English

Marjan thinks it’s one of the greatest things two people can do together: speak English.

But her motley class of adult learners each have their own relationship to this new language – for some it means opportunities abroad, for others a way to grow closer to grandchildren. Whatever their motives, these strangers will find tensions flaring, connections forming and unspoken truths emerging as they hurtle towards their final exam.

A small classroom in Iran is the birthplace for a big-hearted comedy in which the laughs fly thick and fast. From the absurd conversations you’ll only hear in a language lesson to the hilarity of serious subjects lost in translation, English is a masterclass in contemporary playwriting and features a lovingly rendered ensemble of characters that will carve out a place in your heart.

Directed by Resident Director Tasnim Hossain (I Wanna Be Yours) and starring Osamah Sami (ABC’s Savage River), English explores the choices that people who seek a new home must make, and all that they lose and gain along the way.

Winner of the 2023 Pulitzer Prize for Drama, English is a story of falling in love with your own voice.