New Season Announcement: April – September 2025

Brixton House marks its third anniversary with a celebration and statement season of work rooted in collective power and community, championing the female voice.

2025 lands Brixton House’s biggest and boldest season of theatre, music, literature and lates presenting stories that advocate, reminisce and reflect on the world. The stories brought to stage explore life in Britain from the 1970s to the present day, retelling the hidden stories of Black British history.

Marking the 40th Anniversary since the 1985 riots, the season is led by the world premiere of Urielle Klein-Mekongo’s new musical BLACK POWER DESK expect other works that subvert narratives of communities in turmoil to celebrate their love and resilience, and the bravery of women who have navigated male-dominated spaces, from the political frontline to the grime and UK garage music scene, plus a festival of work entitled the Uprising Season curated by multidisciplinary artist Daniel Bailey and Ovalhouse alumni and Bafta award winner, Tobi Kyeremateng.

This landmark season honours legacy stories, imagined narratives and the gatherings that have anchored movements of change. Brixton House’s season calls audiences to gather, on and off stage, to explore resistance, and to ask the questions – what does resistance look like to you?

The highlight of Brixton House’s 2025 season is the World Premiere of Urielle Klein-Mekongo‘s BLACK POWER DESK opening in the autumn. This musical co-production, inspired by the historic Mangrove Nine and influential activists, and brought to energetic life by an original score performed by a live three-piece band. BLACK POWER DESK is a soulful and rousing musical that charts a fiercely emotive and politically charged era of often overlooked British history for today’s generation. The story follows two sisters fighting for their community but divided by grief and radical politics, transporting audiences back to the 1970s, to a time of the British Black Panthers, the sound system culture and the Black British sounds of lover’s rock and ska. Written by the critically acclaimed team of Urielle Klein-Mekongo, Renell Shaw and Gerel Falconer, directed by Gbolahan Obisesan and dramaturgy by Gail Babb, a co-production by Brixton House and PlayWell Productions, in association with Birmingham Hippodrome and Lowry.

Ahead of Brixton House’s biggest co-production to date, the April to September season, Ovalhouse alumni Mojisola Adebayo returns with her award-winning show STARS: An Afrofuturist Space Odyssey, a co-production with Brixton House and Tamasha Theatre. A “concept album on stage” STARS an experimental and futuristic exploration of sex, orgasms, African mythology and folklore in an unabashedly Queer, intersex and feminist rallying play.

Two regional touring shows that encourage critical conversations on family and community issues. This Kind of Black (Requiem for Black Boys) by Reece Williams takes audiences back to the 1990s, offering an honest reflection on the gun culture in Manchester and the power of communities healing together amidst an epidemic of gun and knife crime, heading to Brixton from Manchester’s HOME. Sharon Kanolik’s brand new sensory play, A Tale of Us, invites parents to revisit the first year of life with their babies for a tender look at the postpartum journey.

Leading with female voices, in collaboration with HighRise Entertainment and Zoe Gibbons Productions, Brixton House presents two powerful testaments to the bass culture music scene, from UK Garage to Grime. HighRise Entertainment’s Lil.Miss.Lady, an immersive part-rave, part-drama championing the female MC, comes to Brixton after a sold-out run at the Barbican. Following this, Sophia Leonie’s debut play MILLENNIUM GIRLS, featuring all-female cast in a coming-of-age story, set against a musical backdrop of UK Garage and 1990s classics. A powerfully vulnerable story that challenges toxic masculinity, identity and girlhood, through the mixed-race experience. The play explores the world of free yards, first kisses and sexual consent.

Two different stories explore the British Caribbean experience and intergenerational ties to the Windrush generation. One Way Out by Montel Douglas is a joyous celebration of hope and success for a new generation of young people yet blighted by the ongoing impact of the 1971 Immigration Act scandal.

Alongside the theatre programme, the season includes a literary series in partnership with Dark Matter and Fane Productions showcasing authors such as Jason Allen-Paisant. House Lates in the Bar will offer late-nights events of comedy, DJ sessions, and social quizzes and games nights. Free family activities continue during school holidays, while the Brixton House Community Choir and the Elder’s social group Brixton House Good Neighbours return for another season.

This season also sees Executive Creative Producer Ruth Hawkin’s artistic vision to bring a creative community together at Brixton House, starting with a call out to their new submission process for 2026 so they can read all of the incredible stories coming their way and announcement of new Associate Companies CASA and Trybe House. CASA is committed to facilitating cultural exchanges between Latin America and the UK; while Trybe House Theatre focuses on building resilience and well-being by creating opportunities for Black men to tell their story unapologetically. Ruth also announces a team of creative advisors, Tonderai Munyevu, Amelia Jane-Hankin, Bridget Minamore, and Milli Bhatia.

The recent celebration marking the cultural venue’s third year showcased upcoming work and featured speeches from David Byran to Levi Roots as they transitioned Chair leadership. CEO Delia Barker called for support to the House Fund as the organisation forges ahead with its newly established female-led executive team shifting the tempo ahead of this momentous season of work.

Executive Creative Producer Ruth Hawkins said:

“Our third year marks the announcement of an incredible new season, as we commemorate the 40th anniversary of the 1985 Brixton Uprising with a collective of emerging artists and honorary Ovalhouse alumni. Every so often, you witness a piece of work by an incredible artist evolve over the years, and I couldn’t be more honored to collaborate with PlayWell Productions to bring the highly anticipated world premiere of Urielle Klein Mekongo’s new musical, BLACK POWER DESK, to Brixton House. This is our biggest show yet – one that deserves a life far beyond our walls – placing the Black British female narrative front and centre. This season really asks you to think about what resistance means to you.

The work that Casa and Trybe House have delivered already signifies the strength in our partnership and I’m delighted to welcome them both to the Brixton House family as new associate companies, joined by friends and collaborators Tonderai Munyevu, designer Amelia Jane Hankin writer and poet Bridget Minamore, and director Milli Bhatia to launch my artistic advisory collective.

I am also incredibly proud, alongside the family of the late Brixton Stories writer Biyi Bándélé, to be launching the Biyi Bándélé Bursary Fund, which will provide African diaspora writers with a small bursary and mentorship.

Having been part of Ovalhouse in 2012 developing artists as Creative Producer– this first season as Executive Creative Producer will hopefully show what’s to come. It’s an incredibly exciting time to establish an all-female leadership team, led by Delia Barker, as we remain committed to developing and celebrating artists, our community and new work. The season continues our commitment to investing in the creative futures of groundbreaking storytellers, in South London.”