The 14th Tale - National Theatre (Cottesloe)
Preview by Lizzie Guilfoyle
FUEL is presenting The 14th Tale at the National Theatre. Written and performed by Inua Ellams, it will run in the Cottesloe Theatre for just ten performances – from February 9 to March 13, 2010.
The 14th Tale is a free-flowing narrative that tells the hilarious exploits of a natural born mischief growing from the clay streets of Nigeria to rooftops in Dublin, and finally to London.
Ellams vividly recreates the characters that punctuate his upbringing in deft and beautiful poetry, while challenging the audience’s expectations of what it is to be a young, black male in London today.
Ellams was born in Nigeria in 1984 and moved to the UK as a teenager. His work merges visual art, spoken word and theatre. He has performed in a wide variety of venues including the Queen Elizabeth Hall, Tate Modern, The Albany, The Drum, Theatre Royal Stratford, Glastonbury and Latitude.
He is working on a second collection of poems, following the publication of his first, Thirteen Fairy Negro Tales, which was supported by Arts Council England.
A BAC Scratch Commission with Apples & Snakes, The 14th Tale is directed by Thierry Lawson, with lighting by Michael Nabarro.