Theatre. Black Lives, Black Words is a series of short plays musing on the question:

The international project has explored the black diaspora’s experiences in some of the largest multicultural cities in the world, Chicago, Minneapolis, Cleveland, Baltimore and London.

The Bush contributes four new commissions by black British writers Rachel De-Lahay, Winsome Pinnock, Somalia Seaton and Mojisola Adebayo, to the Black Lives, Black Words canon. The programme will also include previously performed pieces by American writers Idris Goodwin and Harrison David Rivers.

All six plays will be performed alongside spoken word interludes each night. These are Womb (Somalia Seaton), #Matter (Idris Goodwin), This Bitter Earth (Harrison David Rivers), The Principles of Cartography (Winsome Pinnock), My White Best Friend (Rachel De-Lahay) and The Interrogation of Sandra Bland (Mojisola Adebayo). Poet Anthony Anaxagorou will perform his poems If I Told You and Master’s Revenge.

The plays will be performed by actors and in the spirit of protest, most of the audience will stand and move with the performance.

Performance 19:30
Running time approx 2 hour

7 Uxbridge Rd
Shepherd’s Bush
London W12 8LJ
020 8743 5050
boxoffice@bushtheatre.co.uk.

Earth Hour is an annual global celebration where people switch off their lights for one hour to show they care about the future of our planet.
Sign up and be part.

Earth Hour is the world’s largest demonstration of support for action on climate change. Last year, millions around the world across 178 countries came together to show support for action to protect our amazing planet.

Acton Day 21.30pm on Saturday 25 March is when your support will be used to show political and business leaders people want action on climate change.

Sign up and be part here
http://earthhour.wwf.org.uk/

Theatre. Natives is a rallying cry to a generation of unlikely heroes and celebrates coming of age online in a chaotic world.

Three countries. Three teenagers. One average, life-altering day.
A young man battles with feelings of love and violence. Another is stuck with the image of someone being pushed from between her friends and her conscience.

Show Times 20:00 15:30
Running time 75 mins
Age 14+

77-85 Newington Causeway
London SE1 6BD
020 7407 0234

Tickets £20 | £16 concessions | £12 preview performances

Gig. American singer-songwriter Sirena Riley enchants at this lunchtime concert.

Like her musical heroes Prince and Nina Simone, Riley draws from a broad range of influences, including jazz, r ‘n’ b, and even visual art.

Having sung in choirs as a child living in Washington, DC, she moved to London after meeting several skilful and inspired artists in Europe and the UK. She has since played at venues such as the Vortex and Jazz Cafe, as well as being both a vocalist and presenter at several London Jazz Festivals.

Show Time 13:00

Royal Festival Hall
Central Bar Foyer
Level 2
Free Entry

Play. Escape The Scaffold combines classic thriller elements with pitch-black humour and magic realism.

Escape the Scaffold is a dark and dangerous psychological thriller set against the background of a  rapidly changing world. Three best friends hunker down in their student house, forced to make decisions that will mark them for the rest of their lives. Get a job. Get married. Put down the tequila and take the money.

Save yourself. Love triangle turns to murderous betrayal. Youthful idealism is tested, paranoia takes hold, and real life melts into a nightmare world. The basement is filling with water and there is a monster in the house.

Performances 19:45 |  15:00
Pay what can Matinees 15:00 Weds/Sat (check with box office)
29th March (parent & baby)

Theatre 503
The Latchmere
503 Battersea Park Road
London SW11 3BW
020 7978 7040

Seminar. Robotics, AI and Society – Are humans at risk of losing their jobs because of automation or are the reports misdirected?

The Luddite uprising of the early 19th century pitted English textile workers against the machines taking their jobs. The machines won. If, as experts warn, large numbers of jobs are at risk of automation over the next twenty years, are we likely to encounter similar scenes of upheaval? Or are media reports of robots stealing our jobs misdirected? If machines can save us time and open up new types of roles, then surely we should embrace the change?

Chair: Timandra Harkness, Journalist and author, Big Data: Does size matter? (Bloomsbury Sigma, 2016)

Speakers:

Helen Dickinson, Chief Executive, British Retail Consortium
Dr Sabine Hauert, Lecturer in Robotics, University of Bristol
Dr Daniel Susskind, Fellow in Economics, University of Oxford and co-author of The future of the professions: How technology will transform the work of human experts (OUP, 2015)
Professor Judy Wajcman FBA, Anthony Giddens Professor of Sociology, LSE and author Pressed for time: The acceleration of life in digital capitalism (Chicago, 2015)

Doors 18:30 – 20:00

ENTRY FREE – Registration required

The Royal Society
6-9 Carlton House Terrace
London, SW1Y 5AG
enquiries@britac.ac.uk
events@britac.ac.uk.

Seminar. Mahmood Mamdani renowned author and commentator on African politics and society considers how should we think of justice? Lessons from South Sudan.

The demand for an end to impunity is today at the forefront of the call for an international regime of criminal justice. There are two problems with this demand: the first is that it translates the call for a universal norm into a ‘one-size-fits-all’ prescription, regardless of context; the second is that it reduces all violence to criminal violence, making it a matter of strictly individual responsibility. Mahmood’s objective in this lecture will be to distinguish criminal from political violence and criminal from political justice and explain the stakes involved in not doing so.

Admission 18:30 – 20:00

Tickets ENTRY FREE – Registration required

The British Academy
10-11 Carlton House Terrace
London, SW1Y 5AH
events@britac.ac.uk.

An eloquent play about men and women

“It’s not always all about you.’

Three couples.
What might be.
What once was.
What could have been.

Dialogue Club | Post-show talks  Hosts Maddy Costa (writer) and Jake Orr (producer)

Thu 23 Mar 21:00 (free but ticketed)

Dialogue Club works like a book group: see the show in your own time, then come and discuss what you thought with other audience members over drinks.(founder and artistic director of A Younger Theatre).

Age 14+
Performance Mon – Sat: 19:45 Thu & Sat Mats: 15:00
Running time 1 hour 20 min

Tickets from £12
Royal Court Theatre
Sloane Square
London SW1W 8AS
Box office: 020 7565 5000

Film. Generation Revolution tells the powerful story of London’s new generation of black and brown activists.

The film focuses on two groups – the London Black Revs and R Movement – set on changing the social and political landscape in the capital and beyond.

The screening will be followed by a talk about the film and long table discussion on art and activism. Reginald Edmund and Simeilia Hodge-Dallaway lead the discussions alongside creatives and activists.

Reginald Edmund is a resident playwright of Chicago Dramatists and Managing Curating Producer of Black Lives, Black Words. Simeilia Hodge-Dallaway is the Founder and Executive Manager of Artistic Directors of the Future.

Performance 15:00
Running time approx 3 hours
Film running time: 65 mins
Post-film talk: 40 mins
Long table discussion: 1 hr

Tickets from £10

7 Uxbridge Rd
Shepherd’s Bush
London W12 8LJ
020 8743 5050
boxoffice@bushtheatre.co.uk.

Let your adrenaline levels go through the roof during a 50-minute white-knuckle ride on the Thames River.

Feel your excitement heighten as the boat’s engine roars into life and propels you toward iconic London landmarks like Big Ben, the Houses of Parliament and St Paul’s Cathedral. Gaze at the sharp spire of the Shard as you reach speeds of up to 35 miles (56 km) per hour. Listen to fascinating commentary during slower periods of sailing and glide under the monumental Tower Bridge as your skipper yanks back the throttle and accelerates to high-velocity speeds. Gasp as your skipper performs break-neck turns and wave jumps, and then catch your breath during a brief interlude at Canary Wharf.  Enjoy a leisurely cruise back to the boat’s original departure point

Departure hourly 10:00 – 12:00 then 15:00 and 17:00
Running time 50 mins

Tickets from $53

An exhibition by Ibrahim Mahama. One of the most prominent artists to emerge from Ghana in recent years, Mahama is known for large-scale installations i

The title of the exhibition is taken from the book of the same name by the renowned Ghanaian author Ayi Kwei Armah. Published in 1970, the novel explores the relationship between the individual and society within the newly independent Ghana, set against a backdrop of self-serving materialism and a corrupt, crumbling civic environment. Mahama’s practice equally points to the recurring themes of decay and collapse, while exploring systems of capital and production. For the work Non-Orientable Nkansa, for example, he worked with collaborators to exchange or produce hundreds of ‘shoemaker boxes’: small wooden objects made from structural materials found in the city, used to contain tools for polishing and repairing shoes. Bearing the marks of the trade of ‘shoeshine boys’, the boxes also function as an improvised drum, and are pounded to solicit business. Gathered together here in a precariously balanced single unit, the containers are crammed with other repurposed items such as heels, hammers and needles. Having been broken down and reassembled through a collaborative production staged inside a former state-owned paint factory, the boxes are an extension of Mahama’s inquiry into the life of materials and their dynamic potential, which also relates to his work with cast-off jute sacks.

Admission Tue-Sat 10:00 – 18:00; Sun 12:00 – 18:00

White Cube Bermondsey
144 – 152 Bermondsey Street
London SE1 3TQ
020 7930 5373

The Wipers Times tells the true and extraordinary story of the satirical newspaper created in the mud and mayhem of the Somme.

In a bombed out building during the First World War in the French town of Ypres (mis-pronounced Wipers by British soldiers), two officers discover a printing press and create a newspaper for the troops. Far from being a sombre journal about life in the trenches, they produced a resolutely cheerful, subversive and very funny newspaper designed to lift the spirits of the men on the front line. Defying enemy bombardment, gas attacks and the disapproval of many of the Top Brass, The Wipers Times rolled off the press for two years and was an extraordinary tribute to the resilience of the human spirit in the face of overwhelming adversity.

Age 12+
Performance 19:30
Tickets from £18.35

6-7 Great Newport Street
London WC2H7JB
020 7836 8463

Exhibition. The iconic work of British photographer Roger Mayne (1929-2014).

This major exhibition is the first since 1999 to show the iconic work of British photographer Roger Mayne (1929-2014).

It includes his pioneering photographs of 1950s and early 1960s community life in London’s Southam Street. Mayne’s humanistic approach has influenced subsequent generations of photographers, and made a significant contribution to post war British photography. Also featured are examples of Mayne’s less well known work from outside the Capital,

Doors Mon-Sat 10:00 – 18:00 |  Thu 10:00 – 20:00 | Sun 11.30 – 18:00

16-18 Ramillies St
London
W1F 7LW

Exhibition. The story of electricity is the story of life itself. Within every object on earth is hidden either a positive or negative electric charge.

Three celebrated artists have been commissioned to create three new artworks for this exhibition: John Gerrard has taken inspiration for his commission from Luigi Galvani’s famous experiments into bioelectricity; Bill Morrison explores historical footage from the Electricity Council archive to consider the movement and networks of electricity and its profound interconnectedness with our daily lives; and Camille Henrot considers our energy-dependent lifestyles, as well as the relationship between humans, technology and the environment.

Tue – Sat  10:00 – 18:00 | Thur 10:00 –  22:00 | Sun 11:00 – 18:00 | Mon Closed

Wellcome Collection
183 Euston Road
London NW1 2BE
020 7611 2222
info@wellcomecollection.org

Three misfit teenagers are brought together by a sex scandal.

Three misfit teenagers are brought together by a sex scandal in their school with nobody taking them seriously until they speak out with hilarious consequences.

Living in a social media minefield, where peers are judgmental and adults are dictatorial and condescending, Howie, Solomon and Diwata grapple with homophobia, online privacy and how to get the lead in the school play!

Featuring Douglas Booth (Riot Club, Noah) and Tony Revolori (The Grand Budapest Hotel and coming soon Spiderman:Homecoming), Patsy Ferran (Treasure Island,  As You Like It) and Charlotte Lucas (Red Velvet, Posh).

Running time TBC
Age 14+
Doors 19:00

14 Whitehall
London SW1A 2DY

A musical loosely based on Diana Ross and The Supremes.

Inspired by R&B music acts in 1960s America and loosely based on Diana Ross and The Supremes, Dreamgirls transports you to a revolutionary time in American music history. Dreamgirls charts the tumultuous journey of a young female singing trio from Chicago, Illinois called ‘The Dreams.’ They learn the hard lesson that show business is as tough as it is fabulous.

Performances:19:50
Matinee:14:30

Tickets from £15 plus £3 booking fee

Savoy Theatre
Savoy Court
Strand WC2R 0ET

An exhibition that showcases women’s photography and video work from around the world.

Drawn from the National Museum of Women in the Arts (Washington, U.S.), this collection display showcases photography and video work by seventeen contemporary artists from around the world.

By turning their camera to women, including themselves, these artists embrace the female body as a vital medium for storytelling, expressing identity and reflecting individual and collective experience.

Admission Tues – Sun 10:00 – 18:00 | Mon Closed
ENTRY FREE

Whitechapel Gallery
Gallery 4
77-82 Whitechapel High Street
E1 7QX

An exhibition of photographs, and a symposium (20 March) exploring children at play around the world.

The exhibition presents a series of Neville’s photographs of children at play in diverse environments around the world. Immersing himself in communities from Port Glasgow to North London, and in the war zones of Afghanistan and Ukraine, the artist has captured beautiful moments of free, spontaneous play.

Mark Neville is renowned for his socially focused projects. The aim here is to generate debate on the complex nature of children’s play and to advocate for improved provision for this universal right.

Armed conflict has internally displaced 13 million children, and traditional public space is being privatised.  So this is a timely exhibition. Child’s Play reinforces our responsibility to ensure that children the world over have full opportunity for play and recreation.

Admission Tue-Sat 10:00 – 17:00 | Sun 11:00 – 17:00 | Mon closed

Foundling Museum
40 Brunswick Square
London
WC1N 1AZ
020 7841 3600

It’s not what you see; it’s how you see it.

Organised around four themes – ‘Ordering,’ ‘Displaying,’ ‘Observing’ and ‘Making’ – this exhibition questions the approach of ‘learning through looking.’

A major exhibition that examines what we think, feel, and value about other species and the consequences this has for the world around us. It brings together over 100 fascinating objects from literature, film, taxidermy and photography to reveal the hierarchies in our view of the natural world and consider how these influence our actions, or inactions, towards the planet.

Admission Tues – Sat 10:00 – 18:00/Thurs 22:00 | Sunday 11:00 – 18:00

Wellcome Collection
183 Euston Road, London NW1 2BE, UK.
tel: +44 (0)20 7611 2222
info@wellcomecollection.org

The annual free exhibition of stunning space photography

Insight Astronomy Photographer of the Year is the biggest international competition of its kind, annually showcasing spectacular images shot by astrophotographers worldwide.

For a taste of past exhibits and a preview of this year’s contestants click on the link

Opening hours: Daily 10am-5pm (last admission 4.30pm)
ENTRY FREE

Blackheath Avenue
London
SE10 8XJ

Robots reveals the astonishing 500-year quest to make machines human.

Exhibits from the dawn of mechanised human forms to cutting-edge technology fresh from the lab.  Focusing on why they exist rather than on how they work, this blockbuster exhibition explores the ways robots mirror humanity and the insights they offer into our ambitions, desires, and position in a rapidly changing world.

An incredible journey spanning five centuries, illustrated with robotic artifacts from around the globe. From a 16th century mechanised monk to some of film’s most iconic robotic creations and the very latest humanoids, Robots will make you look at yourself and society in a whole new way.

Entry 10:00 – 18:00
Tickets adults £15 | kids £13 Under 7’s free
Museum Lates: Adults Only from £ £7:50 | £6:50 concs | £7:00 seniors. Last Wednesday of each month until August

Science Museum
Exhibition Road
South Kensington
London, SW7 2DD

100 exceptional images, revealing the astonishing diversity of life on our planet.

From intimate portraits to dramatic landscapes, see how photographers’ passion for the natural world produces startling images.

Admission 10:00 -17:50
Tickets Adults from £10.50 | Child & concs from £6.50 | Family from £27.00

The Natural History Museum
Cromwell Road
SW7 5BD