Artistic Director Paula Garfield announces the world première of Everyday as part of Deafinitely Theatre’s 20^thanniversary season – a new play written and directed by Garfield based on interviews conducted with deaf women who have survived domestic abuse. Performed in BSL and spoken English for a deaf and hearing audience, commissioned by New Diorama Theatre, Everyday opens at the venue on 20 May, with previews from 17 May, and runs until 11 June, ahead of a national tour with venues including Northern Stage.

‘We are warriors. We are survivors. If you need our help, let us know.’

Four people come together to perform a ritual of community and catharsis. Gathering up true stories of deaf women and non-binary people's experiences of surviving abuse, they form a witches’ coven like no other – with a cauldron of newt’s eyes and butterflies, deep scars and blazing signs.

A visually-rich, playful and pulsating urgent world première combining British Sign Language and English in Deafinitely Theatre’s unique bilingual style. Drawing on interviews with women and non-binary people exploring domestic abuse in the deaf community, this is a defiant and empowering new work from nationally-acclaimed director Paula Garfield marking the company’s 20^th anniversary.

Paula Garfield said, “We’re enormously proud of everything we have achieved over the past 20 years, creating world class theatre accessible to everyone. We begin our 20^th anniversary season with Everyday - based on my interviews with deaf women and non-binary people who have survived domestic abuse. It’s a vital and necessary conversation, with instances of domestic abuse rising significantly as a result of the lockdowns of the past 18 months. Our intention is to raise awareness about violence against deaf women – an issue prevalent in our community with deaf twice as likely as their hearing peers to suffer domestic abuse, but also to address this important and challenging issue in a sensitive, and ultimately, uplifting manner.”

Patron Joanna Lumley added, “This is a fantastic anniversary for Deafinitely Theatre, which has been at the forefront of accessible theatre since its founding as the UK's first deaf led professional theatre company twenty years ago. Its important and ground-breaking bilingual work has delighted deaf and hearing audiences of all ages, won awards and broken barriers. Indispensable training programmes have changed the lives of countless deaf young people and nurtured the next generation of deaf talent. Deafinitely is an invaluable part of the British theatre landscape and the deaf community, who I know will join me in celebrating two decades of inspirational work, with many more to come.”

For more information and to book tickets click here.