SHIFT+SPACE | The Penguin by Tobias Cambrai

Matthew Green has disappeared. Hiding from his ruined former life in an undisclosed location, he broadcasts a pirate-radio show to an audience of precisely nobody. He spends his nights ranting into the darkness in a pair of old pyjamas, slowly losing his grip on the passing of time.

Then the phone rings.

Amelia is a waitress who’s been listening to Matthew’s show for over a year. She can’t sleep, she can’t face her own life, and she can’t stop listening to the one voice that makes her feel normal. Over the course of one long night, two isolated people find unexpected connection—but can you save someone who’s already disappeared? The Penguin is a darkly funny, achingly tender two-hander about loneliness, late-night phone calls, and the penguins who just walk away from the colony and never come back.

Age guidance: This performance is recommended for ages 14+

Content warning: There are no content warnings for this performance.

Interval: This performance does not have an interval.

Post show discussion: This performance will not have a post show Q&A.

See our Accessibility Guide for information about access in our venue.

Tobias Cambrai is an emerging playwright and composer who writes about modern life with distinctive clarity and wit. His debut play ‘The Penguin’ explores digital loneliness and post-pandemic exhaustion through his trademark dark comedy and reluctant tenderness. Through both song and theatre, Tobias’ work endeavours to capture the elusive, ubiquitous feelings of late capitalist Britain in all its grey splendour.

Instagram: @tobiascambrai

This performance is part of the SHIFT+SPACE programme

Theatre Deli’s SHIFT+SPACE programme is a free performance opportunity for artists to present their work that needs an audience to develop, where artists keep 100% of the Box Office!

Find out more about the SHIFT+SPACE programme here.

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