Electric Rosary

By Tim Foley. Directed by Elizabeth Freestone
15 June 2020 – 4 July 2020
The Studio

“We’re children of God, Sister. No hunk of metal could replace any one of us.”

Behind the crumbling walls of St Grace’s Convent, the future seems a long way away. Hell, even the present feels like a distant world, until the nuns who call it home make the surprising acquaintance of their unholy new resident. Spirited in by the convent’s Mother, Mary is a robot – but is she a blessing or a curse?

Winner of a Bruntwood Prize Judges’ Award, Tim Foley’s miraculous new play brings together nuns and robots on the Royal Exchange stage for the very first time. Sharp, timely and gloriously funny, ELECTRIC ROSARY asks what faith really means in the age of artificial intelligence – and what it means to be human in tomorrow’s world

Tim Foley is a writer based in Manchester. He is the Associate Artist for Pentabus Theatre, and previously their Channel 4 Playwright. Tim’s first full-length play, The Dogs of War, premiered at the Old Red Lion Theatre in May 2015 and won the 2016 OffWestEnd award for Most Promising New Playwright. His next play, Astronauts of Hartlepool, premiered at the 2017 VAULT Festival and won a VAULT Origins Award for Outstanding New Work. Tim is currently on the HighTide First Commissions scheme, and he also writes audio dramas set in the world of Doctor Who and Torchwood for Big Finish Productions.

In 2017 Tim won a Bruntwood Prize Judges Award for ELECTRIC ROSARY and we’ve been following his progress developing the script to the stage here at the Royal Exchange ever since. Tim says:

After an excellent script workshop at the end of November, I returned to my laboratory in my gothic castle. I dissected and rewired and injected my work with all I’d learnt from a fabulous cast of actors. Work is ongoing, but I feel a storm approaching in February. When the thunder booms, I’ll throw the switch. I will jolt my final draft full of electricity – and as the pages writhe, I’ll shout ‘It’s alive!’ to anyone who’ll listen.

Find out more and book tickets at: https://www.royalexchange.co.uk/whats-on-and-tickets/electric-rosary