Black key workers have their voices heard in Talawa's Tales from the Front Line

As part of Talawa Theatre Company’s new online series, black key workers will have their voices heard in interviews about the seismic impact of those on the front line during the Covid-19 pandemic.

Across six short films, Tales from the Front Line exposes the hypocrisy, furious exhaustion and glimmering hope for a better future. Each film will be released episodically on Talawa’s website from Monday 30 November.

Directed by Michael Buffong, the first film stars Jo Martin (Doctor Who; Casualty), who shares a teacher’s experience of trying to keep themselves and their pupils safe after decades of budget cuts. It explores how new conversations opened up in the wake of the global Black Lives Matter movement, and the challenges of supporting students’ education  when nothing was certain anymore. 

The second film, directed by Kwame Asiedu, sees Sapphire Joy (J’Ouvert, Theatre503; Casualty) share the words of an NHS recovery worker. Frustrated by the racial bias in the medical  treatment of Black people, she finds herself further exhausted by performative gratitude during the pandemic, when there was little public outcry at the government’s failure to give  NHS workers’ pay rises.

According to Public Health England’s figures in May for England and Wales, black people are four times more likely to die from Covid-19 and in November, the Joint Committee on Human Rights report  “Black People, Racism and Human Rights” concluded that the Government must urgently take action to protect the human rights of Black people across many areas, including  healthcare.

The story is conveyed as a dramatised piece of work using music, movement, photography and soundscapes.

Talawa’s Artistic Director, Michael Buffong, said: “Tales from the Front Line creates a  historical record of the contribution of Black workers at the front line of the Covid-19 crisis,  and goes further in demanding change from society. These truth-telling stories reflect real life experiences which cannot be ignored, and do so in ways that are artistically and  creatively rich.”

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