About: I Miss Communism

Following critical and sell-out success at the Edinburgh Fringe, and a subsequent world tour, I MISS COMMUNISM a solo show written and developed by actress and writer Ines Wurth with writing partner Mark Soper opens at the Hackney Empire Studio on 29 August.

This bitter-sweet show is a true personal and poignant account of Ms Wurth’s life growing up in Croatia as a young girl in a Communist country, through the war which ripped Yugoslavia apart, her escape to Los Angeles to continue a career as an actress, and her return to her homeland to face her family and the world which has shaped her life. The show has been described by critics as ‘hilarious, moving and downright disturbing”. “frighteningly honest, remarkable insightful”, and “a real roller-coaster ride, as moving as it is educational”

I MISS COMMUNISM begins improbably with songs from the musical Oliver! The communists used to show it as anti-capitalist propaganda; young Ines saw it as a parable of free enterprise.

East goes West; communism goes capitalism, atheism goes God, from Croatia to America and back, Ines’ story is about three generations of women who lived through three wars in a drama with intense comic moments that won’t leave you untouched. It is what Ines was raised in, what she went to American to escape from and what she ran back to.

Ines Wurth was born in Croatia and then moved to London as a teenager and stated her acting career. She was a member of Compass Theatre where she performed as Nora in A Doll’s House and Varya in The Cherry Orchard. She then moved to Los Angeles to study and joined the prestigious Zoo District Theatre Company where she continues to perform and write for the theatre.

I MISS COMMUNISM won ‘Best Touring Show’ in The Fringe Report Awards at the Edinburgh Festival Fringe in 2007 and was nominated for both an Amnesty International Freedom of Expression Award and a Writers Guild Award.

Shows – Tuesday – Saturday 8pm (Saturday matinee – 2.30pm)
Tickets – £12 + concs
Box Office 020 8985 2424 www.hackneyempire.co.uk

Reviews

“…polished, slick, energetic, but carefully controlled solo piece”
“…all singing, all dancing and winning Miss Wurth keeps up the tempo”
THE TIMES, UK, 2005, ****

“…an incredibly powerful piece of theater”
“…hilarious, moving and downright disturbing”
“…frighteningly honest, remarkably insightful and expertly paced”
THREE WEEKS, UK, 2005, *****

“…the gusto of a survivor and a truly professional performer”
“…both energetic and heartfelt”
THE LIST MAGAZINE, UK, 2005,****

“…a spellbinding one-woman show”
“…the piece does get quite intense, with more than a few people wiping away tears”
“…a very powerful theatrical experience, a real roller-coaster ride, as moving as it is educational”
THE EVENING NEWS, UK, 2005, *****

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