After its sell-out success at London’s Omnibus Theatre, Ella Dorman-Gajic’s Trade will be revived at the Pleasance Theatre from the 20th March, followed by Nottingham’s Nonsuch Studios on 1st April, as part of a UK tour. Trade explores the fate of a young woman plunged into a perilous underground world, spanning former Yugoslavia to the UK.
This news comes with an announcement of a new cast member, Katarina Novkovic, who will be taking the lead role of Jana, with Eleanor Roberts and Ojan Genc (Apple’s Slow Horses, Hollyoaks)
reprising their roles.
Trade was awarded an OffComm by the revered OFFIE Awards. Exploring the journey of a woman who climbs the ladder to reclaim her autonomy, it was hailed as “a thought-provoking and purpose-driven play, portraying the traditionally victimised protagonist in a more realistic light, making her relevant and sympathetic” by North West End.
Artistically integrated captions make Trade accessible to both d/Deaf audiences and native Bosnian Croatian-Serbian speakers. “Written with passion and filled with moments of humour and tenderness” (Play’s The Thing), Trade fuses projection, design and poetic storytelling in an “unflinching and unapologetic”
production (Queer Review) that takes us inside the European trafficking industry. This gripping morality play powerfully pulls into question the archetype of the ‘perfect female victim’.
Throughout the tour, the company will collect donations for the leading UK anti-trafficking charity Unseen. The playtext will be sold at the show, with 10% of sales going to Unseen. This tour is proudly supported by Arts Council England.
Dorman-Gajic is a writer and performer of Serbian and Austrian heritage, whose work has been described as “impassioned” by The Guardian; she has been nominated for a number of awards, including the Theatre503 International Playwriting Award. Directed by Maddy Corner, whose credits include the 4-star SHE (Belgrade Theatre/UK Tour) and Brainstorm (Edinburgh Fringe).
Trade comes to Nottingham Nonsuch on 1st April, followed by Exeter Pheonix on 6th April, Birmingham Old Joint Stock from 7-9 April and Norwich Arts Centre on 13th April.
Posted on 14 March 2023
