This ambitious 6 month cross-community project saw RAWD’s resident companies at Unity Theatre & Theatre Porto come together for a powerful shared performance.
In collaboration with Ugly Bucket, members of RAWD explored the history of disabled protest & questioned the future of activism. The result was Don’t Call Us, We’ll Call You – a dynamic spectacle of clowning, sharp satire, music, and physical storytelling.
Rooted in the spirit of the Block Telethon protests but reimagined through abstract form and modern perspectives, this show moves between two surreal worlds: The glittering illusion of telethon and the unruly power of protest. At its centre is one character’s journey from polite obedience to unapologetic disruption – from receiver to caller.
35 disabled performers. One stage. Inescapable truths and a call for change.
At the start of this process, even “what is protest?” felt like a huge question for some members of RAWD. It was unfamiliar ground, after all, society so often assumes what they can & can’t ‘handle’. This project has demonstrated that learning isn’t about ability, it’s about access.
We explored decades of disabled protest not through textbooks, but through clowning – pulled irresistibly to the world of the 90’s Block Telethon Protests. This show however is a wider reflection of the journey RAWD members have taken in finding their voice, breaking moulds & building confidence to call upon you tonight for allyship.
Like access, clowning is deeply personal. This project has challenged us to adapt & create new pathways. Not only can the members of RAWD handle it, but they can tear up the rulebook, re-write their script and laugh along every step of the way.
Directors Note - Grace Gallagher
Creative Team
Director: Grace Gallagher (Ugly Bucket Co-Artistic Director)
Assistant Director: Steffi Sweeney (RAWD Artistic Director)
Production Assistant & Technician: Evan Byrne
Designer & Maker: Oisin Keating
Workshop Facilitators: Oisin Keating, Mollie Macpherson, Dan Sullivan
AV designer: Grace Gallagher
Supported Internship Job Coach: Charlotte Cleaver
Access Coordinator: Andrew Sinclair
Producer: Alice Lapworth
Assistant Producer: Mollie Macpherson
Session Volunteer: Sam Fletcher
Venue Technicians: Xenia Bayer, Matt Bennett
Original composition ‘A Little Bit More’ and ‘On Hold’: Dan Astles
Creative Team Support: Rachael Smart
With Thanks To
All of the Volunteer Access Angels and Cast Support, Ben Moore, Charlie Ann Buxton, Carys Evans, Harry Georgiou, Jack Ehlen, Maisy Gordon, Neil, Oonagh Keating, Keith McCarthy, all of our Trustees and all the team members at Unity and Theatre Porto.
