How to… Build Character
A workshop with Iman Qureshi
Pop-Up Space, Pier Street
Tickets (£4-8)
Sun 19 July
6.15pm
Iman Qureshi
Iman is a writer for stage and screen. Her breakout play, The Funeral Director, won the Papatango Prize in 2018. It was produced at Southwark Playhouse, and then followed by a UK tour. Her next play, The Ministry of Lesbian Affairs debuted at Soho Theatre in May/June 2022, and transferred to the Kiln Theatre in June 2025 for another sell out run, and received an Olivier nomination.
Iman was the Writer in Residence at the National Theatre from 2023-2024, where she is now under commission. She is also working on a number of other theatre commissions which include original plays, adaptations and musicals.
Iman's short film Home Girl was officially selected for over 45 festivals including BFI Flare and Underwire. Her short film The Ceremony screened at the Vancouver International Film Festival, and won the Best LGBTQ+ Short and the Best Screenplay awards at The Artist Forum Festival of the Moving Image in 2022.
How to… Build Character
The key to any great play is compelling characters who stay with us long after the bows. But how do you create them? This practical workshop digs deep into the craft of building living, breathing characters who the audience can really believe in.
You'll explore how to write characters with depth that can sustain your thrilling narrative and be changed in the process, learning techniques to solidify motivations, sharpen voice and strengthen relationships and drama on stage.
This workshop will take place in the pop-up space on Pier Street.
Access
Wheelchair user and companion tickets are available to book through our online box office.
If you have any other access requirements, please add them to the "Access requirements” box at checkout.
The Pop-Up Space on Pier Street includes level access and an accessible toilet. For information about the wider festival, see our Access page.