THEY: Film screening and Q&A

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Coming soon: Watch on Factory+
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Maxine Peake wearing a blue jacket and speaking – in They at John Rylands Library
Date
8 Mar 2024
Venue
North Warehouse, Aviva Studios, Water Street, Manchester, M3 4JQ
Tickets
Standard tickets £14
Affordable tickets £7, £10

8–10pm

We’re putting art in the heart of Manchester, within reach of everyone; and have affordable options including £10 tickets for those on limited incomes.

For information about who qualifies for £10 and affordable tickets, visit our Affordable Ticketing Policy page

* Affordable and Aviva £10 Tickets are limited per performance and subject to availability.

To book access tickets please call 0161 817 4531 (Monday to Friday, 10am to 5pm) or email access@factoryinternational.org

Book tickets
Coming soon: Watch on Factory+

Certificate 12A - under 16s to be accompanied by an adult aged 18+.
Running time: Screening: 50 minutes. Q&A: 45 minutes.

Accessibility features available for this event: Wheelchair Access

Watch the film premiere of MIF23 dystopian hit They – followed by a live Q&A with co-creator and performer Maxine Peake

Following a sell-out run at MIF23 in the iconic John Rylands Library, Maxine Peake, Sarah Frankcom and Imogen Knight return with the film premiere of They directed for the screen by Joseph Lynn. Watch their adaptation of Kay Dick’s rediscovered masterpiece in a one-off screening at Aviva Studios or on demand on Factory+.

Imagine a near-future where creative expression is outlawed, all art eradicated and any resistance takes enormous courage. Would it be enough to go on quietly creating for yourself? To memorise your favourite passages before all books disappear? What is art without an audience or a debate? First published in 1977, Kay Dick’s novel They: A Sequence of Unease went out of print for decades but was recently re-discovered and feels more relevant than ever. 

The adaptation is Maxine Peake, Sarah Frankcom and Imogen Knight’s latest Festival collaboration, following The Masque of Anarchy (2013), The Skriker (2015) and The Nico Project (2019), which celebrated radical acts and artists. The trio, as the newly-formed company MAAT – a collective adventure to make new work in conversation with Music, Art, Activism and Theatre – join forces with acclaimed electronica artist Gazelle Twin and Booker Prize-shortlisted writer Daisy Johnson for Robin/Red/Breast in May.

Want to know more about Maxine Peake’s powerful solo performance in They? Stick around for a live Q&A after the showing.

Thumbnail by Tristram Kenton

Tickets

We have a range of affordable tickets, including options from £10 for those who may need them. You can find out more about our Affordable Ticketing Policy here.

For ticketing and box office related enquiries, please contact tickets@factoryinternational.org or call 0333 322 8679 (phone lines are open Monday to Saturday, 10am to 6pm).

For more information please visit Ticketing and Sale of Goods Terms & Conditions – Factory International

On demand

coming soon

They is coming to Factory+.

Audio description, captions and BSL available.

  • Maxine Peake portrays a powerful yet soft, dynamically charismatic, and introspective protagonist

    A Youngish Perspective

  • This powerful performance is a perfect representation of Manchester International Festival

    Manchester Evening News

  • We tiptoed out, still quivering, until the bright lights of the foyer gave us the courage to speak above a whisper

    Theatre Reviews North

Credits

Written by Kay Dick

Adapted and co-created by Maxine Peake, Sarah Frankcom and Imogen Knight

Directed for screen by Maxine Peake, Sarah Frankcom, Imogen Knight and Joseph Lynn

Lighting Designer - Amy Mae

Sound Artist/Composer - Melanie Wilson

Produced by Factory International

Access information

Our full address is Aviva Studios, Water Street, Manchester M3 4JQ and the what3words is chop.feeds.chase.

You can approach Aviva Studios along Water Street (coming from Quay Street) or along Liverpool Road (coming from Deansgate or Castlefield). Both entrances to the building have double sets of glass doors.

To book access tickets and personal assistant tickets please call 0161 817 4531 (Monday-Friday, 10am-5pm) or email access@factoryinternational.org

Access bookings can be made by email or phone. They are also available in person at Aviva Studios.

Once inside Aviva Studios, there is step-free access to all areas of the venue. The flooring throughout the building is smooth concrete.

This event takes place in the North Warehouse at Aviva Studio. This is a large, high ceilinged space.

The entrance to the North Warehouse is by lift or stairs from the Social. Two lifts and a staircase to the Warehouse are located in the Social opposite the bar.

The Social has a range of seating, including those with arms and backs.

The bars in the Social and Hall Foyer have lowered accessible service points.

Our building is large. We have portable stools available to borrow if you would benefit from resting along the way during your visit.

We have wheelchair spaces and seats at standing events for all events.

You can find further information about general accessibility at Aviva Studios on our main Access Information page

There is step-free access to all areas of the venue, with lift access to the Warehouse from the Social. If you require step free seating for this event please call 0161 817 4531 (Monday-Friday, 10am-5pm) or email access@factoryinternational.org

There are accessible toilets on all public levels of our building.

Accessible toilets are located inside the main toilets space in the brick arches of the Social.

Here you’ll find a mixture of accessible cubicles with left- or right-hand transfer, towards the back of the space, as well as ambulant accessible cubicles with grab rails, as well as a Changing Places facility.

The toilets in the brick arches of the Social are split into male, female and gender neutral – all of which contain accessible cubicles. There are shared handwashing facilities in each arch – they have soap dispensers under the mirrors to your left and dryers to the right. There are separate handwashing facilities inside the accessible cubicles.

There are additional single-room accessible toilets located in both Hall Foyers, at stalls and circle level.

There are additional single-room accessible toilets located in the Warehouse Foyer.

You do not need a key to use the accessible toilets at Aviva Studios.

Assistance dogs are welcome in our building, and we can provide mats and water bowls on request, just ask a host when you arrive. We can also take care of your assistance dog if you do not want to take your dog into the performance space. Please also refer to our assistance dogs policy.

If you are bringing an assistance dog to a ticketed event, please let us know in advance by contacting access@factoryinternational.org or calling our access phone number: 0161 817 4531 (phone lines are open 10am to 5pm, Monday to Friday).

The live screening and Q&A with Maxine Peake does not have these features.

However, you will be able to access audio description, captioned and BSL versions of They once it is available on demand – coming soon.

Travel information

Aviva Studios can be approached along Water Street (coming from Quay Street) or along Liverpool Road (coming from Deansgate or Castlefield).

Our closest stations are:

Salford Central station: 0.4 miles

Deansgate station and Deansgate-Castlefield tram: 0.6 miles

St Peter’s Square tram: 0.6 miles

Manchester Victoria station is approximately one mile from Aviva Studios

Manchester Piccadilly station is approximately 1.3 miles from Aviva Studios

Click on the links above to find detailed access information for each station.

By Bike

There are 40 bike parking spaces at Aviva Studios including space for two accessible bikes.

National Cycling Route 6 passes close to the venue and this TfGM webpage can help with route planning.

You can also hire bikes from on-street docking stations across the city centre. The closest docking stations to our venue are currently on Deansgate by Liverpool Road and (400m from the building) and by King Street (500m from the building). Take a look at Transport for Greater Manchester’s webpage for advice on cycle hire.

By Walking and Other Active Means

Aviva Studios can be approached along Water Street via Liverpool Road (coming from Deansgate or Castlefield).

If you're coming from Quay Street, the safest route to avoid construction works is via the cut-through opposite Gartside Street and past Booking.com.

All footways in the surrounding area are well lit and there are appropriate crossings across all main roads.

Pedestrians with visual impairment are recommended to approach the building via Water Street, from Liverpool Road. This route has traditional carriageway and footway design with fixed street furniture which should help with navigation to the entrance.

A footbridge at Left Bank in Spinningfields provides an accessible link across the River Irwell to Salford Central station, and a further footbridge also links Aviva Studios with the Salford area of Middlewood Locks.

Free bus services stop at all city-centre stations, and near to Aviva Studios along Deansgate, Bridge St and Quay St. Buses on these free routes are wheelchair accessible. For full details of the free bus routes, please visit the TfGM website.

There is a car park approximately 0.6 miles from Aviva Studios at Water Street Car Park, New Elm Rd, Manchester, M3 4JH.

There is also a NCP car park (Manchester Spinningfields) approximately 0.5 miles away from Aviva Studios at Spinningfields, New Quay Street, Manchester, M3 3BE. It has 35 accessible bays.

There are a small number of Blue Badge spaces along Water St and Quay St. Otherwise head towards Liverpool Road, Great John St and Lower Byrom St – close to our neighbours, the Science and Industry Museum where there are a small number of additional Blue Badge spaces.

For a list of other parking bays available in the area, visit Manchester City Council website.

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