The 56 & E15 (Oberon Modern Plays)

By: Lung Lung

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Synopsis: The 56 ‘Nobody dies in football matches in fires. It doesn’t happen.’ At 3.40pm on 11th May 1985, a small fire broke out in the main stand at Valley Parade football ground during the last game of the season. Within four minutes, the wooden structure was ablaze. Adapted solely from over sixty real-life testimonies, this pertinent piece of documentary theatre pays homage to the supporters who lost their lives in one of the darkest days in British footballing history. The 56 examines the solidarity, strength and community in the face of overwhelming tragedy. E15 ‘We want social housing, not social cleansing.’br> Facing skyrocketing rent and forced relocation out of London, twenty-nine single mothers united to confront Newham Council’s gentrification of their hometown. From the streets of Newham to the Houses of Parliament, this bold piece of documentary theatre is adapted from the real-life testimonies of the most under-represented and prominent voices on the political spectrum – providing a truthful retelling of the Focus E15 Campaign, Britain’s housing crisis and how one group of women refused to be marginalized. This is the beginning of the end of the housing crisis.