The Duke at The Wardobe Theatre Bristol

Shôn Dale Jones returns to Bristol, bringing updated Fringe hit

Theatre maker Shôn Dale Jones, will be returning to Bristol this October with a revival of his Fringe hit The Duke.

The show was first staged in 2016 in response to the refugee crisis in The Syrian Conflict.

“I couldn’t watch more images of the terrifying reality that these people are suffering without contributing towards the relief effort, Dale Jones says.”

“I’m not a doctor or an engineer – I’m a writer/performer, and so I decided I could write a show which connects us to the crisis and raise money to support Save The Children’s refugee and crisis work.“

“Now, in 2024, I’ve returned to The Duke because ‘the refugee crisis’ has become more extreme and heavily politicised. It feels more important than ever to remind each other that we are talking about people. People like us. It might be complicated to find solutions to the crisis but it’s straightforward to practice empathy for innocent people whose lives are being torn apart.“

The Duke brings together three key moments in Shôn Dale-Jones’ life which converged at the same point. A much-loved statue owned by his late father was accidentally broken by his mother. She calls him in distress whilst he was waiting for an important email regarding a film script. Whilst this was going on, a report about the refugee crisis was playing on the radio.

‘All need my attention,’ he writes, which brought together The Duke. It’s a piece of theatre told through fantasy, comedy and reality, aiming to challenge where are priorities lie in a world full of crisis.

The Duke has been performed at venues across the world. As far as Africa and Australia. And closer to home at the Royal Court, Barbican and Soho Theatre.

It’s also been made into a radio play, broadcast on BBC Radio 4 back in 2018.

The updated show continues to invite audiences to contribute to making a difference to the lives of refugees through charity collections at the end of each performance.

Both The Duke and Dale-Jones’ previous show Me & Robin Hood has so far raised over £100,000 for charities supporting child refugees and street-connected children.

Audiences for The Duke are invited to bring donations for Aid Box Community to the performances of the show. Here’s a guide to what donations are most desirable. The items will be collected by volunteers from Aid Box Community.

The Duke will be at The Wardrobe Theatre on Friday 04 and Saturday 05 October 2024

It will also be at The Front Room in Weston Super Mare on 09 October 2024

For more information or to book, visit: https://thewardrobetheatre.com/shows/the-duke/

To book for Weston Super Mare, visit: https://www.ticketsource.co.uk/whats-on/weston-super-mare/front-room-weston-super-mare/the-duke-by-shon-dale-jones/e-bkgzgg

For more information about Shôn Dale-Jones, visit: https://sdjproductions.co.uk/the-duke/

Written and performed by Shôn Dale Jones
Produced by SDJ PRODUCTIONS
Featured Image: Brian Roberts

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