The Global Playground
Manchester International Festival & Theatre Rites
Great Northern Warehouse, 2021
Director - Sue Buckmaster
Choreographer - Gregory Maqoma
Designer - Ingrid Hu
Composer - Ayanna Witter-Johnson
Lighting Designer - Guy Hoare
Sound Designer - Nick Sagar
Production Manager - Ali Beale
Digital Film & Production - Martin Riley
Assistant Director - Rebecca Taylor Sharman
Assistant Choreographer - Gemma Nixon
Assistant Designer - Michael Douglas
Puppet Makers - Stitches & Glue, Talk to the Hand
Performers - Jahmarley Bachelor, Thulani Chauke, Annie Edwards, Sean Garratt, Merlin Jones, Kennedy Junior Muntanga, Charmene Pang
Photography by Tristram Kenton
A group of dancers meet to make a film – but things get wonderfully weird when the camera takes on a life of its own…
We can now connect with anyone, in person and on screen – but is the camera our friend, our playmate or something else entirely? Partly inspired by our year under lockdown, The Global Playground explored the magic of our first encounters, how we play together, how we connect and sometimes disconnect – and ultimately how we make the most of the time we spend together, however we spend it.










Chotto Xenos
Akram Khan Company
World tour
XENOS Artistic Direction and Original Choreography - Akram Khan
Chotto Xenos Direction and Adaptation - Sue Buckmaster (Theatre-Rites)
Set Designer - Ingrid Hu
Lighting Designer - Guy Hoare
Original Music - Domenico Angarano, inspired by Vincenzo Lamagna’s score for XENOS
Sound Design - Domenico Angarano, Phil Wood
Costume Design - Kimie Nakano
Film and Projection Design - Lucy Cash
Assistant Choreographer - Nicola Monaco
Rehearsal Directors - Nicolas Ricchini, Amy Butler
Dancer - Guilhem Chatir or Kennedy Junior Muntanga
Photography by Jean Louis Fernandez
How does war begin? And how does it end? It depends on who is telling the story.
Inspired by the award winning final full-length solo XENOS, Chotto Xenos is a captivating dance production that takes young audiences back in time, exploring the often forgotten and untold stories of World War 1 colonial soldiers, in order to shine light on our present and future.
Chotto Xenos will be performed by either Guilhem Chatir or Kennedy Junior Muntanga and is for anyone over the age of 8.











