Callie Cooke, Tahirah Sharif and Phaldut Sharma will reprise their roles in Phil Davies’ debut play Firebird, following a run at Hampstead Downstairs last autumn.
Davies’ play marks Callie Cooke’s debut stage appearance having recently graduated from The Arts Education School. She stars alongside Tahirah Sharif (Moon on a Rainbow Shawl, National Theatre, Waterloo Road) and Phaldut Sharma (Ramayan, Lyric Hammersmith, EastEnders).
Firebird opens at Trafalgar Studios this February, in association with The Children’s Society and directed by Edward Hall, Hampstead Theatre’s Artistic Director.
Responding to nationwide cases of child sexual exploitation throughout Britain, including those in Davies’ hometown of Rochdale, Firebird shows how easy it can be for vulnerable young people to fall victim to sexual abuse. The play dramatises how the innocent are all too often failed by the authorities who are meant to protect them.
Matthew Reed, chief executive of The Children’s Society, says: “When we first saw Firebird we were bowled over. Its power to highlight the brutal reality that child victims of this crime face and that our services across the country deal with every day is remarkable.
“It is fantastic that the play is opening in the Trafalgar Studios, which will help raise awareness about this terrible truth.”
Throughout the play’s run, Parliament will be debating The Policing and Criminal Justice Bill. This vital legislation has the potential to increase the ability to tackle child sexual exploitation and provide children and young people who are at risk, or have been victims of this crime, with more protection. The Children’s Society will be campaigning for changes to the bill to improve how these children are helped.
Firebird runs at Trafalgar Studios 2 from 17 February – 19 March 2016. Book Now!
