Before I May Destroy You. Before Chewing Gum. There was a one-woman play that introduced the world to Michaela Coel. Now, for the first time in the UK, it is coming back.
Theatre503 has announced that BIFA-nominated actor Lauryn Ajufo will play Tracey Gordon in the first UK revival of Chewing Gum Dreams, Coel’s semi-autobiographical debut, running September 10 through October 3. Ajufo steps into the role Coel originally performed herself, a young, restricted, religious virgin navigating first love, the last days of school and the moments that shape who we become.
“To step into the shoes of Michaela Coel is truly an honor,” Ajufo said in a statement to Variety. “I can’t wait to watch the magic unfold.”
Ajufo is a 2022 Screen International Star of Tomorrow whose BIFA-nominated performance in Boiling Point announced her as one of the most compelling young actors working in British film. She has since appeared in Dreaming Whilst Black, Luther: Fallen Son and leads Netflix series Everything Now and Tell Me Everything.
Chewing Gum Dreams began as Coel’s final-year production at the Guildhall School of Music and Drama before making its public debut at The Yard Theatre in 2012 and transferring to The Shed at the National Theatre in 2014. Coel later adapted it into the Channel 4 series Chewing Gum, which ran from 2015 to 2017 and cemented her as one of Britain’s most distinctive voices before I May Destroy You brought her global recognition.
Coel offered her blessing. “Theatre503 was one of the early supporters of Chewing Gum Dreams and praised the show greatly during its first run in 2012,” she said. “It is wonderful to see it have its first UK return there and I’m excited for its opening.”
The revival is directed by Theatre503 artistic director Anthony Simpson-Pike, whose credits include the Olivier Award-winning The P Word and Grenfell: In the Words of Survivors at the National Theatre. It marks the theatre’s first partnership with British African heritage theatre company tiata fahodzi and launches a new Theatre503 strand dedicated to revisiting debut plays that reshaped contemporary British theatre. An extension has already been announced due to strong advance demand.
The creative team includes set and costume designer Yimei Zhao, lighting designer Christopher Nairne, sound designer Xana, casting director Heather Basten CDG and movement director Theophilus O. Bailey.
Chewing Gum Dreams runs at Theatre503 September 10 through October 3.