Full Casting Announced For Reading Rep's Double Bill Of LOCKER ROOM TALK and SAFE

Reading Rep Theatre and A Girl Called Stephen today announce the full casts for their double bill coproduction of verbatim plays Locker Room Talk by Gary McNair, and Safe by Alexis Gregory. For Locker Room Talk, Christie O'Carroll directs Sasha Clarke (Actor 1), Emily Joh Miller (Actor 2), Sivan Raphaelly (Actor 3), and Tilda Wickham (Actor 4). Annie Kershaw directs Joshua Asare (Samuel), Sasha Clarke (Alecia), Elijah Ferreira (Jack), and Emily Joh Miller (Tami) in Safe.

Locker Room Talk is a provocative exploration of how men speak about women behind their back. Can such sexually provocative conversation be accepted as 'locker room talk', or do such attitudes drive abusive behaviour? Does Trump speak to a silent majority or is he a loathsome individual? Writer McNair interviewed dozens of men from a vast array of backgrounds, four non-male identifying performers perform a selection of these conversations.

A recent study found that 25% of UK homeless and at-risk young people identify as LGBT. Safe is a powerful verbatim theatre piece exploring these often untold stories. These are tales of sexuality, gender, childhood, identity, family, religion, race and addiction. A humour-filled exploration and celebration of what it means to feel truly safe in today's world.

Paul Stacey, Artistic Director of Reading Rep, today said 'Reading Rep Theatre is committed to equality, inclusion and accessibility. Bringing diverse voices to Reading is central to that ethos, and Locker Room Talk and Safe give us the opportunity to do just that.'

Reading Rep are currently in the midst of a capital campaign to open a new 158 seat theatre and cultural hub in Reading. More info here.

Joshua Asare's theatre credits include Beautiful Thing (Above The Stag Theatre), Great Expectations (Old Red Lion Theatre), Three (National Youth Theatre). As a writer, his credits include Comedy Troll (The North Wall Arts Centre), and Comedy Trolls (Hackney Showrooms). He was the recipient of the 2018 VAULT Festival New Writer's Award.

Sasha Clarke's television credits include Jack Ryan, Doctors and Holby City. This marks her professional stage debut.

Elijah Ferreira's theatre credits include Unknown Territories (Frantic Assembly), and Off The Block (Reading Arts Theatre).

Emily Joh Miller's theatre credits include And The Rest of Me Floats (Bush Theatre), Humanequin (Wales Millenium Centre), and Galatea (Jerwood Space).

Sivan Raphaely's theatre credits include Beautiful Halo (Stockwell Playhouse), Fings Ain't Wot They Used T'Be (Fringe Theatre, South Africa), We Will Rock You (Asian tour) and Rent (Alexander Theatre, South Africa). For television, her credits include Troy: Fall of a City, Liberty, Thula's Vine, and Macbeth. As a writer, her credits include From The Mouths of Babes (The Market Theatre), and High Rollers.

Tilda Wickham's theatre credits include Out of Water (Orange Tree Theatre), Romeo & Juliet (Cambridge Arts Theatre), and SIX The Musical (Edinburgh Festival Fringe). As a writer, their credits include A Queer Anthology of Dating (Southwark Playhouse, Tristan Bates Theatre).