Please Do Not Touch

Please Do Not Touch

Written by Casey Bailey
Directed by Gail Babb

“They will tell you that legal and illegal are the same as right and wrong. And I’ve told you that you only have to sit still for a moment and watch the pieces move to see what a lie that is.”

Written by former Birmingham Poet Laureate Casey Bailey (GrimeBoy, Birmingham Rep) and directed by award-winning theatre maker, Gail Babb (Stars, Tamasha – OFFIE’S Best New Play 2024), Please Do Not Touch is a co-production between China Plate and Belgrade Theatre in association with Birmingham Hippodrome.

An extension of Casey’s poetry collection of the same name, Please Do Not Touch follows the story of Mason, an activist who explores historic houses on TikTok to uncover the true stories behind the objects that lie within. After an incident with a Somali Afro comb, he is wrongly imprisoned in a Young Offender Institution.

Can he find a way to survive this ordeal and navigate how to keep speaking up when everything is designed to silence him?

This show asks important questions about colonial legacy, contested heritage and how stories are told, whilst shining a light on the criminal justice system.

★★★★★ “Bailey’s gift for the written – and spoken – word is evident throughout the play, and the moments when poetry comes to the foreground align with moments of freedom, joy and power in Mason’s story.” – Warwickshire What’s On

“One of Birmingham’s best and brightest voices.” – Vanessa Kisuule

“This play is a testament to the art of storytelling, a celebration of the human condition, and a reminder of the transformative power of theatre.” – Big City Radio

Interested in hearing more about Please Do Not Touch? Writer Casey Bailey and producer Jade Samuels recorded an episode for The Belgrade Pod; unpacking the show and its themes – you can listen via Spotify or Podbean.

Supported using public funding by the National Lottery through Arts Council England.

Photo © Nicola Young