Hidden Gems Volume II

This second and sister volume to Hidden Gems showcases a further range of plays by Black British writers whose work reaches beyond themes too-often perceived by mainstream theatre commissioning as defining Black people's experiences. The plays, monodrama and libretto represent subject-matter from woman-centred history, revolutionary politics, trans-racial adoption and African-diasporic familial heritage, as contoured by the writers' boundary crossing profiles as poets, playwrights, performers and directors. The accompanying critical introductions are provided by people committed to recognising the aesthetic and political significance of the work, and its necessary inclusion in British theatre and literary history. This new volume presents the work of six exceptional contemporary black British writers and includes: A Bitter Herb by Kwame Kwei-Armah (Introduced by Dr. Fiona Peters, Goldsmiths), The Far Side by Courttia Newland (Introduced by Winsome Pinnock), Identity by Paul Antony Morris (Introduced by Patricia Cumper, Talawa), Mary Seacole by SuAndi (Introduced by Dr. Mina Kasavani, University of Athens), Absolution by Malika Booker and Urban Afro-Saxons by Patricia Elcock and Kofi Agyemang. Edited by Deirdre Osborne, each play is critically introduced, to create an anthology of interactions - between the people who have long championed the work through teaching and writing about it and the people who produce, perform and explain their intentions behind it.