Tracing the Bhopal Disaster

Darkling, written by Titas Halder (Foal), arrives at the Holloway Theatre, the Bush Theatre's main performance space, this September-October. Helmed by director Matthew Xia (Tambo & Bones), the arresting work, based on the true story of the 1984 Bhopal gas leak disaster, functions as a timely reminder of the human cost of environmental negligence and unfettered industrial expansion. Stranger Things’ Linnea Berthelsen plays the lead role, in her debut on the UK stage.

What Is It About?

Bhopal, the capital city of Madhya Pradesh, India, was once a tranquil city defined by its lakes. But by 1984 an aggressive wave of industrialization has reshaped it. In the shadow of an imposing factory, a young girl, growing up with just her father and sister, looks towards the future with hope. But her world is to be shattered in a single, devastating night. Darkling is a moving drama tracing the lifelong prices paid by innocent people for one of history’s worst ever ecological disasters.