The Bush Theatre announce An Evening with Sir Lenny Henry , a fundraiser for the theatre for one night only on 25 January 2025.(C) Helen Murray Alongside many arts organisations, The Bush, despite its sold-out performances, two recent West End transfers, and a vital community of supporters, finds itself on a financial precipice due to rising costs, and real-terms shrinking funding.
Lenny Henry, whose playwriting debut August in England was produced by The Bush in 2023, has generously agreed to host ‘An Evening With…’ with readings from the play alongside a Q&A session about his career and journey with the Bush, chaired by culture writer and podcaster Nancy Durrant.
The venue works hard to develop pathways for talent development, many of which are in jeopardy. One valuable initiative is the annual Open Submissions call-out for scripts which provides an opportunity for writers without agents or connections to have their work read. The Bush receives over 1,000 scripts each year and through this path has found new members to engage in their various development programmes, including the long-standing Bush Theatre’s Emerging Writers Group (EWG). The Bush EWG has nurtured talented writers including including Benedict Lombe (Lava and Shifters), Beru Tessema (Wolves on Road), and Coral Wylie (Lavender, Hyacinth, Violet, Yew which opens next February) to develop award-winning main house productions and relies on Open Submissions to find fresh talent.
However, this year the open script submissions scheme has had to adapt significantly. Lack of funds, and consistent raising costs, means the theatre hasn’t been able to engage script readers and the programme is now at risk of dissolving. The Bush uniquely focuses on British and Irish writers with Black and Brown voices to the fore, and this vital link in the development of the theatrical canon risks being broken.
Alongside this are further initiatives including workshops, access to the theatre’s literary team for writers, funded research and development periods for script development, employment opportunities for Assistant Directors, and community access to spaces around the building.
Lenny Henry said, ‘Right now, the arts just aren’t getting the help they need, which is disastrous considering the huge amount they contribute to daily life and to the public purse. Innovative places like the Bush Theatre are vital to the local economy and also the development of new work, which is one of the reasons why I chose to do my debut play with them. Without the new writers, performers, backstage, and technical staff that venues such as The Bush bring to the fore, much of the theatre, films, and television we take for granted simply wouldn’t exist. It’s so important that these spaces thrive. I stand with everyone at The Bush and hope they get to continue their important work.’
Tickets for the fundraising event An Evening with Lenny Henry will go on sale at 1pm today and are priced from £80.
