always been a generation gap; the war just widened it.”

Not only is the play set in Leeds, it also has a strong connection with the Playhouse. Actor Lee Bainbridge, who plays Mr Lupine, works at the theatre as its Building Operations and Facilities Manager. Award-winning actor Jack Stokes, who plays Wesley, trained at Leeds City College, which is next door to the Playhouse. He won the Best Solo Performance Award at Edinburgh Fringe in 2022 for Jesus, Jane, Mother & Me.

“The city of Leeds and Leeds Playhouse have always had a special place in my heart,” said Lee. “I have a deep connection and history with the city, and when COVID hit and circumstances meant I had to take a small step away from acting, the Playhouse became my home away from home. It has been a privilege over the past three years to serve as the Building Operations and Facilities Manager, trying to ensure the staff and public have a building that is clean, safe and well maintained.

“The Playhouse is my Elland Road, so I am very excited to be performing in my ‘home ground’ in a play that I am immensely proud of with a great team of Yorkshire folk who are very dear to me. It truly feels like a dream come true that these two important parts of my life are merging to create a very special moment in my life.”

This powerful new play enjoyed a hugely successful sold-out Edinburgh Fringe Festival run, garnering rave reviews in The Scotsman and Theatre Weekly.

Listings info
Richard Jordan Productions, King Brilliant Theatre, 412, The LBT and Harrogate Theatre present
Shellshocked
Bramall Rock Void, Leeds Playhouse
5-8 February
70 mins (no interval)
Age 14+
Box office 0113 213 7700
Book online leedsplayhouse.org.uk

Bramall Rock Void SS25 season
Shellshocked, a powerful new play by Leeds-born playwright Philip Stokes, recognised by the British Library as a culturally important playwright of the 21st century.
5 – 8 February

The Intrusion from Bric à Brac Theatre and Told by an Idiot, features original music, creative captioning, and clowning. This darkly comic production offers an anarchic look at extinction and questions who gets to survive.
1 – 8 March

Frozen Light’s The Ancient Oak of Baldor is a folk tale of love, loss and the interconnectedness of all things. The production is a multi-sensory experience for audiences with profound and multiple learning disabilities and their companions.
11 & 12 March

… blackbird hour is a visceral and moving exploration of a queer Black woman’s call to arms for loving oneself when love has made itself scarce.
13 – 15 March

Persephone and her animal friends invite you and your babies to join them for a gentle sensory exploration of the changes in nature, collecting things along the way. Persephone: A Tale of the Seasons is for children aged 6 months to 3 years.
18 & 19 March

The Story Forge: Make Your Own Myth combines the theatrical forces of Rubbish Shakespeare Company and Silly History Boys in an hilarious hour of fun, excitement and high-octane adventure. Featuring storytelling, clowning and live music.
9 – 12 April

On Boxing Day 2015, the Yorkshire town of Hebden Bridge experienced its worst floods in a century. But, as the valley submerged, a community emerged, working together to rebuild their sodden town. Performed by a cast of five actor-musicians and drawing on the musical and artistic traditions of the area, The Flood is a love letter to a town that refused to give in to the volatility of nature.
17 & 19 April

The Noisy Dinosaur has lost its ROAR! Join Dino and a whole host of comfy creatures in Cuddly Jungle as they work together to make some noise. With puppetry, music, lights, projection and sound, it’ll be ROAR-some!
22 – 24 April

Sisters 360 is an exciting new play by acclaimed Bradford playwright Asif Khan inspired by real-life skateboarding sisters Layna, Maysa and Amaya, and their hero Sky Brown.
7 – 10 May

Closure? is a one act comedy that follows Lydia De La Murrãy on her journey of self-discovery as she analyses all her past relationships… in detail.
22 – 24 May

She’s written for the BBC, she’s performed at Shakespeare’s Globe, now she’s bringing a little bit of lighthearted silliness to Leeds. Pocket Rocket by Bradford’s Kat Rose-Martin is a whistle stop tour in the multi-verse of her mind with short comedy sketches featuring a collection of chaotic characters.
30 & 31 May

Tiggy Bayley, a talented scriptwriter, director and performer, debuts her new one woman show Squidge. It follows Daisy, a reluctant teaching assistant, as she is assigned a young Irish traveller to help with his reading and finds hope in an unlikely friendship.
6 & 7 June

Brainstorm is a mind-boggling show designed to be performed by teenagers which explores what it means to be a young person today on the brink of adulthood. It is being co-created and performed by Leeds Playhouse Youth Theatre.
10 – 12 July

Leeds Playhouse has been one of the UK’s leading producing theatres for 55 years. It is an award-winning theatre and a cultural hub, a place where people gather to tell and share stories and engage in world class theatre. It makes work which is pioneering and relevant, seeking out the best companies and artists to create inspirational theatre in the heart of Yorkshire.

Its warm welcome was recognised at the UK Theatre Awards. In 2022, Leeds Playhouse was named Most Welcoming Theatre, recognising its daily endeavors to make the building an inviting, engaging, creative, accessible and inclusive hub at the heart of the Leeds City Region. For the last three years, leading performers in Playhouse productions have been named Best Performer in a Musical and, in 2024, the Playhouse’s production of Oliver! was named Best Musical.

Alongside the work on its stages, the Playhouse works creatively with the people, artists and communities of Leeds through its innovative, sector-leading Playhouse Connect programme. Focussing on two key areas – Learning & Skills and Creative Communities – Playhouse Connect engages with thousands of people in the region each year. As part of this work, its Artistic Development programme, Furnace, engages with theatre-makers, providing a creative space to refine their practice at all stages of their careers; it builds, develops and sustains projects to connect with refugee communities, young people and students, older people and people with learning disabilities; it hands over spaces to communities to use in ways they choose, from breakdancing to roller-skating, craft markets to tea parties, enlivening the building whilst fostering deeper relationships; and works in-residence around the city, connecting with people on their doorsteps.

As a registered charity, Leeds Playhouse relies on the support of valued partners to make great things happen. It is grateful for the continued support of Arts Council England, Leeds City Council, The Liz and Terry Bramall Foundation and the many charitable trusts, business partners and individuals that continue to support the vital work of the theatre.