
property
by Jelena Budimir
New River Studios
2019
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Regeneration? Redevelopment? Gentrification?
Property is a political farce about the London housing crisis, exploring the legacy of successive governments’ lack of vision for housing, and the decimation of council provision. It’s a call to action. It’s set in the fictional borough of Hattenham and was inspired by the regeneration of estates in Hackney and Haringey.
This fast-moving comedy hurls headlong into the housing debate. Hipsters clash with locals, councils find strange bedfellows, and the homeless take over the estate. As house prices rise and rents rocket, is the writing on the wall for what’s left of diverse, patchwork London and its mixed communities? London housing is a farce. And so is this play.
Property was first presented at New River Studios on 16-19 October 2019 funded by the Arts Council. This venue was selected for its location adjacent to Woodberry Down, a council estate that is being redeveloped with a high proportion of new luxury flats. This allowed us access to the local community that have been directly impacted.
Through our post-show discussions with housing experts, the actors and writer we provided a safe public forum for the audience to discuss the dilemmas the play presents. Our partners included Shelter, Cardboard Citizens Theatre, Immediate Theatre and John Boughton.
"Dario Fo on acid...Well done on your show....Amazing achievement to make such a funny play and get such committed performances out of all of them. Well done.”
ADRIAN JACKSON
Artistic director of Cardboard Citizens
"I very much enjoyed it. I thought the cast performed brilliantly too in what must be a pretty demanding production. It's great that, between us, we're helping make housing such a hot and important topic.”
JOHN BOUGHTON
Author of
Municipal Dream: The Rise and Fall of Council Housing
“….it helped me understand many different aspects of London life. And it was such a joy to watch. The writing was terrific and I loved all the physical comedy.”
AUDIENCE MEMBER
"We all enjoyed it enormously and were inspired by the overall message and loved all the different characters. You certainly had an impressive group of actors. We really liked the comedy as well”
AUDIENCE MEMBER




CAST
CHRISTOPHER ADAMS
LIONEL
CHEREEN BUCKLEY
KYLIE
DENISE MACK
JEAN
GARETH TEMPEST
BRIAN
VIVIANA TAY
LAUREN
TEAM
JELENA BUDIMIR
WRITER AND DIRECTOR
LYNNE MCCONWAY
ASSOCIATE PRODUCER
SANNA-KARINA AAB
PRODUCER
DANNY ATKINSON
SET DESIGNER
MATT CATER
LIGHTING DESIGNER
AIDEN CONNOR
SOUND DESIGNER
AK LIE
COSTUME DESIGNER
ANUSKA ZAREMBA-PIKE
STAGE MANAGER
ESTHER FERNANDEZ
ASSISTANT DIRECTOR
LOUISE EGAN
PRODUCTION ASSISTANT
MARIE ZSCHOMMLER
ASSISTANT STAGE MANAGER