Project Description
★★★★
‘Every year the Papatango New Writing Prize comes up with a bit of a cracker…tackles, with grace and dignity, the tricky subject of Islamic attitudes to same-sex relationships.’
★★★★★
‘A triumphant piece of theatre…mesmerising’
★★★★★
‘Pitch perfect’
★★★★
‘Papatango have dug up a real gem from a very promising writer.’
★★★★
‘A writer to watch, Qureshi has written a brilliant piece.’
★★★★
‘Tough, tender…extremely moving.’
“I just thought it would be a secret I’d have to die with. And now – I think it’ll be what kills me.”
Life as the director of a Muslim funeral parlour isn’t always easy, but Ayesha has things pretty sorted. She and Zeyd share everything: a marriage, a business, a future.
Until Tom walks in to organise his boyfriend’s funeral. A snap moral decision, informed by the values of Ayesha’s community and faith, has profound consequences.
Forced to confront a secret she has hidden even from herself, Ayesha must decide who she is – no matter the cost.
Chosen from 1,384 entries to the 2018 Papatango New Writing Prize, The Funeral Director is an incisive and heartfelt story of sexuality, gender and religion in 21st-century Britain.
Creatives
Writer – Iman Quershi
Director – Hannah Hauer-King
Designer – Amy Jane Cook
Lighting Designer – Jack Weir
Sound Designer – Max Pappenheim
Advertising & Marketing – Joe Public Ltd
Press & Publicity – Kate Morley PR
Cast
Aryana Ramkhalawon
Edward Stone
Assad Zaman
Francesca Zoutewelle
Produced for and on behalf of English Touring Theatre & Papatango Theatre Company