Blue, a new drama directed by Columbia College Chicago Theatre Department alumnus Michael Matthews ’99, a graduate of the Theatre Department’s BA Program in Acting, will run March 5 through 30 at the Seven Dials Playhouse in London, England, following a successful engagement last summer at the prestigious Edinburgh Festival Fringe. For tickets, click here.

As previously reported in this blog, Matthews – who was honored for career achievement in direction by the Los Angeles Drama Critics Circle in 2016 – directed the world premiere of Blue in April 2023 in Los Angeles. Blue concerns a Los Angeles police detective investigating the shooting of a Black motorist by a police officer during a traffic stop. The officer under investigation is the former partner of the investigator’s husband, also a cop. This unflinching study of the very real and current issues surrounding policing both in the U.S. and the United Kingdom deftly illustrates how a career ostensibly dedicated to the pledge to “protect and serve” has become a magnet for those is search of power.

Seven Dials Playhouse defines itself as “the West End’s creative home for the development of professional theatre and artists, . . . a home for bold, creative high-quality work, with a focus on new writing from artists/creatives who offer fresh perspectives and new ways of thinking.”