Pen Pals International was a six-month digital writer exchange between Centre 42 and Box of Tricks Theatre in Manchester, pairing playwrights from Singapore and the North of England. Through regular correspondence and feedback, the writers supported each other’s creative process as they developed new plays across continents.

As part of Spring Collection 2025/2026: New Plays from Centre 42, we are delighted to present five writers from the programme in this international scratch event. In Play Read Excerpts ft. Pen Pals International, audiences will get a unique glimpse into works-in-progress from different corners of the world, while our Northern participants have the chance to share their plays with a completely new audience, sparking conversation and cross-cultural exchange.

If you would like to experience these works, sign up for the Insider’s Club to receive invitations and updates for Spring Collection 2025/2026.

Spring Collection 2025/2026: New Plays from Centre 42

Start: 7 March 2026

Pen Pals International

Start: 7 October 2024

Synopsis

The Thirds

by Alia Alkaff

Two is company but three’s a crowd. Meet The Thirds, Farid, Rashida, and Janet, the odd one out in their respective relationships. They meet at Magik Cik’s magical void where they learn the lesson they need the most: to put themselves first.

Hide and Seek with Jimmy Ling

by Naomi Sumner

Beth confronts her birth father Jimmy Ling on a trip to Hong Kong, 30 years after he gave her up for adoption.

SEWA (“Say-wah”, Rent)

by Dia Hakim

When a rental lease is abruptly terminated, three queer roommates have to reckon with an uncertain future -- whether they'll have a roof over their head, or if their relationships will persist or fade outside of the shared space they've inhabited.

M6 to Cockermouth

by Sarah Teale

Two siblings with a tumultuous relationship spend the day driving along the M6 highway to settle their Father’s will, opening old wounds between the both of them.

Another e-scooter bursts into flames in a Yishun HDB flat

by Rachael Ng

A group of residents evacuate after a fire breaks out in their block. In the simultaneously dull and distressing wait as the fire gets extinguished, the residents are forced to confront the strangers who live right beside them and grapple with the secrets they harbour.

Video Documentation

Play Read Excerpts ft. Pen Pals International.

Photo Documentation

Three people seated in chairs, staring blankly. Another person in a headscarf stands and watches them.

The first performed excerpt was taken from Alia Alkaff's The Thirds, performed by (from left) Fared Jainal, Shafiqhah Efandi, Gloria Tan and Ali Mazrin.

A video featuring a female-presenting person presented on two screens in a black box.

Prior to the performance of Hide and Seek With Jimmy Ling, we screened a pre-recorded video of Manchester-based playwright Naomi Sumner discussing her motivations behind writing the play and her experience with the Pen Pals International programme.

Two persons seated side by side in chairs in a black box.

Hide and Seek With Jimmy Ling was performed by Gloria Tan and Joel Tan.

Two female-presenting persons seated on the wooden floor of a black box.

The third excerpt to be performed was from Dia Hakim's play Sewa, read by (from left) Gloria Tan and Shafiqhah Efandi.

A smiling female-presenting person in a video projected on a screen.

Manchester-based Sarah Teale also provided a pre-recorded video to contextualise her piece, The M6 to Cockermouth, and share her positive experience of exchanging ideas with her Singaporean pen pal.

Two persons seated very close to each other on chairs in a black box.

The M6 to Cockermouth was performed by Fadhil Daud and Shafiqhah Efandi.

Three male-presenting persons, one flipping the bird, one seated and smiling, and one standing and observing quietly.

The final excerpt was taken from Rachael Ng's Another e-scooter bursts into flames in a Yishun HDB flat, and performed by (from left) Fadhil Daud, Joel Tan, and Ali Mazrin.