Punchdrunk Enrichment Announce Enitan’s Game A New Immersive Family Show Opening This June
Punchdrunk Enrichment present
Enitan’s Game
- Co-created by Mia Jerome and Peter Higgin
- Written by Mia Jerome, Casey Jay Andrews, Omar F. Okai and Simon Maeder
- Directed by Omar F. Okai
- Designed by Casey Jay Andrews
- Games Consultant - Simon Maeder
- Lighting and Video Designer - Sarah Readman
- Sound Designer - Dominic Kennedy
14th June - 1st September 2024
Press performances - Friday 14 at 4pm, 5.10pm & 6.20pm
& Saturday 15 June at 10.30am, 11.40am, 12.50am, 3.30pm, 4.40pm & 5.50pm
Punchdrunk Enrichment today announce the first show to take place at their new home in Wembley Park. Enitan’s Game, an immersive experience for all the family, opens for a limited run on 14 June (press performances 14 & 15 June). The production is co-written by Mia Jerome, Casey Jay Andrews, Omar F. Okai and Simon Maeder and directed by Omar F. Okai.
Sadie-Jean Shirley will also join Enitan’s Game as part of the first Punchdrunk Enrichment and Black British Theatre Awards Directorship Initiative.
Punchdrunk Enrichment began a three-year residency in Wembley Park in May 2023, with the goal of developing a multi - purpose immersive arts space. The choice of location recognised Wembley Park’s commitment to both the arts and to establishing the neighbourhood as a thriving cultural destination within Brent.
Today this new space is officially unveiled as Punchdrunk Enrichment Stores. A building unlike any other - offering a programme of immersive theatre shows, masterclasses, community residencies and events. The purpose of Punchdrunk Enrichment Stores is to unlock the storyteller in you.
The first phase of Punchdrunk Enrichment Stores was developed with the help of ten young people aged 18-25 years living locally in Brent. A paid opportunity, the young people who were not then in education, employment or training worked alongside carpenters and designers to get hands-on experience in the industry.
For Enitan’s Game, the stores play host to Enitan and Ged, two friends who collect objects and stories.
One such item is a game, made by Enitan’s grandfather when she first arrived in the UK. As a young girl, whenever she felt sad or homesick they played it together. It made her feel stronger and helped her grow.
Now Enitan’s grandfather has gone and she needs an audience to help her to play again. Together you’ll enter a secret world where magic and memory can heal.
An immersive theatre show for 6-11 year olds from Punchdrunk Enrichment in their brand new venue. Enitan’s Game celebrates the power of shared stories, loss and community.
Pick a card, let the journey begin
Director Omar F. Okai is the Co-Director/Founder of the Black British Theatre Awards (#BBTAS), whose inaugural ceremony was October 2019, and is now in its sixth year His recent credits include Associate Director on Get Up Stand Up at the Lyric Theatre Shaftesbury Avenue. Bedknobs and Broomsticks (UK tour) and Kinky Boots in Concert at Drury Lane. Omar also has the honour of directing the Theatre Royal Stratford East’s 140th year panto, Pinocchio 2024. He has directed and choreographed over 90 productions, videos, and documentaries both internationally in France, Spain, Germany, China and in Britain. Productions included are Five Guys Named Moe, Cabaret, Rent, Annie, Peter Pan, Elegies for Angels, Punks and Raging Queens, Smiling State, Honk!, Assassins (Mountview Theatre School), The Best Little Whorehouse in Texas (Performance Preparation Academy), and Sweet Charity. He also works closely with The Dang Academy London. Omar directed Singing in the Rain and Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory in Shanghai. He is also an accomplished West End performer, having performed in King, Five Guys Named Moe (original cast), Sweet Charity, My One and Only, Honk!, Candide, and Villains Opera. He is also an experienced performing arts teacher in dance and drama and has taught in a vast array of performing arts schools. Omar is currently working with composer Liam Godwin on his own musical Celia.
Punchdrunk Enrichment Artistic Director, Peter Higgin has a strong belief in the transformative power of engaging with the arts and creativity. He considers the power of imagination to be one of our greatest tools and has witnessed how access to immersive experiences can unlock creativity. His directing credits include The Lost Lending Library (Gold Coast Festival with Imaginary Theatre Company, 2017, Coventry City of Culture, 2021), Small Wonders (LIFT 2018, Imaginate Festival 2019), Against Captain's Orders (National Maritime Museum 2015), The House Where Winter Lives (Discover 2012 and Perth International Arts Festival 2014) and The Uncommercial Traveller (with Arcola 2012).
He said, ‘We’re really excited to be throwing open the doors of our new space in Brent and welcoming families to our brand-new show ‘Entian’s Game’. This is the first of many exciting projects Punchdrunk Enrichment have lined up over the coming months and we look forward to working with people both local and from further afield and introducing them to our immersive worlds’