New play Bread and Circuses at the Lantern

Bread and Circuses, a new play by Merseyside writer Mari Lloyd, will premiere at The Lantern Theatre early next month, to coincide with the Queen’s official birthday.Set in 2012, it’s a play that looks behind the flag waving of public celebration to reveal "a world where there may be circuses, but the bread is definitely in short supply".The show will incorporate photographs by photojournalist Colin McPherson, from the acclaimed A 41 project.In 2012 Britain celebrated the Queen’s Diamond Jubilee and hosted the Olympic Games, yet was also experiencing one of the worst periods of inequality since the Second World War."Bread and Circuses creates a world of banquets and food banks, tabloid scandal and social isolation, celebrity adoration and unrequited love. Shards of life that show society from a different angle," says Mari.Her previous works include The Match (Liverpool Write Now Festival), Last Tango at St. Leonard’s (Liverpool Write Now Festival), and Three Women (Manchester 24:7).Directed by Rob Henderson and assistant director Lydia Searle, the cast comprises Sheila Jones, Danielle McLauren, Roisin McCusker, Franklyn Jacks and Richard Carlin.Catch it at the Lantern from June 9 to 11.