Embedded Files
Plays That
Plays That
Create Change
Create Change
For more than twenty years, I’ve written, directed and produced applied theatre productions that use story to open up conversations about complex social issues.
The work has been performed in schools, professional training settings and communities across the UK and internationally.
‘We’ve invited Narrative Alchemy into our school for a range of productions over more than a decade. Sean’s writing gets beneath the headlines and brings difficult issues to life through characters our students recognise and care about. The plays are powerful without being preachy, and they always give us a way into the conversations that matter afterwards.’
- Secondary school PSHE lead
Each production begins with a human story. The staging is deliberately simple, putting the performers and the story at the centre, but the impact can be powerful. Rather than simply presenting information about an issue, the plays give audiences a chance to encounter different perspectives, recognise the pressures and choices people face, and continue the conversation afterwards.
Explore the productions below to find out what each one is about and how it can be brought to your audience.
Chelsea's Story
Raising awareness around Child Sexual Exploitation, (year 7+)
Raising awareness around Child Sexual Exploitation, (year 7+)
Chelsea’s Story is a multimedia applied theatre production exploring how child sexual exploitation can begin with something that looks like friendship, attention or a relationship, and how difficult grooming can be to recognise while it is happening. Blending live performance with filmed stories and recorded testimony, it follows Chelsea’s experience alongside those of Josh, a vulnerable young man who is targeted and exploited, and Amara, whose grooming begins online. Together, their stories challenge assumptions about who can be targeted and help young people recognise manipulation, control and where to seek support.
The play has toured since 2010 and has been seen by well over one million young people. It has also been performed in the USA, Canada and at the Houses of Parliament. The latest version brings the three stories together in a multimedia production developed in consultation with safeguarding professionals and partner agencies.
Performed by two actors, Chelsea’s Story lasts 55 minutes, including a short post-show discussion that helps students reflect on what they have seen.
Chelsea’s Story is available for longer commissioned tours across groups of schools, organised by local authorities, safeguarding children partnerships, multi-academy trusts and other organisations working across an area. We can work with commissioners to plan the timetable and delivery. It is not available as a standalone booking for an individual school.
Unacceptable
Raising awareness around Misogyny, Sexism & Unacceptable Behaviours (year 7+)
Raising awareness around Misogyny, Sexism & Unacceptable Behaviours (year 7+)
Unacceptable is an applied theatre play exploring sexism, misogyny and the attitudes that can allow sexual harassment to become normalised. It follows Adam, a teenage YouTuber, whose friend Kalyn challenges some of the things he has been saying and sharing online. Their conversation moves beyond individual comments to ask where these ideas come from, how they affect others and what it takes to change them.
The play uses humour, honesty and direct engagement with the audience to make space for reflection without setting out to shame young people. It explores stereotypes, sexist language, online influences and the role of bystanders, while encouraging students to think about how they can respond when they encounter harmful behaviour.
Performed by two actors, the play lasts 55 minutes, including a short post-show discussion that helps students reflect on what they have seen.
Unacceptable has been performed for young people across the UK and at the Houses of Parliament. It can form part of a wider programme addressing relationships, respect and the culture young people experience in school and online.
The play is available for longer commissioned tours across groups of schools, organised by local authorities, safeguarding children partnerships, multi-academy trusts and other organisations working across an area. We can work with commissioners to plan the timetable and delivery. It is not available as a standalone booking for an individual school.
Breaking the Chain
Raising awareness around Knife Crime (year 7+)
Raising awareness around Knife Crime (year 7+)
Breaking the Chain is an applied theatre production exploring youth violence and knife crime. It looks beyond the moment someone picks up a knife to ask what led them there: fear, reputation, pressure from others and the belief that carrying a weapon might keep them safe.
Recently released from prison and trying to turn his life around, Tyler is worried about his younger brother Zeke and Zeke’s friend Danny, who have begun carrying knives. Over the course of one day, tensions rise. Tyler appears through video messages and recorded conversations as he tries to reach the boys before their choices lead to tragedy.
Combining live performance and multimedia, the play explores the consequences of knife crime for young people, their families and their communities.
It encourages audiences to question the idea that a knife offers protection, recognise when a situation is escalating and consider how seeking help could change its course.
Performed by two actors, the play lasts 55 minutes, including a short post-show discussion that helps students reflect on what they have seen.
Breaking the Chain is available for longer commissioned tours across groups of schools, organised by local authorities, safeguarding children partnerships, multi-academy trusts and other organisations working across an area. We can work with commissioners to plan the timetable and delivery. It is not available as a standalone booking for an individual school.
CountyLines
Raising awareness around Child Criminal Exploitation (year 7+)
CountyLines is an applied theatre production exploring how young people can be groomed into criminal exploitation. It looks at the people and pressures behind the term ‘county lines’, and at why leaving can be much harder than getting involved.
Dex seems friendly at first. He offers money, attention and a sense of belonging. Gradually, those offers become demands. Through the story of a young person drawn into his world, the play shows how trust can be used to build dependency, and how debt, threats and fear can then be used to keep someone trapped.
The production helps students recognise the warning signs of exploitation and challenges the idea that a young person in this situation has simply made a bad choice.
It opens up conversation about grooming, coercion, the pressure to stay loyal and where to turn for help.
Performed by two actors, the play lasts 55 minutes, including a short post-show discussion that helps students reflect on what they have seen.
CountyLines is available for longer commissioned tours across groups of schools, organised by local authorities, safeguarding children partnerships, multi-academy trusts and other organisations working across an area. We can work with commissioners to plan the timetable and delivery. It is not available as a standalone booking for an individual school.
Going to Extremes
Raising awareness around radicalisation & Extremism (year 7+)
Going to Extremes was originally commissioned as part of a Home Office funded Prevent project. It now tours to raise awareness of radicalisation and extremism, and to open up conversations that can be difficult for schools to begin.
The play follows three young people who are drawn towards extremist ideas in different ways. Their stories explore far-right and Islamist-inspired extremism, while also recognising that the beliefs and influences affecting a young person may be mixed, shifting or difficult to label. Rather than presenting a single profile of someone at risk, the production asks what might make a person receptive to an extremist message and how someone else can use that vulnerability to gain influence.
Through live performance, multimedia and a post-show discussion, Going to Extremes invites students to question harmful narratives, talk openly about what they have seen and consider where to turn if they are worried about themselves or someone else.
The play lasts 55 minutes, including a short post-show discussion. It is available for longer commissioned tours across groups of schools, organised by local authorities, safeguarding children partnerships, multi-academy trusts and other organisations working across an area. We can work with commissioners to plan the timetable and delivery. It is not available as a standalone booking for an individual school.
In the Net
Raising awareness around eSafety and Cyber-bullying (year 4+)
Raising awareness around eSafety and Cyber-bullying (year 4+)
In The Net is a lively applied theatre production for primary school children, exploring online safety and cyberbullying through the story of Dotty and her new tablet.
Dotty loves being online, but she has a lot to learn. She shares personal information, chats to people she does not know and posts unkind comments about her friends. When she finds herself pulled into the world of the internet, she has to work out how to get home, and what it means to be safer and kinder online.
Designed for Year 4 upwards, the play helps children recognise when something online does not feel right, think about the effect their words can have on others and understand who they can speak to if they need help.
It approaches these issues with humour and imagination, giving children a way to talk about their own experiences.
The play lasts 55 minutes.
In The Net is available for longer commissioned tours across groups of schools, organised by local authorities, safeguarding children partnerships, multi-academy trusts and other organisations working across an area. We can work with commissioners to plan the timetable and delivery. It is not available as a standalone booking for an individual school.
Behind Closed Doors
Raising awareness around Dometic Abuse & Coercive Control (police forces and professionals)
Raising awareness around Dometic Abuse & Coercive Control (police forces and professionals)
Behind Closed Doors is an applied theatre production for adults that explores domestic abuse, including coercive control, and the opportunities professionals have to recognise and respond to it.
Originally commissioned in response to HMIC’s Everyone’s Business report, the play was developed for UK police forces. It tells the story of Anna, whose relationship with Jay changes gradually. As her story unfolds, audiences are invited to consider the warning signs, the barriers to seeking help and the moments when someone around her might have responded differently.
The production has since toured for social services, the NHS and corporate audiences, as well as police forces. It creates space for discussion about how domestic abuse can be missed or misunderstood, and what a more informed response might look like.
Behind Closed Doors can be booked for a one-off day, a conference or a training event, as well as for a wider programme of performances.
A separate version, Beyond the Warzone, was developed specifically for the Ministry of Defence and tours to army bases. It is available for Army, Royal Navy and Royal Air Force bookings.
Page updated
Report abuse