LIFE AFTER TIME
Left to right: Ricardo, Nathaniel, Brian, Marc
During the JITNEY run at The Old Vic, Headlong worked with Kestrel Theatre Company to share four powerful documentary films that Kestrel created alongside award-winning filmmaker Dorothy Allen-Pickard. We are proud to now be able to offer these films to theatre-goers here on our website.
Each short film, no more than 6 minutes long, is a short portrait of a key Kestrel associate who has significant experience of the justice system. These intimate tellings of their lives after prison offer a unique window into the worlds of four different men whose stories have gone unheard. Much like the character Booster in August Wilson’s play Jitney, these men’s lives have been altered in extreme ways by the justice system and by the effects of gentrification on their hometowns.
Although separated by time and space, Booster’s life after prison lies parallel with the lives of Marc, Ricardo, Nathaniel and Brian, whose stories told through film remind us of the importance and impact of the arts in the criminal justice system.
Click on the names below to watch each of the films.
Marc, 41, from Plumstead works as a Prisoner Engagement Coordinator at the Prison Reform Trust.
Ricardo, 31, from Birmingham, works in construction and is setting up his own recording studio.
Nathaniel, 38, from Hackney, works on the railways.
Brian, 52, from Coventry, works in construction and is a retired entrepreneur.
Kestrel Theatre Company
Kestrel employs professionals to work creatively within the criminal justice system, facilitating original pieces of work, mostly in theatre and film. By empowering offenders to express themselves in a non-judgmental, collaborative and enabling environment, Kestrel helps them develop greater self-confidence, mutual respect, and resilience. And by realising their creative potential, helps them produce work of the highest standard. To find out more about Kestrel, and to donate what you can to support the continuation of Kestrel's work in prisons please visit their website.
