Don't Wake Me: the powerful new play by Rahila Gupta

They live amongst us, invisible, stripped of their passports and money, locked in cramped rooms, physically and psychologically abused. Britainis once again home to thousands of slaves - they reach our shores via unimaginably perilous crossings, are confined to horrendous working lives, and forgotten. Very few ever have a chance of talking about their appalling experiences. Rahila Gupta seeks out five slaves and persuades them to tell us their disturbing stories in this compelling and revealing book.

Flyer for Don't Wake Me, which will be coming to The Cockpit in Central London after selected dates at the Chickenshed in North London

After a difficult conception Nihal’s arrival into the world is a terrifying ordeal for his mother. During a traumatic delivery, attended by ‘cold-eyed’ midwives, Nihal has to be pulled back from the brink of death. Three months on, the doctor tells her that her baby has cerebral palsy and will never learn how to walk, talk, read or write.
 However, as Nihal grows, his mother recognises that inside his seemingly helpless body is a bright, sensitive, spirited boy. She is forced to wage battle with the system, a system unable to accept that flowers can bloom in a desert – triumphantly demonstrated when Nihal learns to communicate fluently in his own unique style
 This is the intensely dramatic, moving story of a mother’s tireless battles against prejudice and ignorance and her inspiring victories in her struggle for her son’s rights. A story of loss, grief, and joy, leavened by Nihal's sense of humour and the heroic human spirit.

• Don’t Wake Me will be previewing at the Chickenshed Theatre in North London from 22nd May 2013 - 25 May 2013. For details click here.
• It will then be on at the Cockpit Theatre in Central London from 3^rd June until 22^nd June 2013. For details click here.
• The official press night for Don’t Wake Me will be at the Cockpit on Monday 3^rd June at 7pm. For press please contact Sue Amaradivakara on 1001sca@gmail.com
• It will then be on at the Gilded Balloon in Edinburghduring the 2013 Edinburgh Fringe Festival from Monday 5 August - Sunday 25 August. For details click here.

Jaye Griffiths, who stars in Don't Wake Me. Behind her is an image of Nihal Armstrong