As if we haven’t been busy enough over this summer (see below or click here) Artistic Director Christine Bacon has also been preparing for the launch of our newest script to mark the tenth anniversary of the invasion of Afghanistan as part of the Actors for Human Rights outreach programme.

Ten years. Billions of pounds per year. 140,000 serving foreign troops. Over 11,000 military casualties. 9,000 civilians dead. 7.5 million refugees. For millions of citizens and returning refugees, Afghanistan remains home. Afghan Monologues takes us into their lives.

Launching at the Southbank Centre on 4 October, Afghan Monologues brings to the stage the real words of men and women from across Afghan society, as well as Western commentators from the front line.

To book tickets click here and to read Christine's blog about the project click here

... we have also been busy collaborating on two other plays.

On 23 September, we will be presenting a new short script Town to Town, Village to Village, focusing on the rights of Roma communities in Europe.

We have worked with Amnesty Islington & Hackney and Waltham Forest to collect and script the testimonies of a Roma family who left the Czech Republic because of violence and intimidation, going from country to country, looking for a place to call home. Please come along and join us at Amnesty International’s Human Rights Action Centre  for the evening event including our performance, along with poetry, music, film and debate.

On 24 September we also see the result of another collaboration. We have been commissioned by Medical Aid for Palestinians  (MAP) to perform Caryl Churchill's Seven Jewish Children at their annual dinner at the Royal Garden Hotel in Kensington with a keynote speech delivered by Michael Mansfield QC.

We will also be performing Seven Jewish Children on 7 October in Leyton at another fundraising event. All proceeds go to supporting the crucial work MAP does in the occupied Palestinian territory and beyond.

We can’t quite believe it either, but our flagship event of the year has sadly been and gone.

If you have seen the show, we would love to hear what you thought about it! Please, give us your feedback here

Opening on 20 July 2011, with a phenomenal cast and creative team including Director Michael Longhurst and designer Chloe Lamford, On the Record met with strong critical acclaim from a number of prestigious publications:

"Gripping theatre...a production by Michael Longhurst that is at once succinct, shocking and wryly funny."                                 The Times, ★ ★ ★ ★

“The production … compresses a lot into 90 minutes as it lays out why the practice of investigative journalism matters” Sunday Times, Critics’ Choice ★ ★ ★ ★

"Sobering and heartening"                                                      Financial Times, ★ ★ ★ ★

"Impassioned … Director Michael Longhurst keeps up the tension throughout. A vital play"                                           Evening Standard ★ ★ ★ ★

We had a fantastic time creating our celebrated production and we’d like to extend a huge thanks to every single person of our large team for making it come together.

We’d also like to thank everyone who donated to the project, bought tickets and offered support through tweeting, spreading the word and being generally lovely friends of the company. We really couldn’t have done it without you and hope you’re looking forward to the next show as much as we are!

Make sure you keep checking the website for post-show reviews, videos and news: we’re always up to something, don’t you know?

Not satisfied with developing our own scripts and productions, we also like to encourage you to develop yours!

We’ve been running our script-reading service, Everyone Has the Right, for a long time now and hundreds of you have already submitted scripts over the years. We’ve spoken in the past about how successful a launch pad the scheme can be, but you’re able to see for yourself at Theatre503 from now until 24 September where the mesmerising Beasts is running. iceandfire produced the play (under the title Las Brutas) as part of the Everyone Has the Right readings in partnership with Amnesty last November, and we’re delighted to see it getting the exposure it deserves at Theatre503.

In this play, set against the backdrop of the Pinochet regime’s ascent to power, internationally-acclaimed playwright Juan Radrigán examines, movingly and at times humorously, the effect of isolation and fear on the human spirit. With poignant echoes of the 2010 Chilean miners crisis and resonance with marginalised communities worldwide, Beasts (Las brutas) is a haunting portrayal of love, fear and impossible choices.  Full details click here

And best of all what’s even better is that anyone on the iceandfire mailing list can get a whopping discount by booking via telephone and quoting WINGS. The offer is only available by calling 020 7978 7040 and entitles you to get a ticket for a mere £9 (normally £14) but hurry, hurry as they’re not available for long!

...iceandfire relies heavily on the generous donations you give. If you would like our work to continue, please consider donating to us by a regular monthly donation or one-off payment.

If everyone who receives this email were to donate a measly £2 per month, we would be able to DOUBLE the work we do and the people we reach! Furthermore if you are a UK taxpayer, do declare this on your donation as we can then grab another 27% off the government through Gift Aid.

As public subsidy and grant-making bodies tighten their belts, the future output of iceandfire becomes more and more at risk. Please help us sustain the charitable work we do for years to come.