A new production of Ayub Khan Din’s 1996/7 hit play East Is East will soon be opening at the Trafalgar Studios Theatre in London later this year, bringing the story of multicultural family back to the west end. With the ongoing global tension around Muslim extremism and “the war on terror”, the importance of the play’s interrelated ties remains an important factor in its relevance to society, and with Din’s hilarious script behind it, the new production is a great opportunity to see a live performance of the story of the little family chippie in Salford.
East Is East is set to open at the Trafalgar Studios on the 4th October 2014, bringing all of its vibrant colour and charm to London through the winter months until it’s close on the 3rd January 2014. Performances will be taking place at 7:30pm between Monday and Saturday, with 2:30pm matinees on Thursdays and Saturdays. Tickets cost between £29.50 and£69.50 for the stalls, but a number of the performances are already sold out and seats are limited for others.
For anyone that missed it the last time around, or who haven’t seen the 1999 movie, the story is that of the Khan family and their life at their much-loved chip shop in the heart of Salford, Manchester. The father of the family is Zahir “George” Khan, who moved the England in the 1930s, and he’s keen to retain a fairly strict Muslim doctrine for his children, despite the fact that his second wife of 25 years and mother to his children, Ella, is Roman Catholic, of Irish decent and was born in Lancashire.
It’s the story of cultures colliding with the backdrop of 1970s Manchester to play against as George struggles to get his family to conform to more traditional Pakistani values than football, flower power, art and chatting up ladies. Caught in the middle the battle of wills that ensues is mom Ella, who is left to decide between her love for George or the independence of her children, giving the patriarch of the family a whole to to think about.
As well as writing the original play, and the screenplay for the movie, Ayub Khan Din will also be starring in the Trafalgar Studios Theatre production of East Is East as George, or as his kids call him, Genghis. He’ll be performing onstage alongside BAFTA and Golden Globe nominated actress, Jane Horrocks (Little Voice, Absolutely Fabulous), who has been cast as the matriarch of the family, Ella.
The play’s first ever performance took place at the Birmingham Repertory Theatre back in 1996 before getting transferred to the Royal Court Theatre in 1997, where it went on to pick an Olivier Award nomination for Best New Comedy and have three sell out runs. The new production is the first time since 1999 that the play will be performed live and with just a three month run at the Trafalgar Studios Theatre and tickets for some of the nights already sold out, it could turn out to be another runaway success for Ayub Khan Din’s hit comedy drama.
