Talawa Firsts 2024 Presents: Double Bill | Sandilands x Under the Table

Following the success of last year’s two week festival of new and emerging Black work and artists, Talawa Firsts festival is returning.

This July at our base in Croydon, Talawa Theatre Company will host two amazing weeks of new work, workshops, rooftop club nights, their first Don’t Flick short film screenings and more, themed around obsessions and chance encounters, encouraging all festivalgoers to stay curious!

The second double bill features Daniel Ward’s Sandilands and Dee Williamson’s Under the Table.

In Sandilands, two strangers meet on the streets of Croydon, both in desperate need of help – they must work out if they can trust each other and against the backdrop of a town affected by riots, criminality and social unrest- if it is even worth it.

Daniel Ward is a multiple award-winning actor and writer and most recently appeared as Bones in Tambo & Bones at Stratford East. He can also be found in "Everything Now"on Netflix and Mood on BBC iplayer. His play: "Everything I Own", will close Brixton House’s 2024 summer season and he has projects in development across film, theatre and TV. Awards include WGGB award for best play for young audiences and prestigious The George Devine Award for most promising playwright.

In Williamson's Under the Table, a policeman, a gangster and a vicar walk into a hospital… when Gloria is admitted to hospital in a coma, a young detective must work out who is there to wish her well, and who is there to wish her harm.

Dee Williamson is a prize-winning writer who studied scriptwriting at the National Film and Television School. Her TV sitcom scripts “Not Just Hacks” and “Would You Adam & Eve It” were winner and runner-up in BBC script prizes. Her TV drama script “Talbot & Page” was longlisted by BBC Writersroom, and her animated feature film script “Benny & Pooch” was shortlisted by BAFTA Rocliffe new writing prize. Dee was the only writer to be selected for simultaneous BBC comedy and drama writer training schemes (Citizen Khan and Doctors) in 2013. Her short plays “The Missing Person” and “Don’t Be Afraid” were commissioned by Shades Theatre Company, and she wrote, directed and starred in “Doprah”, an amateur stage comedy about a dysfunctional chat show host. Dee lives in Croydon, supports Manchester United and loves to sing and play saxophone (not at the same time).  

Host or Publisher Talawa Theatre Company