Bold new performance about language, identity, and belonging.
Teal House Foundation in association with Developing Artists and Bird&Carrot Productions present SORRY FOR MY ENGLISH
Written and directed by Aleksandr Spilevoj
Starring: Catalina Cazacu, Dariia Gomez Chakon, Wanda Konisevich, Vadim Korolev, Gladston Mahib, Stefani Elizaveta Burmakova, Albina Sirchenko; Artistic Director: Ivan Vyrypaev; Playwright and Director: Aleksandr Spilevoj; Costume Design: Elizaveta Borodinova; Lighting Design: Alexey Poluboyarinov; Composer: Vadim Korolev; Producers: Maksim Volkov, Sara Tokina
A performance about language, identity and belonging.
Imagine being forced away from the country you were born in. The first challenge is to live, then create in a second language. Sorry for My English reflects the bittersweet beauty (and often hilarious quirks) of trying to voice love, loss and belonging in words that are unfamiliar.
The performance blends monologues, poetry, music and movement, drawing on original texts written by the performers themselves all of whom are living in exile because of who they are or what they have stood up for.
Created and performed by artists in exile from across the world, Sorry for My English turns linguistic imperfection into a stand up comedy-cum-theatrical performance to connect English-speaking audiences together and share in the difficulties of creating in a foreign language.
Raw, funny, and deeply moving, Sorry for My English invites audiences to witness the courage of making a home in a language that doesn’t yet fully feel like one’s own.
Following each performance there is a panel lead by members of the cast and Ivan Vryrypaev on “Re-Staging Identity: Theatre, Migration and Belonging”
Ivan Vyrypaev is the artistic director of Teal House Foundation. Vryrypaev is a playwright, director and producer. Born in 1974 in Irkutsk in the former USSR, he trained at the Irkutsk Theatre School before studying at the Shchukin Theatre Institute in Moscow. He is now based in Warsaw and is a citizen of the Republic of Poland. His plays are staged internationally, from South Korea to New York, and as a director he works extensively across theatres in Europe and the United States.
Vyrypaev was Artistic Director of Praktika Theatre in Moscow from 2013 to 2016 and General Producer of the Okko Theatre online project on the Okko streaming platform from 2020 to 2021. From 2015 to 2023, he was co-owner and General Producer of the Polish private fund WEDA PROJECT. He is currently Artistic Director and General Producer of the Teal House Foundation in Warsaw.
His work spans theatre, film and interdisciplinary performance, and he is the recipient of numerous international prizes and awards, including the Venice Film Festival, Warsaw Film Festival and Russian Guild of Film critics. His artistic practice is centred on the spiritual development of the individual through art.
Aleksandr Spilevoj directs. Spilevoj is a Lithuanian-born director and playwright, trained at the Lithuanian Academy of Music and Theatre (LMTA). He was Artistic Director of Juozas Miltinis Drama Theatre for five years. His directing credits include Unlearned Lessons (Neišmoktos pamokos), Almshouse (Bagadelnia), Iran Conference, and When We Are Young, staged at theatres including Šiauliai State Drama Theatre and the National Kaunas Drama Theatre.
Awards include the Young Artist Award from the Ministry of Culture of the Republic of Lithuania (2018); the Golden Stage Cross for dramaturgy for Almshouse (2019); Best Director at the Dalia Tamulevičiūtė Professional Theatre Festival for Iran Conference (2020); Best Performance at the International Theatre Festival COM•MEDIA for Iran Conference(2021); Best Performance at the 40th Lithuanian Professional Theatre Festival Genome of Theatre for When We Are Young(2023); and the Fortūna Award for When We Are Young at the National Kaunas Drama Theatre (2024). In 2024, he was also named the most popular Lithuanian playwright at the Golden Stage Cross ceremony, receiving the LATGA honorary distinction Ad Astra. In 2025, he received the Best Artistic Solution Award for his production of When We Are Young. His television credits include Clark (Netflix), Max Anger - With One Eye Open (Viaplay), Okkupert (Pivot).
Bold new performance about language, identity, and belonging.
Teal House Foundation in association with Developing Artists and Bird&Carrot Productions present SORRY FOR MY ENGLISH
Written and directed by Aleksandr Spilevoj
Starring: Catalina Cazacu, Dariia Gomez Chakon, Wanda Konisevich, Vadim Korolev, Gladston Mahib, Stefani Elizaveta Burmakova, Albina Sirchenko; Artistic Director: Ivan Vyrypaev; Playwright and Director: Aleksandr Spilevoj; Costume Design: Elizaveta Borodinova; Lighting Design: Alexey Poluboyarinov; Composer: Vadim Korolev; Producers: Maksim Volkov, Sara Tokina
A performance about language, identity and belonging.
Imagine being forced away from the country you were born in. The first challenge is to live, then create in a second language. Sorry for My English reflects the bittersweet beauty (and often hilarious quirks) of trying to voice love, loss and belonging in words that are unfamiliar.
The performance blends monologues, poetry, music and movement, drawing on original texts written by the performers themselves all of whom are living in exile because of who they are or what they have stood up for.
Created and performed by artists in exile from across the world, Sorry for My English turns linguistic imperfection into a stand up comedy-cum-theatrical performance to connect English-speaking audiences together and share in the difficulties of creating in a foreign language.
Raw, funny, and deeply moving, Sorry for My English invites audiences to witness the courage of making a home in a language that doesn’t yet fully feel like one’s own.
Following each performance there is a panel lead by members of the cast and Ivan Vryrypaev on “Re-Staging Identity: Theatre, Migration and Belonging”
Ivan Vyrypaev is the artistic director of Teal House Foundation. Vryrypaev is a playwright, director and producer. Born in 1974 in Irkutsk in the former USSR, he trained at the Irkutsk Theatre School before studying at the Shchukin Theatre Institute in Moscow. He is now based in Warsaw and is a citizen of the Republic of Poland. His plays are staged internationally, from South Korea to New York, and as a director he works extensively across theatres in Europe and the United States.
Vyrypaev was Artistic Director of Praktika Theatre in Moscow from 2013 to 2016 and General Producer of the Okko Theatre online project on the Okko streaming platform from 2020 to 2021. From 2015 to 2023, he was co-owner and General Producer of the Polish private fund WEDA PROJECT. He is currently Artistic Director and General Producer of the Teal House Foundation in Warsaw.
His work spans theatre, film and interdisciplinary performance, and he is the recipient of numerous international prizes and awards, including the Venice Film Festival, Warsaw Film Festival and Russian Guild of Film critics. His artistic practice is centred on the spiritual development of the individual through art.
Aleksandr Spilevoj directs. Spilevoj is a Lithuanian-born director and playwright, trained at the Lithuanian Academy of Music and Theatre (LMTA). He was Artistic Director of Juozas Miltinis Drama Theatre for five years. His directing credits include Unlearned Lessons (Neišmoktos pamokos), Almshouse (Bagadelnia), Iran Conference, and When We Are Young, staged at theatres including Šiauliai State Drama Theatre and the National Kaunas Drama Theatre.
Awards include the Young Artist Award from the Ministry of Culture of the Republic of Lithuania (2018); the Golden Stage Cross for dramaturgy for Almshouse (2019); Best Director at the Dalia Tamulevičiūtė Professional Theatre Festival for Iran Conference (2020); Best Performance at the International Theatre Festival COM•MEDIA for Iran Conference(2021); Best Performance at the 40th Lithuanian Professional Theatre Festival Genome of Theatre for When We Are Young(2023); and the Fortūna Award for When We Are Young at the National Kaunas Drama Theatre (2024). In 2024, he was also named the most popular Lithuanian playwright at the Golden Stage Cross ceremony, receiving the LATGA honorary distinction Ad Astra. In 2025, he received the Best Artistic Solution Award for his production of When We Are Young. His television credits include Clark (Netflix), Max Anger - With One Eye Open (Viaplay), Okkupert (Pivot).
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Highlights
- 1 hour
- In person
Refund Policy
Location
The Tabernacle
34-35 Powis Square
London W11 2AY
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