Bootycandy

Robert O'Hara (he/him) has received the NAACP Best Play and Best Director Award, the Helen Hayes Award for Outstanding New Play, two Obies and the Herb Alpert Award, as well as a Tony Nomination for Slave Play. As a Director, his theatre credits include many world premieres: Jeremy O. Harris’ Slave Play, Nikkole Salter and Dania Guiria’s In the Continuum, Tarell McCraney’s The Brother/Sister Plays (Part 2), Colman Domingo’s Wild with Happy, Kirsten Childs’ Bella: An American Tall Tale, Ross Baum and Angelica Cheri’s Gun and Powder; and his own plays, Bootycandy, Mankind, and Insurrection: Holding History. His upcoming projects include: directing O'Neill’s Long Day's Journey into Night, directing Anthony Davis’s opera X: The Life and Times of Malcolm X, writing and directing a series for Netflix/Ryan Murphy and writing and directing a feature film adaptation of his original play, Barbecue for Anonymous Content.

Milla Clarke (she/her) was the winner of the Linbury Prize for Stage Design in 2015. Other awards include Lord Williams Prize for Design and The Prince of Wales Design Scholarship. She trained at the Royal Welsh College of Music and Drama, graduating with a first class BA hons degree in Theatre Design. For Gate Theatre, theatre credits include: A Small Place. As Designer, theatre credits include: Macbeth (The Reykjavik City Theatr); Ivy Tiller: Vicar’s Daughter, Squirrel Killer (Mischief Festival, RSC); Red Ellen (Northern Stage); Isla (Theatr Clwyd); La Traviata (Nevill Holt); La bohème (ENO: Drive & Live); The Brief and Frightening Reign of Phil (co-designed with Chloe Lamford for The New Zealand Festival Theatre); Yolk and Aliens (co-created with Jane Horrocks, Molly Vivian and Francesca Levi for Brighton Festival); Curious (co-designed with Rosie Elnile for Soho Theatre); Mr Burns, Gone Too Far (Guildhall); There Are No Beginnings (Leeds Playhouse); A Midsummer Night’s Dream (National Youth Theatre); Europe, You Got Older (LAMDA); Inside Bitch, Bad Roads, B, Human Animals (Royal Court); Beginners (Unicorn Theatre); Elephant (Birmingham Rep); Outside and Out of Water (Orange Tree Theatre); The Tide Whisperer (National Theatre Wales); Highway One (August 012 / Wales Millennium Centre); Frogman (Curious Directive, Traverse Theatre); Paul Bunyan, The Day After, Trial by Jury (English National Opera).

Jahmiko Marshall is a Lighting and Sound Designer from Bermuda. He obtained his Lighting Technology Certificate from Stagecraft Institute of Las Vegas. He is currently a student at LAMDA studying towards his BA Hons in Production and Technical Arts. Before arriving in London, Jahmiko was heavily involved in light design for all the productions at his High School in Bermuda which is where he developed his passion for theatre. Previous productions he has worked on include: LAMDA Boy (Role: Assistant Lighting Designer) LAMDA Parliament Square (Role: Sound Designer) LAMDA Junkyard (Role: Programmer) LAMDA Spalding Suite (Role: Chief LX) LAMDA Love and Information (Role: Chief LX) LAMDA Desert Boy (Role: Sound Designer) LAMDA The Light (Role: Sound Designer) LAMDA AGAINST (Role: Lighting Designer) LAMDA The welkin (Role: Lighting Designer) New Diorama Theatre For Black Boys Who Considered Suicide When The Hue Gets Too Heavy (Assistant Sound Designer) The Royal court For Black Boys Who Considered Suicide When The Hue Gets Too Heavy (Assistant Sound Designer)

Raniah originally trained as an actor, working for many years in London and New York before falling in love with the physical acting process of Lucid Body. She began working as a movement-practitioner-acting-teacher in 2013 and currently teaches for The Globe Theatre and Drama Studio London, as well as offering courses through her own company, Lucid Body London. She found a natural progression into Movement Direction and on further to Intimacy Direction in the last few years. Intimacy Director: Peaky Blinders: The Rise (Immersive Everywhere), Supernova (Theatre503); How A City Can Save The World (Sheffield People’s Theatre); at Guildhall School of Music and Drama – Hyde & Seek, Our Town, Dennis of Penge, Intimate Apparel, Road, Pilgrims; at Conti Arts - Harvest, The Welkin, New Labour, Great Britain. Intimacy Coordinator for film/tv: The Wife and Her House Husband (Dir. Marcus Markou); I’m Not Finished (Dir. Rebecca Gallon); Salt Wounds (Dir. Hannah Renton); Remi Milligan: Lost Director (Dir. Samuel Lodato); Break the Rule (LCC, Dir. Beata Jamroziak); Asst I.C. on Dreamland (Merman Prods, Dir. Ellie Heydon)

Tatenda Shamiso is a theatre-maker, director, writer, and musician with origins from Zimbabwe, Belgium, the United States and Switzerland. He is also a scholarly researcher in Afrofuturism. and its potential to deconstruct and rebuild our notions of gender, space, and time. Central to Tatenda's work are themes of community, identity, and joy within diaspora. He recently wrote and starred in his solo show NO I.D. at Theatre Peckham, and was assistant director on A Streetcar Named Desire at the Almeida. Tatenda is also a recent Associate Artist and current guest lecturer in the Theatre and Performance Department at Goldsmiths, University of London. (he/him)

Daniel Bailey is a Director, Dramaturg and Writer for stage and screen. He is currently Associate Artistic Director at the Bush Theatre, London, having joined the team in 2019 alongside Artistic Director Lynette Linton. Prior roles include Associate Director at Birmingham Rep Theatre (after initially joining as part of the Regional Theatre Young Director Scheme), Resident Director at the National Theatre Studio, Associate Artist at Theatre Royal Stratford East, Resident Assistant Director at The Finborough Theatre, and on the Young Vic’s directing programme. His directing work at the Bush Theatre includes the upcoming Lenny Henry’s AUGUST IN ENGLAND (to be co-directed with Lynette Linton) which opens spring 2023, RED PITCH by Tyrell Williams (Stage Debut Award Winner 2022) and Temi Wilkey’s THE HIGH TABLE (Stage Debut Award winner 2020). I WONDER IF (presented with YV Taking Part) recently finished its run on a community tour and at the Young Vic Theatre. His work at Birmingham Rep includes Joe Penhall’s BLUE ORANGE; CONCUBINE; STUFF; I KNEW YOU; ABUELO, JUMP! WE’LL CATCH YOU; MADE IN INDIA/BRITAIN; and EXHALE. His previous directing work includes plays with Talawa Theatre Company, Manchester Royal Exchange, New Heritage Theatre, and the New Vic.

Nikita Bala is a Stage Manager and Technician who has worked in Montreal, Toronto, Malmö, Düsseldorf, and Bangalore. Since moving to London in September 2022 she has worked on Zombiegate (Theatre503) and The Glass Ceiling Beneath the Stars (Bric à Brac). Previous credits outside of London include Spun (Silk Road Institute), Reaching for Starlight (Geordie Theatre), A User's Guide to Authenticity is a Feeling (PME-Art), as well as Stage and Venue Management for the Montreal Fringe Festival, Festival TransAmeriques, and the Just For Laughs Comedy Festival. Nikita holds a BA from McGill University and is the proud recipient of the 2019 Montreal English Theatre Award for Outstanding Emerging Artist in Production. (she/her)

Keegan has worked in theatre and live events for many years, from production managing open air music festivals with The White Horse Project in East Lancashire to being an audio engineer on an array of events. Since graduating from The Bristol Old Vic Theatre School in 2014, Keegan has taken on various freelance endeavours throughout the country. Production Management Credits: A Sudden Violent Burst of Rain (Gate Theatre), Guy Manoukian (Her Majesty's Theatre), Technical Production Management for various companies including Stone Nest, SFL Group & The Theatre Channel. Sound Designer Credits: Jean Paul Gaultiers Fashion Freakshow (RGM Productions), Dogs of Europe (Belarus Free Theatre), Glory Ride (Smart Entertainment), Olivier Award Winning Baby Reindeer (Francesca Moody Productions), Our Countrys Good (Tobacco Factory Theatres), Oliver Award Winning Rotterdam (Theatre503/Trafalgar Studios), My World Has Exploded A Little Bit (Tristan Bates Theatre/Edinburgh Fringe), Infinity Pool (Plymouth Fringe/Edinburgh Fringe), The Blues Brothers: Xmas Special (Arts Theatre). PSE Credits: Mind Mangler: Member of The Tragic Circle (Mischief Theatre/Kenny Wax), One Woman Show (Wessex Grove), Dogs of Europe (Belarus Free Theatre)

Zoe is a London based assistant stage manager. She has a degree in English and Film from the University of Birmingham and recently graduated from Mountview’s Stage Management Diploma Course. Since leaving her studies, she has worked as an Assistant Stage Manager on To Kill a Mockingbird (Gielgud Theatre), Sad Book (Edinburgh Fringe Festival), Hamilton (Victoria Palace Theatre) and A night with Boy Blue (The Barbican Centre).

My name is Dan Britton, and I am currently a student at RADA specialising in stage management. I recently stage managed on a production of ‘The Effect’ written by Lucy Prebble. More recently, I was the deputy stage manager on a touring adaptation of Sheakespeare’s ‘Twelfth Night’ for young audiences. I am very excited to be undertaking my placement with The Gate Theatre in assisting the stage management team.

Olivia is a London based Assistant Stage Manager, Prop Maker and Dresser. She has recently graduated from the Guildhall School of Music and Drama with a degree in Production Arts: Stage Management. Please see some of her recent credits here: Stage Manager; Sexquisite Cabaret (Bethnal Green Working Men's Club). Assistant Stage Manager; Battersea Power Station Opening Event; Beauty and the Beast Pantomime (Bournemouth Pavilion). Prop Maker; Peaky Blinders: The Rise (Placement); Fisherman's Friend (UK and Canada Tour). Wardrobe; Between: The Musical (Silk Street Theatre); Anna Karenina (Silk Street Theatre). (she/her)

Male is part of the 2022 Prayer Workshop cohort

Malik Nashad Sharpe is a London-based choreographer and dancer making performances under their alias Marikiscrycrycry. Operating with an expansive and emotional choreographic proposition, their work is about the socially radical practice of imagining new worlds; dances that motorise the conditions necessary for possibility and futurity; performances that double as survival rituals; performances that drip with meaning, texturising all the affective and infective material left behind. Their work integrates pessimism and optimism, minimalism and maximalism, soft and sweet, hyperreal and absurdist ontological propositions with various dance and choreographic practices. Their identity is often central to their work as the site and receptacle of maintained racial and gender based violence, frequently recalling, reneging, and reifying their experiences being Black, Vincentian/Caribbean-American, gender non-conforming, femme, Queer, immigrant with a felt transgenerational history of displacement, alienation, and allostatic load, in order to humanise another possibility, worlds of ulteriorly. They have performed their work in various venues across the UK, USA, and Canada, and have been supported by Arts Council England, Canadian Council for the Arts, a-n, Fierce Festival, Hackney Showroom, Chisenhale Dance Space, Live Art Development Agency, and Marlborough Theatre and Pub, and have performed with various artists like Last Yearz Interesting Negro, Rachael Young, Project O, SPIT!, Randy Reyes, Dalston Ballet, amongst many others. They’ve also taught workshops and courses around their dance practice at University of Illinois (USA), Glasgow School of Art (UK), Otion Front Studio (USA), The Workroom (UK), Gibney Dance (USA), Goldsmiths University (UK), CLOUD at Danslab (NL), Leeds Beckett University (UK), Tate Modern (UK), and School of New Dance Development (NL). Their newest work (in collaboration with Ellen Furey), SOFTLAMP.autonomies premieres at Theatre La Chapelle (CA) in April 2018.

Tristan is a Queer Black British-born Ghanaian cultivated by South London. He is a writer and director with a practice that specializes in storytelling, physicality, manipulation of music, breaking the fourth wall and exercising the imagination of both actor and audience. He has made work for the Royal Court, Young Vic, Bush Theatre, Guildhall School of Music & Drama among others, and performed at the National Theatre. In 2019, he won the JMK Award for directing and presented the 5-star revival of Arinze Kene’s Little Baby Jesus.  He is the co-director of the trailblazing For Black Boys Who Have Considered Suicide When The Hue Gets Too Heavy by Ryan Calais Cameron.

(he/him)