“Begin at the beginning,” said the King.
“And go on until you come to the end, then stop!”

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That sounds simple enough, of course, but – much like Alice in her adventures in Wonderland – it is not always obvious where the beginning or indeed the end of a thing actually is. The original Checkmate that our musical version is adapted from, was the very first play that I had devised, directed and designed as the founder of my own performing arts organisation in the UAE using a collaborative methodology that had been tried, tested and tweaked by me and my amazing students in the classrooms of Durban and Dubai. 

​It was 2021 and the lingering after-effects of a brutal period of our collective history was still very much a part of our lives. We wore masks in the wings, we socially distanced during rehearsals as much as we could and we collaborated on every facet of this production from the ground up. The beginning then, was three words that formed the theme for the festival we were pitching our production for - “black and white”. ​Dramaturgy and theatre nerd that I am, I threw myself and my cast into a whirlwind of research and somehow, we landed on a concept that involved weaving the chessboard narrative of Lewis Carroll’s Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland into a production which demanded the rules and regulations of an actual chessboard were adhered to in our blocking choices. Eventually our story became one of empowerment where characters were forced into a choice between living a monochromatic life of black and white, or embracing the unknown journey of a life that takes them Through the Looking Glass. ​Lewis Carroll’s work was intertextually referenced throughout our script with obvious characters connections... The Mad Hatter is The Bishop who questions her sanity in supporting a tyrant who refuses to listen, Alice is The Queen as she realises her muchness is missing, The Red Queen is The King’s violent and volatile temperament and so on.

We blocked both productions using an actual chessboard, ensuring that none of our moves were illegal… until the final chaos sequence, that is! The symbolic use of red amidst the black and white was our nod to what happens when the people notice the simmering of rising up against cruelty, malice, ego and even indifference, embracing an empowerment strategy that often has to go beyond the self to truly make an impact on the world. In the end The Queen sacrifices her own freedom to ensure the freedom of three “throwaway” characters on the chessboard. She also blindly trusts that The Pawn Trio will understand the responsibility that they now bear – to do the same for others as has been done unto them. ​

This is a story that resonates with us because, quite simply, the second wave feminists had it entirely correct back in the 1960s - the personal is political. The stories we tell ourselves and each other matter much much more than the cruel, malicious, egoic and indifferent would have us believe. ​And as a writer, director and producer of theatrical experiences, it is very much my responsibility to use my own storytelling platform to shine a spotlight into as many areas of shadow as I can, so that everyone can, collectively, find their way through the darkness and discover – or perhaps rediscover – their missing muchness too!

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But of course, a story of this magnitude is never a one-woman story. An ensemble of creatives, cast, crew and collaborators have to come together in perfect synchronicity to make an ephemeral magic like Checkmate the Musical happen. And so, I wish to take a moment to thank them...

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• To 22khub led by Esha – it has been a pleasure and privilege to watch you take ideas from my mind and turn them into majestic outfits for The Queens.

• To the somehow-everywhere-at-all-times video and photo king himself, Ovidiu of Dugulan Media. Your passion for your craft is palpable. We are so fortunate to have you in our ensemble!

• To Muad who shot footage on our promo day and Vignesh, Sasha and Vardaan for turning that footage into our creative campaign.

• To Livia for running the marketing and media plans.

• To Laith and Jesim who have worked tirelessly behind the scenes to bring to life my never-been-done-before theatricality at SEE Institute.

• To the media houses CBH Times and Dubai One TV who have run stories celebrating the unique work Collab Company do both locally and internationally.

• To the trailblazing team that is Dune Productions – Emma and Patrick, thank you for your very special brand of punk professionalism! 

• To David Saunders - the hero - because usually it is me standing with too many mic packs and too many cues to remember for audio, visual, directing, immersive. You are a goddessend!

• To Aimee Khalifa who provided the layers to the musicality from my very eclectic set list.

•  To my Hannah Casey who whipped us all into shape on stage with her choral expertise and passion for seeing everyone succeed in this performance.

• To my core team who join me in every ridiculous task I set us - whether we're painting boxes in Ivana's garden or burning our fingers with hot glue, the laughter and life-giving spaces you help curate with me make it all worth it. 

• To Craig, my family and my friends who are family for forgiving my varying levels of crazy that accompany my life in this season of theatre-making.

• To my Sasha Topic, my love for you knows no bounds – I am beyond proud of the woman you have become but also the choreographer that I always knew you would be. You have made magic for us all tonight, but you make magic in my soul just by being a walking representation of the ethos I taught you all those years ago.

• To James Huish and Sam Hiller who represented Huish Boe Academy on our closing night - your willingness to support community theatre and new work when your life involves the famous and familiar of the West End is just phenomenal!