Hannah and Hanna by John Retallack

Hannah and Hanna by John Retallack

It is 1999. Hannah is sixteen. She loves karaoke and her bloke Bullfrog; she hates her home town of Margate and the Kosovan asylum-seekers who have come to live there. Hanna is also sixteen. She loves karaoke, loves Margate - and is one of the asylum-seekers. Slowly and unexpectedly, the two become friends, Hannah being forced to face up to her prejudices. This play for two young women addresses important issues through comedy, personal drama and the uniting power of music.

"timely and significant.. (the) simple staging is beautifully assured and well-crafted, particularly in its seamless knitting-together of music and action... it offers a notably sharp, thoughtful pen-portrait of new wave British fascism... finally the sheer human ordinariness of (the girls') teen friendship, set against so much hatred, is tremendously moving." Joyce McMillan, The Scotsman"

JOHN RETALLACK is the artistic director of Company of Angels, and has written and directed a number of plays in recent years. John was formerly director of Oxford Stage Company (1989 - 1999) where his adaptation of Melvyn Burgess' Junk won the TMA Young People's Award in 1998. His Shakespeare productions for Oxford Stage Company toured internationally and won widespread critical acclaim over a period of ten years. He was the founding director of Actors Touring Company (ATC) (1977 - 85). His work has been awarded several prizes, including a SWET award in 1983 and a Herald Angel at the 2001 Edinburgh Festival. Other plays include: COMPANY OF ANGELS: Hannah and Hanna; Virgins; Risk; Club Asylum.