“They say your time at university is the best three years of your life. But I feel like I’m wasting mine scrolling through my phone and missing out. Trapped inside this box room, observing everyone else. Just me, my thoughts, and this room.”
Trapped within the four walls of a university bedroom, ‘Monkeyface’ navigates the euphoric highs and crushing lows of Freshers Week, toxic friendships, club culture, and the aching need for connection. What begins as something relatable (flatmates, cliques, and the messy thrill of queer nightlife) slowly unravels into a raw portrait of a young Black-Queer student fighting to stay afloat inside a world not built to hold him.
Monkeyface plunges into the contradictions of student life: the desire to belong, the sting of
microaggressions and fetishisation, the addiction of wanting to belong to a tribe, any tribe, and the quiet yet painful heartbreak of not being chosen. When a meaningful bond with another Black-Queer boy opens up the doors to a new realm of possibility, it forces Monkeyface to confront the spaces that celebrate him, the spaces that reject him, and the strange grey area in between.
Monkeyface is the latest project from No Names Creatives, a rising production company led by visionary founder Emmanuel Akwafo. Dedicated to nurturing bold ideas and building strong artistic foundations, No Names Creatives develops fresh, original work from first spark to full-scale projects. Though its name may suggest otherwise, No Names is quickly making a name for itself, one imaginative project at a time.
Directed by Mojola Akinyemi
Stage Manager and Lighting Designer Danielle Adéyínká-Uchè
