Grenfell: in the words of survivors

Grenfell: in the words of survivors (April 13–May 12, 2024) is a powerful new production from London’s National Theatre about the resilient, multicultural North Kensington community who protected and cared for one another before, during, and after a devastating 2017 public housing tower fire. Seventy-two people died in the catastrophe. Compiling haunting testimonies drawn from verbatim interviews with some of the survivors and bereaved, the play—by South African writer and former English PEN President Gillian Slovo—reveals the impact of the multiple failures that led to the national disaster. The production explores the courage of an ill-treated community and their continued campaign for justice and accountability. The North Kensington residents have preserved their community with dignity and commanded a public forum for securing the right to safe housing worldwide. Directed by Phyllida Lloyd (Tina: The Tina Turner Musical, the Donmar Warehouse’s all-female Shakespeare Trilogy) and Anthony Simpson-Pike (The P Word), this “masterpiece of forensic fury” (The Guardian) leaves the audience awestruck and motivated to join the cause.