Award-winning multidisciplinary artist Connor Allen will perform in his brand new play Forgiveness of a Monster produced by and performed at Sherman Theatre 8-23 May 2026.
Forgiveness of a Monster shows Connor learning from the mistakes of his youth, processing the personal and generational traumas that led to them and learning to love the man he has become.
It reunites Connor with composer and sound designer Oraine Johnson, music producer of Connor’s first autobiographical play, The Making of a Monster, which was produced by Wales Millennium Centre in 2022. An audio version of that play, broadcast on BBC Radio 4 that same year won the coveted Imison Award.
“Who’s the man you see when you look in the mirror?”
Poetic, pulsating and deeply personal, Forgiveness of a Monster is propelled by an epic soundtrack combining hip hop, soul, R&B and reggae; performed live by the cast which includes Connor himself, Oraine Johnson and Mya Fox-Scott. Joining Connor and Oraine in the creative team are director Tonia Daley-Campbell and designer Ebrahim Nazier.
Connor Allen is an award-winning multidisciplinary artist and former Children’s Laureate of Wales (2021–2023). An Associate Artist at The Riverfront Theatre and Arts Centre in Newport, he has worked as a performer with some of Wales’ leading creative organisations. His television credits include The Outsiders, The Rapture and Casualty.
A former member of the BBC Welsh Voices, Welsh Royal Court Writers Group and Hay Festival’s Writers at Work, Connor’s work explores themes of identity, masculinity, love, and grief. His poetry collections Dominoes and Miracles were published in 2023, and he holds an Honorary Doctorate in Literature from the University of South Wales.
Connor also has a long-term relationship with Sherman Theatre; he has been a long-standing mentor in the company’s Introduction to Playwriting programme, and in 2023 he joined the Sherman’s Explode development programme, which aimed to help established writers develop the next stage of their careers by focusing on creating work for bigger audiences and larger spaces.
With the help of seed commissions, dramaturgical input and research and development space, Explode allowed Connor to create Forgiveness of a Monster, his first full-scale production at the Sherman; and the first Made at Sherman production of 2026.
Connor Allen said: “Forgiveness of a Monster brings together a journey of growth and empathy that I’ve been on over the past few years. People say you don’t always realise you’ve been on a journey until you pause, look back and see all the footprints that led you to where you are now. Forgiveness is me sharing some of those footprints as I follow on from the success of my first autobiographical show.
“Everything I create is an attempt to get closer to the root of the human condition and Forgiveness is another step in that pursuit. Another chapter in my library of work. As a child of two cultures and two worlds, I grew up existing in a grey area, never quite feeling black enough or white enough. This show is part of the journey of making peace with that… of understanding my own story and the story of those who created me.”
Julia Barry, Chief Executive at Sherman Theatre, said: “Connor has not only been a part of the Sherman family for many years – including as an actor and even a staff member – but he’s also a significant voice in Wales’ cultural scene; a huge talent on paper, on stage and screen and in person, and with an extraordinary personal story to tell. It is an absolute delight to share this powerful new play of his with our audiences.”