The Belgrade Theatre, in association with tiata fahodzi, production of Swim, Aunty, Swim! has been named as Best New Play at the UK Theatre Awards. The award was announced at a ceremony in London, hosted by Faye Tozer. The UK Theatre Awards celebrate the very best of theatre across England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland. The award for Best New Play was sponsored by Cunard. The play, which was written by Siana Bangura and directed by Madeleine Kludje, debuted at Belgrade Theatre in May 2024. 

Swim, Aunty, Swim! is one of the Belgrade Theatre’s flagship in-house productions and was developed in close collaboration with tiata fahodzi. The show forms part of the new strand of work under the leadership team’s creative vision for the people of Coventry and the wider region. 

Further success for the Belgrade Theatre at the UK Theatre Awards was for Kenneth Macleod who took home the award for Best Design for his work on the National Theatre of Scotland & Aberdeen Performing Arts co-production with Belgrade Theatre, Dracula: Mina’s Reckoning. 

Siana Bangura said, “I am elated and delighted to see ‘Swim, Aunty, Swim!’ resonate so profoundly with audiences near and far. A play birthed through grief has gone on to bring so much joy and so much light. Thank you to the entire company for their hard work and passion bringing to life this important story. It is rare to see characters like Ama, Blessing, and Fatu take centre stage in British stories, sharing the raw reality of all it takes to evolve and rebirth later in life. May the landscape of British theatre continue to grow and change for the better - and may more stories like this get to be told.”

Belgrade Theatre Creative Director Corey Campbell, and Chief Executive Laura Elliot said “We are deeply honoured that Siana Bangura’s beautiful play, Swim, Aunty, Swim! has been awarded Best New Play at the UK Theatre Awards. We are grateful that UK Theatre have recognised our commitment to showcasing powerful voices and stories from Coventry and beyond, which resonate with diverse communities.

With Swim, Aunty, Swim!, as with all the work we’re producing and co-producing, the  whole team were excited by the beauty of producing a new play, whilst not shying away from the challenges that come with it to. 

This win belongs to everyone who brought this story to life, and the audiences who we shared it with.

We are also thrilled Kenneth Macleod, won the award for Best Design on our co-production of Dracula: Mina’s Reckoning.”

A full list of winners can be found HERE via the UK Theatre website.

Image: Kadiatu Bangura & Maya Bangura accept for Siana Bangura for Swim, Aunty, Swim! (Best New Play) © Danny Kaan