Soho Theatre Announces Verity Bargate Award 2022 Shortlist

Soho Theatre has announced the six plays shortlisted for the 40th anniversary of Soho Theatre's Character 7 sponsored Verity Bargate Award:

• A Young Man Comes by Alan Mahon
• Boys on the Verge of Tears by Sam Grabiner
• Everything I'm Thinking, All of the Time by Sam Ward
• Porn Play by Sophie Chetin-Leuner
• Samuel Takes a Break in Male Dungeon N°5 After a Long but Generally Successful Day of Tours by Rhianna Ilube
• Working Men by Benjamin Kuffuor

This year's award is judged by a panel of industry experts including past Soho playwrights Theresa Ikoko (Girls, 2015, Soho Theatre), James Graham (Tory Boyz, 2008, and Monster Raving Loony, 2016, Soho Theatre) and Morgan Lloyd Malcolm (Mum, 2021, Soho Theatre), as well as April De Angelis (Jumpy, Royal Court and West End). The award is sponsored by Character 7 and chaired by film and television producer, Character 7's Stephen Garrett. The Award honours Verity Bargate, Soho's co-founder who passionately championed new writing during her time at the small but hugely influential fringe theatre company, Soho Poly.

Gillian Greer, Soho Theatre's Literary Manager, said: 'These six plays represent some of the most exciting new writing being developed in the UK and Ireland today. We're delighted by the range of stories that the Award has identified this year - from raucous comedy to high octane thriller and form bending innovation, each and every one of these plays deserves to be produced and celebrated. We couldn't be prouder to shortlist them for the Verity Bargate Award 2022'

Character 7's Executive Chairman and Verity Bargate Award Judging Panel Chair Stephen Garrett said: 'There has never been a more urgent time to make sure that new, young, vibrant voices are heard. The Verity Bargate Award provides the most fabulous platform to enable emerging talent to stand out from the cacophony. This is a thrilling shortlist, exceptional writers all. Character 7 could not be prouder to be a part of this.'

The shortlisted plays for the Verity Bargate Award 2022 are:

A YOUNG MAN COMES - Alan Mahon

Mary is living out her retirement alone, at peace with the fact that she has never had sex. But when her niece arrives late one night with a young man in need of a place to stay, Mary gets drawn into an unlikely love triangle.

A Young Man Comes is a heartwarming dark comedy about sex, love and living life to the full.

BOYS ON THE VERGE OF TEARS - Sam Grabiner

In a men's public toilet, characters drift in and out going about their business. A father teaches his son how to use a toilet, kids bunk off school, fights breakout after nights of drinking. As the play unfolds a story about shame, violence and vulnerability begins to emerge.

A play about all-male spaces, men's bodies, and what it means to spend your life performing for other people.

EVERYTHING I'M THINKING, ALL OF THE TIME - Sam Ward

Carol learns that her company is being bought by a larger corporation that want to background check her. She decides to delete her social media. Her partner and boss react strangely, pushing Carol further. She meets a stranger called Frankie who begins to plant paranoid thoughts into her head. Carol's paranoia increases. She becomes convinced both her boss and her partner are part of it. When the stranger offers her a chance to leave she takes it, only to discover that the stranger has been obsessed with her for years. Carol's only option, in the end, is to disappear.

PORN PLAY - Sophia Chetin-Leuner

Josie struggles to complete her PhD while struggling with an increasingly debilitating porn addiction. When she has no choice but to move back home with her father, Josie is forced to confront the roots of her addiction, and what she may need to do in order to stay afloat.

SAMUEL TAKES A BREAK IN MALE DUNGEON NO.5 AFTER A LONG BUT GENERALLY SUCCESSFUL DAY OF TOURS - Rhianna Ilube

Everyday Samuel wakes up and does his job. He is the Senior Tour Guide of a Prominent Slave Castle in Ghana. He enjoys his job, yes. 10 tours a day, 6 days a week. He has a tour script, of course, but occasionally he experiments with it.

This year is different. It's the Year of Return, meaning that millions of diaspora tourists are visiting Ghana to mark 400 years since the first enslaved Africans arrived in the USA. Many of them are here for the first time. They are all booking a slot on his tour.

WORKING MEN - Benjamin Kuffuor

A play about social housing and the inequities of modern living. The piece starts on a construction site where a dispute breaks out between the Council and the Contractor regarding the cost of major maintenance repairs on an old estate. The second half is about the shifting of blame and the lack of responsibility taken after an incident occurs on the estate. The story is about the people in the middle; not the ones who impose the decisions or the ones who are affected by them. It's about Working Men who forced to think in numbers over lives.