MAD ABOUT THE BOY Set for UK-Wide Tour Following London Launch May 12 - Sept 29

Iron Shoes has announced the national tour dates for their production of Mad About the Boy. The production will receive its London première at the Unicorn Theatre on Saturday 12 May before embarking on a UK tour.

Winner of an Edinburgh Fringe First Award 2011, the drama sees a teenage boy fighting to save his reputation, torn between the influence of his family, his friends and his school. Questioning where responsibility lies, Mad About the Boy examines the growing divide between the generations who gave, those who earned, and those who demand respect.

Co-Artistic Director of Iron Shoes Ria Parry said “'Iron Shoes is thrilled to announce the national tour dates for Mad About The Boy. We had a phenomenal response in Edinburgh and I can't wait to share the production with audiences around the country. The show opens at the Unicorn, which has been hugely integral to the piece having another life. We are thrilled that this show will play as part of two exciting new leaderships in London venues, as it forms part of the Purni Morell's opening season at the Unicorn and Madani Younis' at the Bush (where we are also Associate Artists). David Lan, Madani Younis and Purni Morell have been fantastic in instigating an exciting collaborative venture between three wonderful London venues who clearly value the relevance of this play, and see its potential impact on and interest to their local communities. We are looking forward to touring to all our venues - from London to Manchester to Malton to Cumbria - as it offers an opportunity for us all to encourage new writing and diversity within the world of theatre.”

Mad About The Boy was developed with the support of The National Theatre Studio and ScenePool and written by Gbolahan Obisesan. He was the recipient of the Bulldog Princep Director’s Bursary 2008-09 at The National Theatre Studio. He also received the 2009 Jerwood Award at the Young Vic Theatre, for which he directed the critically acclaimed Sus by Barrie Keefe. Sus completed a nationwide tour produced by Eclipse Theatre and the Young Vic Theatre. As a writer his credits include Regeneration, A Vision of Pride. Deconstructing the Barack, Home, Hold It Up and Set Me Fair -A May Fling.

Ria Parry directs. Parry is Co-Artistic Director of Iron Shoes; she received the Leverhulme Director’s Bursary in 2010–11, becoming Director in Residence at The National Theatre Studio. Directing credits include Fen (Finborough Theatre), Rewind and King Lear (Young Vic) and Crush (Underbelly, Edinburgh). For Box Clever Theatre, she has directed tours of The Tempest, The Hate Play and Romeo and Juliet. Parry was previously a Creative Producer at Watford Palace Theatre.

Iron Shoes is a Production Company formed by John Hoggarth and Ria Parry, dedicated to making quality theatre that is engaging, honest and compelling. Their first production Crush by Paul Charlton premièred at the Edinburgh Festival 2009, winning a Fringe First Award. In 2010 they toured Crush around the UK, and worked with Kids Taskforce to create Watch Over Me Series 4, a television education drama written by John Hoggarth, delivered to secondary schools across the country in partnership with the Home Office.

In 2011 Iron Shoes produced Fen by Caryl Churchill in association with The National Theatre Studio and the Finborough Theatre. They co-produced Surfing Tommies by Alan Kent at the Minack Theatre, followed by a national tour in collaboration with BishBashBosh Productions.

Tour Dates; The Unicorn Theatre (12 May – 19 May), The Bush Theatre (28 May – 2 June) and the Young Vic (6 June – 16 June) North Wall, Oxford (19 June – 20 June), Contact Theatre, Manchester (26 – 28 June), Milton Rooms, Malton (25 June), Lantern Theatre, Sheffield (29 June), Rose Hill Theatre, Cumbria (30 June) and Bristol Old Vic (27 September to 29 September).

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