'Welcome. Welcome to Bristol in 1963. Welcome to Waterloo Bridge in 2016. Welcome to a house in May 2017. Welcome to three couples and what might be, what once was and what could have been in 2017. Welcome to a West Indian household in 2018. Welcome to London in 2018. Welcome to the past, present and - crucially - the future.' This anthology brings together six plays, all written or performed since 2017, by six brilliant Black British writers - Travis Alabanza, Firdos Ali, Natasha Gordon, Arinze Kene, Chinonyerem Odimba and debbie tucker green. The plays demonstrate a rich range of settings, forms, styles, locations, scales, contents and concerns - and explore themes including politics and protest, grief and colonisation, relationships and gender. They have been seen on stages including the National Theatre, the Royal Court, the Bush and Bristol Old Vic, at the Edinburgh Festival Fringe, in the West End, and on tour of the UK. Selected and introduced by leading theatre director Natalie Ibu, Contemporary Plays by Black British Writers celebrates a multiplicity of stories authored by Black playwrights in the UK over the last decade.

Mysterious yet compelling, bewildering yet intoxicating, a play that mixes poetic rhythms with vernacular phrases, rap-song repetitions with complex psychology. 'So what happened to the bitches that gotta conscience? The underclass bitches, the womanist bitches... What about alla them then? Not a one of them would march for me?' A husband and wife row about a prescription. A mother and father row about their son, who has become a child soldier. Two sisters row about which one is superior to the other. It emerges that the younger sister, Mary, has killed the child soldier. She is to be stoned to death... What if all these things were happening here? And what if these people were white? debbie tucker green's play stoning mary was first performed at the Royal Court Theatre, London, in April 2005.

'It's not always all about you.' Three couples. What might be. What once was. What could have been. debbie tucker green's play premiered in February 2017 at the Royal Court Theatre, London, in the Jerwood Theatre Upstairs, in a production directed by the playwright.

A hard-hitting and original family drama, winner of the 2004 Olivier Award for Most Promising Newcomer. 'the bits don't make the bulk and the bulk don't mek the whole and the all a your bits together don't make your versions true.' A blood-related black family. A Dad, a Mum, a Daughter, two Sisters, a Brother. A family argument. A skeleton in the closet... debbie tucker green's play born bad dives headlong into the powerful heart of this family, unleashing wit, ferocity and verbal dexterity on the way. It was premiered at Hampstead Theatre, London, in 2003.

'Marchin' days is over man.' Patience is running out, times have changed. And progress isn't enough. Black British. African American. Here. There. Now. Snapshots of lives, snapshots of experiences of protest; violence vs non-violence, direct action vs demonstrations, ear for eye follows characters navigating their way through society today. debbie tucker green's play ear for eye premiered in October 2018 at the Royal Court Theatre, London, in the Jerwood Theatre Downstairs, in a production directed by the playwright. ear for eye was a finalist for the 2019 Susan Smith Blackburn Prize. A filmed version of ear for eye, written and directed by debbie tucker green, was broadcast on BBC Two in October 2021. 'A furious dissection of racial injustice... overwhelming' - Guardian

'Bein you means not bein me, see, a deficit already - before you even started we running at a loss.' Elayne doesn't want company but company won't leave her alone. Everyone's got an opinion but no one's listening and things are starting to slip. debbie tucker green's play nut is a drama about a woman who wants to withdraw from the world. It premiered at The Shed at the National Theatre in October 2013, directed by the author.

Two plays from the acclaimed playwright debbie tucker green. trade is a short play dealing with the controversial topic of female sex tourism. Three black women on a Caribbean island: a hip young thing from London, an older tourist and a resident native. One subject. Two worlds. Three points of view. trade was first performed by the Royal Shakespeare Company as part of the 2005 New Work Festival in the Swan Theatre, Stratford-upon-Avon, in October 2005. (An earlier version of the play was performed by the Royal Shakespeare Company as part of the 2004 New Work Festival at The Other Place, Stratford-upon-Avon, in October 2004, and Soho Theatre, London, in March 2005). generations is a 30-minute drama about three generations of a black South African family who contest their relative culinary skills. But food isn't the only topic and the family numbers are declining... generations was first seen as a Platform performance at the National Theatre, London, on 30 June 2005. The play was revived at the Young Vic, London, in March 2007, in a production directed by Sacha Wares.

An urgent play about the senseless killing of a black schoolboy, from one of the most distinctive voices in contemporary British playwriting. 'Death never used to be for the young. You get up. You go bout your business. You expect to come back.' debbie tucker green's play random was first performed at the Royal Court Jerwood Theatre Downstairs, London, in March 2008, directed by Sacha Wares and performed by Nadine Marshall. A television adaptation for Channel 4, directed by debbie tucker green and starring Nadine Marshall alongside an expanded cast, was first broadcast in August 2011. It went on to win a BAFTA for Best Single Drama.

Very few playwrights can be identified from a single line of dialogue - debbie tucker green is one of them. This collection of her first six plays, together with a short introduction by the author, shows a dramatic artist in full control of her craft. born bad (Hampstead Theatre, 2003; winner of the Olivier Award for Best Newcomer) dives headlong into the heart of a conflicted family, unleashing wit, ferocity and verbal dexterity on the way. 'One of the most assured and extraordinary new voices we've heard in a long while. Electrifying' Independent on Sunday dirty butterfly (Soho Theatre, 2003) is a mesmerising study of voyeurism, power and guilt. 'There is a sly, controlled power in this writing... And now I cannot get it out of my head' Guardian generations (National Theatre Platform performance, 2005; Young Vic, 2007) follows three generations of a Black South African family comparing cooking skills - but food isn't the only topic and the family numbers are declining. 'Devastating... will last you a lifetime' Guardian stoning mary (Royal Court Theatre, 2005) confronts the reality of global conflicts, transposing them to the West. 'The words fly around the theatre piercing the dark like gleaming shards of shrapnel' The Stage trade (Royal Shakespeare Company, 2005) shines a light on the world of female sex tourism. 'Poetry laced with shards of broken glass' Guardian random (Royal Court Theatre, 2008) is set over one day, following one family and the effects of one random act of violence. 'The writing seems to penetrate the very heart of grief' Telegraph 'debbie tucker green uses language as deftly as a composer might use notes.' Financial Times

His life. In her hands. A shattering play about one woman's unspeakable decision. debbie tucker green's play hang premiered at the Royal Court Theatre, London, in June 2015, in a production directed by the author, and featuring Marianne Jean-Baptiste, Claire Rushbrook and Shane Zaza.

Rwanda to Northern Ireland, Zimbabwe to Bosnia, answers are demanded, reconciliation hard to hear and the truth reluctant to be told. 'I will not stay standing to have you accuse me. And I will not sit there and be accused.' debbie tucker green's play truth and reconciliation was first performed at the Royal Court Jerwood Theatre Downstairs, London, in September 2011.

A mesmerising and startling play about voyeurism, power and guilt. 'You ever woken up of a morning wondering if this one was gonna be your last - you ever got that feelin in your stomach as you lay there wonderin that? Like butterflies gone ballistic. Like butterflies gone bad.' Listening through their thin walls, Amelia and Jason are drawn into the dark and compelling world of their mutual neighbour Jo. debbie tucker green's play dirty butterfly was first performed at Soho Theatre, London, in February 2003.