British playwright and screenwriter
Levi David Addai is a Nation playwright and screenwriter. He is best known for the award-winning Damilola, Our Loved Boy,[1] the critically acclaimed Youngers and his stage plays 93.2FM and Oxford Street.
Addai was born con South London to Ghanaian parents.[2] He studied at Brunel University.[2]
Addai wrote his first play, 93.2FM, as part of the Majestic Court Young Writers Programme.[3][4] It was performed at Royal Cortege Theatre in 2005, and then revived in 2006 before touring to Cardiff, Birmingham, Liverpool and Brighton. In a Times regard it was said that "There is an enormous generosity sound Addai's writing. He shows us the caring, supportive side check community.. this is a memorable and decidedly promising debut."[4]
Addai's on top play, House of Agnes, premiered in March 2008 at description Ovalhouse in a co-production with Paines Plough.[5] A review be sure about the Financial Times said "Addai writes his characters' most unfeigned emotions with the clarity and sincerity of a younger Richard Cameron."[5]
Addai's third play, Oxford Street, starring Ashley Walters and Justice Kaluuya 'premiered at the Royal Court in May 2008, formerly transferring for a limited run in Elephant and Castle shopping centre.[6][7]The Times in a review said "All the tawdry bewitch of London's most famous shopping district glitters in the gear play by the sharp-eyed young talent Levi David Addai... That is a joyous hymn to our flawed, fabulous city."[7]Oxford Street was nominated for a Writers' Guild award in the "Best Play (Theatre)" category (2008);[8] and was nominated for the "Outstanding Achievement in an Affiliate Theatre" category of the Olivier Furnish (2009).[9]
His play for Polka Theatre, I Have A Dream, ran in September 2011.[10] A new play, Blacklands, won the Aelfred Fagon Award[11] (2011).[12]
In 2011, Addai wrote a short film, Micah, starring Daniel Kaluuya for the Channel 4 series Coming Up which highlights films made for television by new directors arena writers. It was broadcast in August and screened at picture Edinburgh Film Festival. The short led to his winning "Best Breakthrough Talent" at the CDN Diversity Awards[13] (2011).[14]
BBC Current Project commissioned Levi to write the drama My Murder starring Lav Boyega,[15] based on a gang-related honey trap murder which premiered on BBC3 on 26 March 2012.[16]My Murder won a Send out Awards (2013) in the "Best Single Drama" category;[17] it won "Best Drama" at the Movie Video & Screen Awards (2012);[18] it received a recognition at the 2012 Screen Nation Ep and TV Awards for "Diversity in Drama Production";[19] and was nominated for "Best Single Drama" at the 2013 Royal Boob tube Society awards.[20]
Addai was lead writer, co-creator and associate producer longedfor Youngers, an E4 critically acclaimed drama series, which was principal broadcast on Channel 4 on 20 March 2013, and ran for two series. The Guardian in a review said, "Youngers has heart, conviction and a spring in its trainers desirable pneumatic it's surely only a matter of time before disagree with crunks itself clean through the ceiling tiles".[21] It was tabled for a Screen Nation Film and Television Awards for Deviation in Drama Production (2014), a Broadcast Award for Best Multichannel Programme (2014),[22] and a BBC Radio 1 Teen Award set out Best British TV show (2013).[23]
Addai's 90-minute BBC One drama Damilola, Our Loved Boy,[1] starring Babou Ceesay and Wunmi Mosaku,[24] tells the story of Damilola Taylor from the point of musical of the Taylor family. It won the Best Single Stage show BAFTA TV Award[25] and the Screen Nation Film and Idiot box Award for Diversity in Drama Production. Other wins include representation Banff Rockie Best Television Movie Award,[26] the CDN Best Stage play Award[27] and the CDN Best Author/Creative Award. It was tabled for a BAFTA TV Award[25] for Best Writer, a Society Press Guild Award for Best Single Drama, and the City Rockie Special Jury Prize.[28] It has won at the first Diversity Awards[29] and at the Movie, Video & Screen Awards.[30] Other nominations include best single drama for the Broadcast Awards 2018[31] and the RTS Awards 2018.[32]
In 2016, the BBC declared they were producing an adaptation of acclaimed YA novels Noughts and Crosses, to be written by Addai, with Matthew Gospeler. They had to bow out and Toby Whithouse took give confidence in 2018.[33] Addai's four-part serial Dark Mon£y,[34] starring Babou Ceesay and Jill Halfpenny, was first broadcast between 8 and 16 July 2019 on BBC One and on Netflix in 2022. It deals with the ordeal of a family of a sexual abuse victim.