Award-winning poet and playwright Inua Ellams brings Once Upon a Time in Sokoto to Nottingham Playhouse, telling an epic story of friendship, power, faith and survival set against the events that eventually shaped modern Nigeria.
The play centres on an unlikely relationship between a slave and her former master, two people divided by status, culture and faith who are forced to reconsider those differences as new threats emerge around them.
Their personal story unfolds within a much larger historical landscape, exploring the changing political, cultural and religious forces that shaped the region before the creation of Nigeria.
Born in Nigeria and raised partly in Britain, Inua Ellams has become one of the most distinctive Black voices in contemporary British theatre and poetry.
His acclaimed plays include Barber Shop Chronicles, which brought conversations between Black men in barber shops across Africa and the diaspora to the National Theatre and stages around the world.
He is also the author of several poetry collections and is known for work that moves between African mythology, migration, identity, masculinity and the experience of living between cultures.
Once Upon a Time in Sokoto won the 2024 Alfred Fagon Award, which recognises outstanding work by Black British playwrights of African and Caribbean descent.
For Black History Month audiences, the production offers an opportunity to encounter African history through drama rather than a conventional lecture or exhibition.
It explores slavery, religion, political change and human relationships while placing African characters and perspectives at the centre of the story.
Once Upon a Time in Sokoto is at Nottingham Playhouse on Saturday 31st October 2026, with an Audio Described performance at 2:30pm.
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Once Upon a Time in Sokoto
Award-winning poet and playwright Inua Ellams brings Once Upon a Time in Sokoto to Nottingham Playhouse, telling an…
Once Upon a Time in Sokoto
Award-winning poet and playwright Inua Ellams brings Once Upon a Time in Sokoto to Nottingham Playhouse, telling an…