Our Public House
A big-hearted and funny new play inspired by voices FROM across England.
DOWNLOAD PROGRAMME
With Kit Esuruoso (Tina The Musical), Chaya Gupta (EastEnders), Gabriella Leon (Casualty), Lauren Moakes (Romeo and Juliet), Fergus O’Donnell (Downton Abbey, Holby City) and Bharti Patel (Doctors, EastEnders).
Our Public House toured England in 2026, bringing together professional actors and local community ensembles in a joyful, moving and deeply human celebration of conversation, democracy and belonging.
When an entire community spoils their ballots and refuses to vote, a local pub on the brink of closure becomes the only place left to talk.
As a storm rages outside, landlady Sanjana, a family in mourning, familiar regulars and unexpected guests are thrown together for a night of debate, confession and open mic. In a city divided by politics, secrets spill, songs rise, people fall in love and something begins to shift.
Written by award-winning playwright Barney Norris and directed by Josephine Burton, Our Public House blended spoken English, British Sign Language (BSL), creative captioning and original live music, bringing together hearing and deaf performers in an ambitious, accessible production.
WHAT PEOPLE SAID
"A heartfelt portrait of divided Britain.” - The Guardian
"Couldn't be more timely.” - The Stage
“Heartwarming and hard-hitting.. a captivating story with a real-life conclusion.” - The Spy in the Stalls
"A fun, real and gently moving play.” - Leeds Living
"Packed full of heart" - The Reviews Hub
"Blends traditional drama with song-led storytelling, allowing characters to voice their frustrations, memories and hopes.” - Fairy Powered Productions
a play shaped by communities
Developed through 80 Speak Out! workshops with more than 1,000 participants across England, Our Public House transformed real speeches into theatre, placing community voices at the heart of the story. At every venue on the national tour, a local community ensemble joined the professional cast on stage, making each performance a unique reflection of the place it was performed.
Our Public House was part of Dash Arts’ Albion season - an exploration of modern Englishness, in all its complexity.
CAST & STAGE MANAGEMENT
Mary - Gabriella Leon
Sanjana - Bharti Patel
Anika - Chaya Gupta
Scott - Fergus O’Donnell
Jo - Lauren Moakes
Tom - Kit Esuruoso
Company Stage Manager - Cora Frank
Deputy Stage Manager - Alice Kelly
Creatives
Writer - Barney Norris
Director & Creator - Josephine Burton
Music - Jonathan Walton
Lyrics - Jonathan Walton and people across the country
Set & Costume Designer - Good Teeth Design
Lighting Designer - Ryan Joseph Stafford
Video & Creative Captions Designer - Ben Glover
Sound Designer - Bella Kear
Movement Director - Josie Daxter
Associate Director - Scott Hurran
Casting Director - Helena Palmer CDG
Music Director & Music Production - Yaniv Fridel
BSL Consultancy - Charlotte Arrowsmith
Fight Director - Zhenya Leverett
Costume Supervisor - Lucy Howarth
Assistant Music Director & Arranger - Maya Safadi
Sound Design Associate - Amy K. Pix
Assistant Directors - Phoenix Gould, Louis Linse
Production Producer - Cristina Catalina at Dash Arts
Production Management - Pete Rickards & Euan Jackson at eStage
Additional Workshop Facilitation - Simon Marshall, Owen Atkinson, Liz Boag
Production Marketing - Pam Kehoe & Ellen McLeodat Jane Morgan Associates
Production PR - Clióna Roberts PR
Artwork - Rebecca Pitt
Artwork Photography - Michael Wharley
Production Photography - Pamela Raith
Production Videography - Anton Califano
Additional content - Frankie Hastings, Louis Linsey
BSL Interpreters - Rachael Merry, Lauren Lister, Karl Llorca, Amy Astley, Craig Painting, Jemima Hoadley, Bev Wilson, Susan Merrick, Katie O'Connor, Mark Donald, Pascale Maroney, Caroline Burn, Clare O'Donoghue, Alexia Blohmpain, Clare Edwards, Leanne Morris, Max Marchewicz, Lauren Fletcher Harris, Tracey Arrowsmith, Sarah Cox Audio description - Caroline Burn
backing TRACKS
Amir Bresler - drums, percussion
Yaniv Fridel - tuba, trombone, keyboards, backing vocals
Joseph Myers - backing vocals
Maya Safadi - piano, backing vocals
Ofer Shabi - acoustic guitar, electric guitar, keyboards, bass
Jonathan Walton - trumpet, felt piano, keyboards,
SUPPORT
Our Public House is produced by Dash Arts in association with Leeds Playhouse and supported using public funding by the National Lottery through Arts Council England. Further support comes from Deborah Loeb Brice Donor Advised Fund at CAF, Three Monkies Trust, Marchus Trust, Thistle Trust, 29th May 1961 Foundation, BeauxArtz, Unity Theatre Trust, the Arts and Humanities Research Council, the National Theatre's Generate programme, and the Albion Giving Circle.
BACKGROUND
Workshops
The research and inspiration behind Our Public House began in Spring 2023 with our Speak Out! Workshops across the country.
With our partners, Birmingham University and the University of East Anglia, since then, we’ve empowered over 600 people to write and deliver speeches about what we can change today that will make the future better. We've worked with diverse communities across England - including schools, women’s prisons, women’s and men’s social groups, political activists and deaf communities, in Cornwall, Sheffield, Manchester, Banbury, Corby, Peterborough, Coventry, Norwich, Brighton and London.
In the workshops, we supported participants in crafting and delivering powerful impactful speeches. The speeches were brilliantly diverse, ranging from a campaign for mushrooms campaigns, to increasing universal credit and rent controls, easy access to music lessons, improved special needs education and employer recognition of menopause. Their speeches provoked, persuaded and empowered. We’re still running workshops and alongside them, we’re creating a play inspired by all the people and speches we’ve met and heard.
At a series of live events in Manchester and London, we brought together our workshop participants alongside activists, academics, politicians to present and explore speech-making's ability to provoke, persuade and empower.
“You leave feeling a connection to the community and empowered by the knowledge that speech can truly be one of the greatest tools society can unlock.” - A Young(ish) Perspective
Events included cultural historian Edith Hall, playwright Alecky Blythe, former speechwriter to David Cameron, Jessica Cunniffe, comedian Rinkoo Barpaga, youth worker and community activist Zara Manoehoetoe.
Podcast
Discover the complex process of translating our research into a tangible production by tuning into our podcast series ‘Our Public House’. Immerse yourself not only in insightful discussions but also in captivating snippets from the compelling speeches delivered by our participants.
Available on all streaming platforms.
BLOG
Catch-up on our progress by delving into our blog, where you can trace our remarkable journey from securing initial funding in 2022 to our current achievements.
