Being good is hard, especially in a world that can make you so angry.
Catch a sneak peek of Middle Child’s 2025 production Van Man (working title), written by Sid Sagar.
Van Man is a story that asks big questions about race, class and privilege. It is about the people in our community and how the constant pressure we’re all under can shape us into people we don’t want to be.
Van Man is supported by the National Theatre’s Generate Programme, and was originally written during a residency at the Hampstead Theatre. The research and development has been supported by Blueprint: Without Walls R&D Investment Fund.
Join us in the marquee at Stage@TheDock for a first look at some early workings of Van Man. The sharing will be a short preview of what is to come next year and will last approximately 10 minutes.
- On Saturday 20 July, Van Man will be presented before No Woman Is An Island (70 minutes), by Rosie Race
- On Sunday 21 July, Van Man will be presented before Can We Be Friends? (70 minutes), by Hannah Scorer
About Sid Sagar
Sid is an actor, playwright and screenwriter from an Indian background. As an actor, recent work includes The Crucible at Sheffield Crucible, The Father and the Assassin at the National Theatre and Cabaret in the West End. As a writer, he has trained with Soho Theatre Writers’ Lab, the INSPIRE scheme at Hampstead Theatre, the London Library Emerging Writers Programme and the Channel 4 Screenwriting Course 2023.
He’s currently writing plays for Middle Child in Hull, the Almeida Theatre in London and BBC Radio 4. He’s also developing two crime dramas for television with Mammoth Screen and has previously been part of writers’ rooms for Channel 4 and CBeebies.
His first short film, Baked Beans, was produced by BFI Network and played at various festivals in the UK and internationally. He’s based in London.
Guidance
Age recommendation: 16+
Running time: Approx. 10 minutes (1 hour 45 minutes total alongside No Woman Is An Island / Can We Be Friends?)
Content notes: Themes of racism and grief. See No Woman Is An Island content notes for Sat 20 July and Can We Be Friends? content notes for Sun 21 July.
20-21 July
Stage@TheDock, Hull
Presented before:
No Woman Is An Island (20 July)
Can We Be Friends? (21 July)
Cast and Creative Team
Actor
Sophie Clay
Actor
Marc Graham
