The Traverse is delighted to announce the staging of our new commission, Black Hole Sign by Uma Nada-Rajah.
The Traverse has been working with Uma Nada-Rajah - a unique new voice in Scottish playwrighting as well as a practising NHS nurse - to create a new play which explores the realities of working within the modern healthcare system. This new commission is part of our continued effort to amplify powerful community stories that resonate deeply with many across our society.
Black Hole Sign sees three generations of NHS nurses doing their best to stay afloat against a crumbling system which seems stacked against them. The play takes a razor-sharp scalpel to the absurdities, tragedies and hilarity within one of our most beloved but besieged institutions.
Having worked with the Traverse Artistic Team to develop the play through a series of workshops and readings over the past couple of years, Uma has also carried out interviews with nurses, porters and patients to further inform the piece. This coupled with her own stories and experiences has created a play full of heart and authenticity about the day to day lives of those working within the NHS.
We are proud to be partnering with the Tron Theatre and the National Theatre Of Scotland to produce this world premiere production, further strengthening our relationships with key collaborators within the Scottish theatre sector.
Traverse Artistic Director, Gareth Nicholls, said:
"We’re incredibly excited to be working with Uma on this powerful new play and can’t wait to share it with audiences across the country next year. At the Traverse, we’re all about shining a light on bold untold stories and teaming up with the Tron Theatre and National Theatre of Scotland to bring this passionate, moving and funny production to life feels really special. We hope it sparks conversations about the state of our NHS and what its future might hold."
Writer of Black Hole Sign, Uma Nada-Rajah, said:
"I'm a nurse in my day job and have been a nurse for a long time. There is something so funny and tragic about day-to-day life in hospital, the way that routine and paperwork brush up against the grand processes of human existence: When you're born you get a birth certificate. When you die you get a death certificate. I wanted to capture that sense of absurdity and put it into a play that will make people laugh or cry. And at a time when there are a lot of questions circulating about the future of the National Health Service, I hope Black Hole Sign will make audiences think about the significance of care in modern society"
Black Hole Sign runs at the Traverse Theatre (Edinburgh) Tue 8 - Sat 18 Oct 2025 and Tron Theatre (Glasgow) Tue 23 Sep - Sat 4 Oct 2025.