Chef

Winner of an Edinburgh Fringe First 2014 and The Stage Awards for Acting Excellence, Sabrina Mahfouz’s highly acclaimed Chef starring Jade Anouka now comes to London.

Chef tells the gripping story of how one woman went from being a haute-cuisine head-chef to a convicted inmate running a prison kitchen. Mahfouz's distinct award-winning lyrical style and Anouka's mesmerising performance make this an extraordinary, must-see show.

Leading us through her world of mouth-watering dishes and heart-breaking memories, Chef questions our attitudes to food, prisoners, violence, love and hope.

Mahfouz’s poetic script fizzes with energy… Anouka gives a mesmerising performance as Chef, rolling with the rich rhythmns of the language, unleashing emotion, delineating each character with a nod of the head or a slight adjustment of the body (The Independent).

Inspired by an interview Mahfouz conducted with Ollie Dabbous, Chef studies food as the ultimate art form taking stimulus from Dabbous’ obsession with simplicity and making something the best it can be. As the Michelin-star chef of the moment says, language is a bit like a dish, you break it down into little parts and it suddenly becomes easier.

Chef is an explosively engaging character, leading us through her triumphs and tragedies with words as sharp as her knife: ‘The night is packed away into a black bin bag, tagged with a let's

not talk of that again, tomorrow will be better and maybe we should just get pizza’.

Chef is directed by Kirsty Patrick Ward and produced by Just for Laughs Theatricals. CEO Adam Blanshay comments, I am thrilled to introduce London audiences to the cornucopia of succulent flavours that comprise Sabrina Mahfouz’s Chef. I’m hoping this story will challenge perceptions and attitudes towards violence and empower people to make proactive changes in their lives.