Thirty years after its acclaimed premiere, Ayub Khan Din’s ‘East Is East’ returns for a powerful anniversary production at the Octagon Theatre in Bolton, running from Friday 4th September – Saturday 3rd October.
Heartfelt, hilarious and deeply moving, East Is East is a timeless story about family, identity and belonging.
Set in 1970s Salford, this modern classic follows the Khan family living above a chip shop and on the fault line between two cultures. George Khan is determined to raise the family in his Pakistani way.
His English wife, Ella, just wants to keep the peace. Their seven children? They’re busy discovering disco, denim, and defiance.
When George begins arranging marriages for his sons, rebellion erupts and loyalties are tested. What follows is a hilarious and deeply moving battle between tradition and change.
Leading the cast is acclaimed stage and screen actor Bhasker Patel (Oedipus, Broadway & West End; Emmerdale ITV) as George alongside Stockport-born actor Samantha Power (Brassic, Sky; Madame Blanc, Channel 5) as Ella.
They’re joined by a talented cast, including the return of Victoria Brazier to the Octagon stage and Rohan Macleod, who makes the exciting journey from the theatre’s Kitchen & Bar team back to the main stage.
Director Kash Arshad said: “East Is East is my story. There are not many plays that speak to the experience of being brought up in a Muslim household, with a white British mother and a Pakistani father, who ran his own business, with kids who felt not British enough to be British nor Pakistani enough to be Pakistani.
“To get the opportunity to direct this play at the theatre where I started my directing journey and to be able to share it with audiences in Salisbury, Derby and the Citizens Theatre in Glasgow, my local theatre in my late teens/early twenties and where I first set foot on a professional stage, is a dream.”
East Is East opens at Octagon Theatre from Friday 4th September till Saturday 3rd October before touring to Citizens Theatre, Derby Theatre Wiltshire Creative’s Salisbury Playhouse.
Tickets are selling fast! Book now at octagonbolton.co.uk/events/east-is-east
