The full cast for its 25th anniversary theatre production of East Is East has been unveiled by Birmingham Repertory Theatre, ahead of the show returning to the city where it made its first debut.

Bringing the classic comic family drama of the British-Asian experience back to life is a cast led by Tony Jayawardena as George and Sophie Stanton as Ella.

The rest of the roll call consists of Amy-Leigh Hickman as Meenah, Irvine Iqbal as Mr Shah, Adonis Jenieco as Saleem, Rachel Lumberg as Annie, Noah Manzoor as Sajit, Joeravar Sangha as Maneer, Gurjeet Singh as Tariq and Assad Zaman as Abdul.

The cast of 'East Is East' for its 25th anniversary theatrical runHandout
The cast of ‘East Is East’ for its 25th anniversary theatrical run

The story by Ayub Khan Din follows George Khan, who wants to raise his family the proper Pakistani way but hasn’t counted on the distractions of 70s Salford. Abdul and Tariq aren’t ready to be married off, Saleem is pushing artistic boundaries, Meenah’s skirt is too short and Sajit just wants to hide in his parka. Can mum Ella keep the family together?

Since premiering on The REP’s stage in 1996, East Is East has sold out three London runs, been adapted into a BAFTA Award-winning film and become a modern classic of comic-drama. The smash-hit comedy-drama now returns home for its 25th anniversary before going onto the National Theatre.

The full creative team has also been announced today, with the previously announced Director Iqbal Khan being joined by set designer Bretta Gerecke, costume designer Susan Kulkarni, composer Felix Dubs, sound designer Jon Nicholls, casting director Stuart Burt CDG, associate director Natasha Kathi-Chandra and video associate Max White.

East Is East will play at Birmingham Repertory Theatre from 3-25 September. Tickets are from £12.50 and are on sale now at www.birmingham-rep.co.uk

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