The Summer of Blooming Dahlias was born out of a desire to tell a story that related to us and our experiences. Flick, Fatim and I became fast friends during our time at Sheffield Hallam University. We immediately gravitated towards each other and developed a close bond, supporting each other during the course.

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As part of our final year of university, we were presented with Change Makers Festival: the module which gives you the opportunity to create a piece of performance of your choosing (whether theatre, film or audio performance).  We knew that we wanted to work together and perform a play; however, when researching, it became apparent that there weren’t many plays about three young Black women. As a result, we chose to challenge ourselves by using the skills we learnt at university to develop our own production surrounding three young Black women, their friendship and sisterhood, and what it’s like to live as young Black women in the UK.

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Research was a huge part of our process, and we began by reaching out to members of our community with a survey asking them about their experiences as Black women living in the UK. Their answers helped us begin to develop our plot and the themes for the performance. Everything was beginning to come together!

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We pitched our project to a panel of lecturers, technicians and industry professionals and waited a short while to find out whether our project had been greenlit or not. Once our project was confirmed, we started to write our script.

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The writing process took around 5 weeks, and we thought we wouldn’t need much time to edit, but we found that during rehearsals, something in the script was always changing. The first 2 months of the project were rigorous as we met up to rehearse almost every day of the week. Also, as well as writing and rehearsing the script, we also developed the promotional materials for the show, i.e. posters, social media accounts, the website etc., and we worked diligently to create a project of excellence.

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Our desire is for the audience to witness the power of sisterhood, and the bond that Black women share. We want to emphasise the importance of creating connections and building friendships with others, and supporting each other no matter what.

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This play will shed light on many issues Black women face, but in the end, we want people to know that despite what is happening in the world that works against us, we still have each other.

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Prepare to experience a production that celebrates Black beauty, joy and new beginnings!