Hacks _and friends

_and friends is a live performance, artist development and rehearsal space initiative founded in 2024. Each of our scratch nights is curated by a different artist or company, designed to bring together artists, their favourite artists and pals, and audiences up for seeing something new. 

This month, we are delighted to be joined by Hacks, a producing duo who champion the work of early career artists working across theatre, contemporary performance and dance. We've got theatre, stand up, contemporary performance and dance and we hope that the and friends audience are ready to embrace our pals!

Erfan Shojanoori - “The Pursuit of Prophethood”

For as long as he can remember, Erfan has been obsessed with trying to be a good person. But the issue is he doesn't know what makes a good person, only what makes a bad one.

Erfan is a Glasgow-based performance maker who usually explores themes of racial identity, othering and displacement. He has never worked with the same form twice but that's testament to the fact this will be his first piece of work in 7 years.

Kirstin Halliday - “Work in Progress: Desert Grassland Whiptail Lizards”

An extract of a WIP dance-drama exploring Desert Grassland Whiptail Lizards, a species hailed as "lesbian lizards" for their particularities.

Kirstin Halliday (they/them) is a dance artist and performer based in Glasgow who has choreographed, facilitated and performed in diverse contexts including; visual arts, music videos, club nights & community dance workshops. Grounded by their research background in Geography, their movement practice is motivated by the co-generative relation between moving bodies, social space, & interpersonal relations & identities.

Ifrah Qureshi - “Brave Tart”

This show is full of stereotypes. I know theatre critics slam writers for reducing everyone to mere stereotypes, but what do they know? Aren’t they just a bunch of privately educated Ottolenghi fans whose only frame of reference is Infinite Jest? Stereotypes are funny. And if you disagree with me, I’ll fly a plane into your house.

Ifrah Qureshi is a Scottish stand-up comic fresh off the success of her debut Fringe show. Blending cultural satire with sharp social observations, she delivers fast-paced, effortlessly playful comedy delivered with bags of charm.

“Bold, unpredictable, and absolutely hilarious.” Kim Blythe

”Ifrah is hilarious, perceptive and deviously dark” – Elaine Malcolmson

Mark Bleakley - “SURFACE DEEP”

A performer moves with, on and for an unfixed sheet of dance floor. Layers of landscapes -psychic and real- unfold and empty out as the performer explores the poetic and sensual qualities that surround them. A new WIP combining research material from recent residency and MA programme.

Mark is an artist and choreographer presenting work in dance and visual arts contexts. Formally trained in visual art, my practice is rooted in social dance through Bboying (Breakdancing) and House dance. Like a true Gemini, his practice follows desire and pleasure in many directions at the same time, this has produced a practice that is equally social as it is conceptual, rhythmic as it is sculptural. His work explores how We handle things; people, objects and how objects handle Us through: environments, architecture, and social structures.