Podcast shining a light on realities of violence against women and girls in Sunderland and beyond
“Survivors are not just people things happen to, they are voices, they are the expertise and their stories deserve to be heard.”
A new podcast shining a light on the realities of violence against women and girls in Sunderland and beyond launches this month.
Theatre of the Survivor is a three-part podcast series developed by female-led theatre company Workie Ticket Theatre, in collaboration with various women’s groups and experts in and around Sunderland.
Supported by Sunderland City Council, the Catherine Cookson Charitable Trust and the Sir James Knott Trust, Theatre of the Survivor explores issues faced by women in Sunderland and beyond using expert interviews, community-informed theatre and song.
The series is hosted by Sunderland-based actor Claire Rodgerson - who featured in Ken Loach’s feature film The Old Oak and is herself a survivor of domestic violence - and local activist and writer Fisa Humpledink, who has worked with multiple community groups across the region.
The first episode of Theatre of the Survivor features interviews with Workie Ticket co-founder JoJo Kirtley and Sunderland City Council Public Health Project Support Officer Jaydean Dionysios, as well as #DiamondsGoneMissing, a play developed in collaboration with Year 10 students from Southmoor Academy.
Directed by Theatre Space North East’s Artistic Director Corinne Kilvington and performed by Workie Ticket actors Ashlea Sanderson and Meena Al-Nawrasy, #DiamondsGoneMissing follows 15-year-old Diamond as she opens up to her sister on an isolated clifftop after fleeing from her abusive boyfriend.
The play explores themes of grooming, coercion, stalking, domestic violence, the manosphere and red-pill culture, with characters and topics based on real workshop conversations with the students.
Episode 2 will feature a play about coercive control, identity and family expectations centred around character Tara, a woman in her 30s. Directed by Corinne Kilvington, the play was written and performed by local actor, writer and facilitator Maryam Ali, and developed in close collaboration with Sunderland-based Bengali women’s group Al-Falaq.
The episode also features interviews with Al-Falaq founders Bushra Rahman and Chompa Begum, who share their expert insights into the issues faced by women in their community.
Episode 3 will feature a song written by local musician Kirsten Hall based on the story of a childless survivor in her twenties called Poppy, a character created by the Survivor Forum as well as interviews with the team from Sunderland-based support organisation Wearside Women in Need (WWIN).
Theatre of the Survivor builds on JoJo Kirtley's ongoing Churchill Fellowship to explore how theatre can address gender-based violence. Through the Fellowship, JoJo has studied international approaches to survivor-led performance, including work with the Wona Collective in Malawi, WAM Theatre and Theatre Of The Oppressed in New York.
JoJo is now bringing her findings back to the region to tackle this important issue facing the region’s women and girls. She explained: “Survivors are not just people things happen to, they are voices, they are the expertise and their stories deserve to be heard.
“I’m excited to bring my learning from the Churchill Fellowship back to our region through Theatre of the Survivor. One play won’t change the world, but lots of small projects that give people a voice can make a difference.”
The first episode of Theatre Of The Survivor will launch on September 21, 2026, and will be available to listen to on major podcast platforms including Spotify and Apple Podcasts - listen at https://theatreofthesurvivor.podbean.com.