J'Ouvert

Cast: 3F

Synopsis: Carnival is here. The streets of Notting Hill are alive with history and among the pulsating soca, dazzling colour, and endless sequins and feathers, Jade and Nadine are fighting for space in a world they thought was theirs.

A timely reflection on the Black British experience and sexual politics of Carnival, J'Ouvert is a piercing, hilarious and fearless story of two best friends, battling to preserve tradition in a society where women's bodies are frequently under threat.

Why it's great for your design students: Carnival costumes mean that costume designers will be challenged, and there are a lot of varied music cues, as well as a requirement for layering of sound at one point.

Instructions for Correct Assembly

Cast: 3F, 3M

Synopsis: Harry and Max weren't satisfied with their first attempt at parenthood, so they're giving it a second go. Only this time they've got a 30-day money back guarantee and an easy-to-follow construction manual. They're certain, as long as they follow it step-by-step, he's going to be perfect. Thomas Eccleshare's play is about parenthood, artificial life, and the impossibility of perfection.

Why it's great for your design students: Prop makers have an opportunity to stretch their skills – the central conceit is that of a DIY child/teenager, with various body parts needed throughout the show, both apart and put together.

Beginners

Cast: 5F, 4M

Synopsis: Beginners tells the story of three families trapped in a waterlogged holiday cottage over summer. A play about the divide between childhood and adulthood, and the way adulthood kills off childhood, it tackles children's fears and frustrations with the adults in their lives.

Why it's great for your design students: The set starts off as a standard interior, which explodes with fantastical elements during the play-within-a-play that the children put on, such as giant insects and flowers, and a mountain. Props such as books and towels fall from above onto the stage. Costume gets increasingly playful and childlike as the play proceeds – with overlap between adults and children, and dressing up. The play has a lot of sound and lighting requirements and cues – the main challenge is the play-within-a-play, which features thunder and a karaoke machine, the sound of which must fill the space.

After Edward

Cast: 4F, 7M

Synopsis: Edward II wanders on to the empty stage, bloodied and confused. He has no idea where he is, or how he got here, but he does have an ominous feeling that something is wrong. As that feeling grows, so too does the threat on the other side of the auditorium doors.

Edward finds himself locked inside the theatre with some rather anarchic fellow inmates: Gertrude Stein, Harvey Milk and Quentin Crisp. As they set about unravelling what has happened, only one thing is certain: everything is not as it seems…

Tom Stuart's response to Marlowe's Edward II takes us into a surreal world of pride, shame, and tenderness.

Why it's great for your design students: There are a variety of distinctive costumes and props, and set design have certain technical opportunities, including characters dropping from the ceiling to the stage, trapdoors, and making doors appear to open and close of their own accord. Sound and lighting design is key at certain points in the play, and includes live candles.

Mountains

Cast: 5F, 2M

Synopsis: Helen has grown up in the UK, but always felt a piece of her story was missing. Amid the skyscrapers and bustling streets of Hong Kong, she meets her grandmother, Lily Kwok, and steps into a past of shocking family secrets that will change her life forever.

Based on Helen Tse's bestselling novel Sweet Mandarin, this evocative play by award-winning writer In-Sook Chappell tells the extraordinary story of the women behind the famous Manchester restaurant, and on how food and love tie the women of a family together through economic hardship and migration.

Why it's great for your design students: There are a lot of different costumes, and sound designers will have to come up with sounds that evoke Hong Kong, as well as other locations. Food is an important part of the play and is cooked on stage at various points, so set design and props will have to design the stage around that.