The theatre company behind hit show The Jungle have offered to give Home Secretary Sajid Javid a special performance to promote a “greater understanding” of asylum seekers.
Playwrights Joe Murphy and Joe Robertson, who set up Good Chance Theatre while working in the Calais Jungle camp in 2015, have said they want to start a conversation around why refugees come to the UK.
In a letter to the Home Secretary and his colleagues in the Home Office, Murphy and Robertson wrote that they wish to highlight “the worsening conditions in Calais which are causing people to risk their lives, and to try to promote a greater understanding of the human being behind the headlines”.
The award-winning show was borne out of the experiences of those in the Calais Jungle, with the cast featuring professional actors from refugee backgrounds, some of whom had lived in the Calais camp.
Since opening at the Young Vic Theatre in 2017, the National Theatre commissioned show has transferred to the West End to rave reviews, and is currently playing in New York.
Murphy and Robertson added: “The issues that The Jungle explores feel more relevant than ever given recent events. We therefore feel a responsibility to make this offer, to host a special performance of the play on its return from the US in order to give the Home Secretary and his colleagues the opportunity to hear about the histories of the people who are making these journeys, and to meet people who have themselves come through Calais and are now working and succeeding in the UK.”
Javid has come under fire for his hard line on migrants crossing the channel, declaring it a "major incident".
Both Sonia Friedman and the National Theatre, who co-produced the show, offered their support to Good Chance Theatre on Twitter.
The Standard’s Henry Hitchings gave The Jungle five stars, calling it a “tribute to hope and resourcefulness” as well as “a sobering reminder of political issues that remain tragically unresolved”.
Miriam Buether won the Evening Standard Theatre Award for best design for her set, which places the audience inside the camp.
