Synopsis
A Girl With a Book and Other Plays
Published by Aurora Metro
A Girl with a Book and Other Plays brings together four plays for young people by acclaimed playwright Nick Wood
Topical and wide-ranging, they concern refugees, friendship, loss and courage.
The title drama A Girl with a Book is based on the true story of Nobel Peace Prize Winner Malala Yousafzai
In 2012, gunmen stopped a bus in Pakistan and shot three young girls
Their crime was wanting to go to school
Achieving international acclaim after its opening in Hamburg, the play examines Malala's story through a series of questions, including whether a "middle-aged, middle-class white man" could ever understand the world of a young Pakistani girl
Using quotes from Malala, the two other girls involved in the shooting and Malala's father, the writer's journey attempts to piece together the story and come to an understanding of the issues surrounding it
He speaks to members of different communities, his own wife and even imagines speaking to Malala herself
During the process Wood remains grounded in his stance as an outsider looking in, picking at the hypocrisy of how we can criticise the oppression of women in one culture but not another as he struggles with his own prejudice and privilege
Bird Boy
On an ancient fortress, two boys swear a pact of friendship
Eddie and Tim create their own den up on the Knoll, a secret place for heroes
The only problem is, winter is setting in and Eddie won't come down
As the snow falls, Tim must decide whether to take food to Eddie or betray him by telling the grown ups where he is
Bird Boy is a play about transitions from childhood to adolescence, from loner to friend.
Mia
Of Roma background, Mia is a refugee who has lost her home, and most of her family
She has odd bits and pieces in her bag, which have stories attached to them
Mia has received a postcard of this town from her sister, Sofia, who has disappeared
She tells them about Sofia, shows them a photograph
And reveals her fears
A Dream of White Horses
Paul's father, Rick, was a professional climber who fell to his death climbing a cliff in Wales
Now Paul wants two things...
To climb the same cliff
And to find out whether his father's death was an accident or suicide