Lydia Bakelmun, Fisun Burgess, Mikhael DeVille and Jack Bence will take to the stage in Bungalow, Ruth D’Silva’s debut feature play coming to London’s Theatre503 this month.
Anglo-Indian writer D’Silva’s work explores the secrets we keep, the duty of care and the burden of shame within a modern Anglo-Indian family as an adult daughter returns to her childhood home.
The play serves as a powerful exploration of inherited trauma and conflict between two
generations, whose relationships have been shaped and fractured by decades of unspoken
truths. As these secrets emerge, the very foundation of their home – Bungalow – begins to crack
under the weight of all that has been kept hidden within its walls.
Bakelmun (Antigone) plays Agatha, Burgess (PRU) is Bernadette, DeVille (Grace) is Luke and Bence (Bad Education) is Steven.
The story centres around 40-something Agatha (Bakelmun), who returns to the family bungalow as her father nears the end of his life. Agatha feels a responsibility to be with her elderly mother, Bernadette (Burgess), but her attempts at care aren’t always welcome and her mother resists the shifting balance of power between them.
As Agatha tries to engineer an opportunity to speak candidly about her experiences growing up, she finds conversations derailed by Bernadette, who is in denial about the past as well as the future. In the bungalow, however, the truth has a funny way of coming out, and Agatha has to confront her family’s complicity in the abuse she has suffered.
Bungalow will be directed by Beth Kapila (Our Streets) and produced by Jessie Anand Productions (This Might Not Be It).
The play runs from Tuesday, February 25 – Saturday, March 15. Tickets here.
Pictured top: Lydia Bakelmun, Fisun Burgess, Ruth D’Silva, Mikhael DeVille and Jack Bence