New autumn/winter season announced at the Bush Theatre

The new autumn/winter season at the Bush Theatre has been announced by artistic director Madani Younis.

The Bush reopened in March following a major £4.3million redevelopment which saw the opening of a new studio space.

The season begins in September with Ramona Tells Jim, a new play by actor Sophie Wu (known for her roles in the film Kick Ass and TV series Fresh Meat). Wu is a graduate of the Bush Theatre Emerging Writers' Group, and her new play is about a 15-year-old girl, Ramona, on a school geography trip in the Scottish Highlands. The play looks at how her meeting local boy Jim still affects both of their lives 15 years after the trip. It will be directed by Mel Hillyard, with designs by Lucy Sierra, when it runs in the Studio from 20th September to 21st October.

Also in September, the main space will see a celebration of Iranian theatre-maker Nassim Soleimanpour's work as all four of his plays are performed. These will include his work Nassim, which sees a different actor join Soleimanpour on stage to perform an unseen script for the first time, following a run at Edinburgh Festival Fringe in August. His other plays, which will be performed in rep, are: White Rabbit Red Rabbit, Blank, and Cook (which will be getting its UK premiere as part of the run). The plays will run between 7^th and 16^th September.

Milli Bhatia will direct Hijabi Monologues between 28^th and 30^th September. Hijabi Monologues is part of an international project which focuses on the experiences of Muslim women both in local communities and across the world. It will feature readings of existing monologues, including work by the writer Sahar Ullah, and new works by members of the theatre's immediate community.

In a co-production with Sheffield Theatres, Chris Thompon's new comedy Of Kith and Kin will run in the main space from 18^th October to 25^th November. The play is about couple Daniel and Oliver, who are about to have their first baby with surrogate mother Priya, their best friend. But things take a turn when Daniel's mother gatecrashes the baby shower and begins to ask questions. The production will be directed by Sheffield Theatres artistic director Robert Hastie, and runs from 18^th October to 25^th November.

Valentina Ceschi will direct Thomas Eccleshare's play Heather in the studio space from 31^st October to 18^th November. The story is about a reclusive children's writer who becomes hugely successful, and the cast of the production includes Ashley Gerlach and Charlotte Melia.

James Fritz's Parliament Square will run from November in a co-production with the Royal Exchange Theatre, Manchester. The play won the Judges' Award in the 2015 Bruntwood Prize for Playwriting, and is about a woman who leaves her family to travel to London. It will be directed by Jude Christian (Bodies, Royal Court) and will run from 30th November to 6th January 2018.

On the announcement of the season, Madani Younis said the theatre continues to "to seek powerful plays that respond to the urgency of the world around us."

"London is still reverberating from events that have made us question what community is and what our city means to us. As such, this building continues to speak up for the unheard and celebrate their voices."