Born to a Muslim father and a Christian mother in what is now considered by many to be Boko Haram territory, award-winning poet, playwright and Doctor Who writer Ellams left Nigeria for England in 1996, aged 12.
Littered with poems, stories and anecdotes, An Evening with an Immigrant tells his ridiculous, fantastic and poignant immigrant-story.
The show had a sell-out five-star (What’s on Stage) run at Bridge Theatre.
See it now with a new soundtrack by Ivor Novello-winning-artist Laura Mvula. Fuel presents An Evening with an Immigrant, commissioned and created especially for our Multitudes festival and performed live by Chineke! Orchestra, one of our six Resident Orchestras.
Ellams tells of escaping fundamentalist Islam, performing solo shows at the National Theatre and drinking wine with the Queen of England, all the while without a country to belong to or place to call home.
His words are soundtracked by Mvula’s score, transporting audiences on a journey around and out of this world.
Fuel are leaders in independent production for live performance, including films, festivals, books and podcasts. Their year-round programmes with explore the big questions of our times. Recent projects include Khalid Abdalla’s Nowhere, Racheal Ofori’s FLIP! and Russell Tovey and Neil Bartlett’s BLUE NOW.
Ellams is a poet, playwright, performer, graphic artist and designer. A fellow of the Royal Society of Literature and Complete Works poet alumni, he explores themes of identity, displacement. He runs accessible creative writing workshops and is the founder of The Midnight Run, The Rhythm and Poetry Party, and Poetry + Film / Hack (P+F/H).
Mvula is a critically-acclaimed songwriter, composer and recording artist known for her ability to draw from multiple genres to create her own sound. She’s toured extensively around the world, and her albums have seen her pick up Ivor Novello Awards for Best Album, MOBO and BRIT Awards nods, and multiple Mercury Prize album nominations.
Part of Multitudes 2026.
The ticket price includes a £2 venue restoration levy.
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