Protest Song

Description

Danny sleeps rough on the steps of St Paul's Cathedral. Has done for years. Then one morning he wakes to see a canvas city being erected in front of him. And Danny finds himself swept up in the last occupation of London. Protest Song is a fictional play inspired by real events. Tim Price's funny and savage monologue explores the reality of the Occupy movement. Protest Song received its world premiere in the National Theatre's Shed Theatre on 16 December 2013. This edition features an introduction by the playwright, Tim Price.

Tim Price is a former journalist from the South Wales valleys. As well as writing for stage and television, he hosts a new writing night in a Mongolian Yurt in Cardiff called Dirty Protest. Tim was one of eight candidates to be selected for the BBC Drama Writer's Academy 2009 and was awarded a The50 bursary in 2006 as one of the best 50 emerging writers in the UK. His plays include For Once (Pentabus Theatre), Salt Root and Roe (Donmar Warehouse/Trafalgar Studios) and I'm With The Band (Traverse Theatre).

The cry of protest it invokes is a strong one against the inequalities we all condone by our continued failure to do anything about them. * Guardian * Down with bailed-out banks, student loans, racist cops - oh, and Boris. * Daily Telegraph * . . . its political message is both refreshingly complex and important . . . This is exactly the sort of brave theatrical event that we need to see more of at the National. * Observer * Our sympathy is never lost . . . and the audience are kept constantly on their toes. * Independent * It is an intelligent look at the Occupy movement from its fringe. The monologue highlights the contradictions inherent in the movement related to idealism and realism. And how difficult it is to position oneself in the place of the other. Imaginative use of audience participation in that respect, so that the issue of empathy may transfer to the spectators. -- Jose Ramon Prado, University Jaume I, Spain