''Nine Night'' is a 2018 play by

Natasha Gordon Natasha Delia Letitia Gordon (born 1976) is a British playwright of Jamaican heritage. In 2018, having previously been an actor, with her debut play '' Nine Night'' she became the first black British female playwright to have a play staged in th ...

. It focuses on the traditional Jamaican

Nine nights Nine-Nights, also known as Dead Yard, is a funerary tradition practiced in the Caribbean (primarily Belize, Antigua, Grenada, Dominica, Dominican Republic, Jamaica, Guyana, Trinidad and Haiti). It is an extended wake that lasts for several days, ...

, as a family struggles with their loss.

Productions

''Nine Night'' had its world premiere production at Dorfman Theatre beginning on 21 April 2018, playing a limited run to 21 May. The production transferred to the West End, beginning previews at Trafalgar Studios on 1 December 2018 prior to opening night on 6 December. Playwright Natasha Gordon stepped into the role of Lorraine. The production played a limited run to 23 February.

Critical reception

The play received generally positive reviews. Paul Taylor for ''

The Independent ''The Independent'' is a British online newspaper. It was established in 1986 as a national morning printed paper. Nicknamed the ''Indy'', it began as a broadsheet and changed to tabloid format in 2003. The last printed edition was publis ...

'' states "Natasha Gordon's debut play buzzes with comic energy...The piece generates a fantastic atmosphere of inclusion. Natasha Gordon is an actress, but I have no doubt that from now on, we will be hearing a lot more from her as a dramatist." In a five star review for the ''

Evening Standard The ''Evening Standard'', formerly ''The Standard'' (1827–1904), also known as the ''London Evening Standard'', is a local free daily newspaper in London, England, published Monday to Friday in tabloid format. In October 2009, after be ...

'', Henry Hitchings states "Right now there’s probably no funnier performance in town than Cecilia Noble as Aunt Maggie, the clucking matriarch in Natasha Gordon’s richly enjoyable family drama."

Awards and nominations

References

{{Reflist 2018 plays English plays