On November 16, to mark the second anniversary of Sergey Magnitsky's death in a Russian prison, iceandfire in conjunction with Sputnik Theatre and Amnesty International presents a staged reading of One Hour Eighteen Minutes by Elena Gramina (translated by Noah Birksted-Breen).

A documentary play which pieces together the final hours of Magnitsky's life, a dark and intimate look at a corrupt system - the medieval side of modern day Russia.

Magnitsky was a corporate lawyer who sued the Russian government for one of the most blatant cases of tax fraud in Russian history. He was arrested by the police, in retaliation and thrown in jail. Over the course of eleven months, he was held in pre-trial detention without charge, and tortured.

For more information and to book your FREE ticket visit Amnesty's website here

On November 15 at the Tabernacle, iceandfire, in association with English PEN will present a unique performance event to mark 30 years of the annual Day of the Imprisoned Writer.

This is a special one-off performance of Hello Mr Miller, Hello Mr Pinter in which the powerful words of persecuted writers from Mexico to Bahrain, from Kenya to Azerbaijan, have been woven together by iceandfire's founder Sonja Linden and English PEN's Cat Lucas. It will be in a cabaret setting with drinks and a spot of stand-up comedy with Nick Doody and Marcel Lucont afterwards.

Tickets are only £10 and all the proceeds will go directly to English PEN's Writers in Prison Programme. For bookings click here

On November 21, we are working with Peace Brigades International to mark their 30th anniversary with an evening of readings (scripted by iceandfire) and songs at Middle Temple, performed by Simon Russell Beale, Helen Chadwick, Jack Fortune, Juliet Stevenson, Zoë Wanamaker, Sam West. More info and booking here

iceandfire are preparing for a collaborative R+D period with a team of exciting theatre-makers to create a brand new production. Inspired by the rise in 'paupers' funerals' in our cities, we wanted to find out more about the stories of those who end their lives alone, often with no friends or family to mark their passing. Our new play will excavate the cycles of poverty and deprivation that define their lives. Read more here

In addition, we are currently researching a new documentary theatre play which examines the impact of the government cuts on public services, income and special support.

We are now actively looking for personal stories about how the public sector cuts are affecting people's lives. How will these cuts affect some of the most marginalised and vulnerable communities? How will the cuts alter the lives of working people? How will our communities change under the planned cuts yet to be rolled out? How do we prevent more people from falling in to the poverty trap? We plan to launch the script in late April 2012, marking almost a year of the cuts having come into effect.

To read more about the project, click here

A huge thank you to everyone who nominated iceandfire for the Liberty Award. Thanks to you we have been shortlisted! The awards ceremony at the Southbank Centre on November 22 and we will keep you posted on how we go.

Also...

... if you saw our production On the Record at the Arcola Theatre in July-August this year and you enjoyed it, you may like to nominate us for the What's On Stage Awards. These awards allows audiences to nominate their favourite performances, productions and creative teams for 2011. To nominate us just follow the link.

iceandfire's new Regional Director, Sue Buchan,  is relishing working alongside our wonderful Actors For Human Rights performers to deliver readings in a range of settings throughout the north-west and Yorkshire regions. Sue has been instrumental in developing work with further and higher education students as well as young people in youth settings like Cocamp and Envision launch in Leeds.

December will bring the first planning meetings for the exciting School of Sanctuary  project linking with the Refugee Council, RETAS and the British Council. As well as work with STAR (Student Action for Refugees) educational projects encouraging the next generation to actively participate in supporting people seeking sanctuary and refugees will be a continuing commitment. This year, we are particularly keen to expand our links with the statutory sector. Raising awareness with staff in health, social care and criminal justice agencies can prove crucial in determining effective support and front-line service. Any ideas or contacts you may have could enable us to share our work and ensure the voices of individuals represented in our scripts are heard within local government agencies. Please drop Sue an email here

The Westbridge a Royal Court production on at the Theatre Local, Peckham. This play explores the intricacies of living side by side, and looks at racial and cultural distinction with humor and bite.

Constellations directed by On the Record director Michael Longhurst, a Royal Court production on at the Jerwood Theatre Upstairs. The show opens on January 13, 2012. Bookings from November 14, 2011 via this link