Though their lives are tough, these girls are tougher
BYMT (British Youth Music Theatre) presents When We Strike, a punk rock rendition of the 1888 matchstick girls’ strike in London and features a cast of 36 young BYMT female and non-binary performers and musicians from across the UK.
It’s 1888 and a group of working-class girls in East-London are barely making ends meet working for Bryant and May’s matchstick factory. Though their lives are tough, these girls are tougher. But when they learn the abhorrent working conditions in their factory are responsible for the mysterious disease that’s been killing them, the Match Girls must band together to stand up to the capitalist elite who see them as disposable – and change the world. Inspired by historical events, the show celebrates the courage of young people and the rage of a new generation fighting for a more equitable world. Using the energy and fire of punk-rock, this new British musical will spark debate and question who’s responsible for igniting change.
Caitlyn Burt (Librettist/Lyricist) and Amir Shoenfeld (Composer/Lyricist): “The more we learnt about these brave, determined, and irrepressible young women, the more we started imagining them having boxing matches in the street, dressed in their feather hats for the music hall, and marching upon
Westminster. Thinking of how this history resonates with today’s young people demanding a better world, we wanted to colour the story with an exciting, agitated, and modern sound. Punk Rock was a perfect match. Taking inspiration from Punk legends like The Clash, Billy Bragg, and Cockney Rejects, as well as Pop Punk stars like Avril Lavigne, Paramore, and Green Day, we’re aiming to channel both the anger and the joy of these game-changing girls.”
Charlotte Holmes, a member of the BYMT Young Company Panel that programmed the 20th Anniversary season of shows: ‘When We Strike shows the power that young people have to make a change, it’s a really inspiring story of the original young people who raised their voices. Bringing it to the stage really shows how through the years we have continued to empower ourselves through the arts, just as those in the strikes did.’
Southwark Playhouse Elephant, 1 Dante Place, London, SE11 4RX
Dates + times: 30 + 31 August at 2.30 PM & 7.30 PM
Tickets: £22 Standard, £18 Concessions & Restricted View, £16 for Under 16s
Box office: Tickets are available from: https://southwarkplayhouse.co.uk/productions/when-we-strike
Age guidance: 7+
Running time: 80 mins (no interval)
