Nottingham Playhouse is set to mark the fifth anniversary of the Eclipse Theatre initiative with a five-day showcase of Black creativity. THE GENERATOR is a unique opportunity to hear the voices of new Black theatre and is designed to energise everyone who has a passion for theatre. Rehearsed readings from some of the UK’s most exciting contemporary Black playwrights are complemented by classic works, foyer music and a free family event. In addition, upbeat panel discussions explore the inspiration and reception of Black theatre, looking to the future after the first five years of Eclipse. THE GENERATOR will be running at Nottingham Playhouse from Tuesday 22 to Saturday 26 May. Tickets cost no more than £5 and outstanding deals are available on a festival pass (Box Office: 0115 941 9419 or www.nottinghamplayhouse.co.uk).

On its fifth birthday Eclipse Theatre is riding high, with four acclaimed national tours already under its belt: Moon on a Rainbow Shawl, Mother Courage and Her Children, Little Sweet Thing and Three Sisters. In addition, the Eclipse Writers’ Lab has given material help and encouragement to a new generation of emerging theatre writers. Now, Eclipse Theatre Producer Gemma Emmanuel-Waterton builds on its achievements in THE GENERATOR. Following the week-long event on Nottingham Playhouse’s main stage, THE GENERATOR keeps on running as the other Eclipse partners – Birmingham Repertory Theatre, West Yorkshire Playhouse and the New Wolsey Theatre, Ipswich – present associated performances and readings throughout June.

THE GENERATOR leaps into action on Tuesday 22 May with an evening on the theme of INSPIRATION. A special "in conversation" session is fronted by a panel of successful theatre practitioners – both local and national, established figures and rising stars. The final line-up will be announced soon, but all will take questions on their art, their own journeys into the profession and what has inspired them. Playgoers, fellow theatre professionals and anyone seeking a career in the performing arts should all find the discussion highly stimulating. The evening continues as The Generator Company presents the first of the week’s rehearsed readings: THE MAGI. Commissioned following the Eclipse Writers’ Lab, this is a major new work by the poet, playwright and performer Sonia Hughes, in which one man’s funeral forces his three surviving brothers to confront the shameful family secret they have kept for decades.

Wednesday 23 May follows a similar format. In response to recent press debate on the role of critics, the panel discussion WHOSE OPINION? explores the perception that "Black work" is often misunderstood by critics and decision makers. Without questioning the legitimacy of critics, a panel of leading theatre practioners will engage in a meaningful debate on how to move forward together. This is following by the first presentation of part of a new play by Leah Chillery, whose Earl of Mo’ Bay headlined last year’s Momentum Festival at Lakeside Arts Centre. Inspired by the life of Bob Marley’s wife, RITA explores the themes of parental love and living with a legend.

The bill on Thursday 24 May is again dominated by searching pieces of theatre, by two successful writers whose work shares a rich combination of British urban dialogue and Jamaican patois. First, Nottingham-based playwright and actor Lisa Jackson will perform her warmly humorous one-woman play THE JOB INTERVIEW. Following this, The Generator Company takes the stage again with a reading of LEGACY, a new work on the theme of a death in the family by Marcia Layne, the Sheffield-based dramatist who now enjoys a transatlantic career.

A diverse range of entertaining performance is on offer on Friday 25 May. SOLOS is a showcase of the East Midlands’ most talented artists, with intimate and entertaining monologues from Lisa Jackson and Jim Findley, among others. Then the evening takes an acrobatic turn with a show by Upswing Aerial, renowned for presenting stunning visual theatre both indoors and out, combining circus skills with dance and drama. Core company members Vicki Amedume and Maria Hippolyte present VOICES, a warm and humorous show about parental love and letting go, inspired by African proverbs.

The programme on Saturday 26 May begins at 12 noon with a second opportunity to see VOICES. The spectacle of Upswing Aerial is hugely accessible to all, young and old, so this is a free showing especially for family audiences, with tickets available on a first come, first served basis. Then, at the end of a week in which Eclipse looks to the future, it takes time to celebrate the pioneering writers who paved the way for Black theatre in the UK, with The Generator Company presenting rehearsed readings of two key works. WELCOME HOME JACKO by the celebrated Trinidadian playwright Mustapha Matura is first, at 4pm. The story of a young man who becomes the reluctant recipient of a hero’s welcome at his old youth club on release from jail, this was the first play produced by the Theatre Royal Stratford East in 1979. Finally, LONELY COWBOY by Jamaican-born Alfred Fagon follows at 7.30pm. This searing investigation into identity among young second-generation Black Britons was originally produced at the Tricycle Theatre in 1986, the year of Fagon’s premature death.

In addition to the huge variety of work on stage, evening performances throughout the week will be preceded by music in the theatre foyers, beginning at 6.30pm, with artists including cellist Ayanna Witter-Johnson and Corey Mwamba on vibraphone. All in all, THE GENERATOR is a one-of-a-kind opportunity to experience the past, the present and above all, the future of Black theatre.

After hosting 2001’s ground-breaking Eclipse Conference, which sought ways to overcome the barriers faced by Black theatre practitioners, Nottingham Playhouse became a founder member of the Eclipse Theatre initiative. The Playhouse has remained a partner to the present day, and the first two Eclipse productions were premiered in Nottingham: Errol John’s Moon on a Rainbow Shawl in 2003, and Oladipo Agboluage’s West African reworking of Mother Courage and Her Children the following year. Mother Courage and the two subsequent Eclipse productions – the world premiere of Roy Williams’ Little Sweet Thing, and Mustapha Matura’s Caribbean version of Chekhov’s Three Sisters – have all enjoyed London transfers following their national tours. Nottingham Playhouse, whose five years as one of the main Eclipse partners will end with THE GENERATOR, was the recipient of the 2006 Eclipse Award, presented by the Theatrical Management Association (TMA) in association with Arts Council England for its outstanding contribution to cultural diversity.

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