Join us for an evening of theatre, food and discussion centred on the powerful resistance of migrant domestic workers, in celebration of International Migrants Day.
Whose lives are considered valuable? Whose lives are mourned, and whose lives are considered ungrievable? We can see the division of the globe into grievable and ungrievable lives. It has been since at least the time of Antigone, when she chose openly to mourn the death of one of her brothers even though it went against the sovereign law to do so. - Judith Butler
About the Performance
Performed by members of Waling Waling, a migrant domestic workers’ organisation, this political reimagining of Antigone confronts how the modern state determines whose lives are valued—and whose are not. Drawing on both the ancient text and the lived experiences of migrant domestic workers in the UK, the performance honours International Migrants Day 2025 and calls for the restoration of the Domestic Worker Visa.
The Theatre Project
For over a year, Cheryl Gallagher and Drashti Shah have collaborated with the Waling Waling Drama Group, part of the domestic workers union branch at Unite, the Union, to amplify domestic workers’ voices through theatre. Their work campaigns for the restoration of the domestic worker visa and the inclusion of domestic work in the UK Employment Rights Bill
Since 2024, the group has performed at Unite the Union, St Margaret’s House, and the Omnibus Theatre, using performance to challenge state power and expose systemic injustices affecting migrant domestic workers.
Context: The Fight for Rights
In 2012, then–Home Secretary Theresa May abolished the Domestic Worker Visa, stripping domestic workers of essential rights. This decision increased workers’ vulnerability and recast many under the Modern Slavery Act—not as workers deserving rights, but as victims without agency.
Waling Waling, a workers’ union founded in the 1980s, previously fought for over a decade to secure the original visa and won. Now, in a time when migrant and workers’ rights are again being dismantled, they return to the struggle—through theatre, truth-telling, and collective power.
Why Antigone?
Antigone is remembered for her bravery, her insistence on truth, and her challenge to unjust authority.
Likewise, we—the migrant domestic workers of the UK—stand against the state’s oppressive systems.
This play is a call to action: to restore our rights, repair past harms, and recognise domestic workers as workers with dignity, agency, and power.
Post-Show Discussion
After the performance, we will hear from two leading scholars whose research examines immigration, citizenship, and the state’s role in shaping both; Professor Bridget Anderson and Dr. Manoj Dias-Abey from the University of Bristol.
They will engage in discussions on their perspective on immigration laws and the political psychology that influences the government and public opinions.
They will offer insights into how modern legal and political systems produce the categories of “migrant” and “citizen”, and how these categories dictate whose rights are protected—and whose are denied.
Schedule:
7pm — Performance
7.45pm — Food and discussion
Supported by
Producer Gathering
Arts Council England
Grand Camp Maisie Fund
Old Diorama Arts Centre
St Margaret’s House
Stand with us. Listen to powerful stories. Celebrate resistance, community, and the ongoing fight for justice for migrant domestic workers.
Contact: If you have any questions regarding this event, please email programming@stmargaretshouse.org.uk
Venue: The Mulberry Hall at St Margaret's House, 21 Old Ford Road, E2 9PL
Access: If you have any access needs of which we should be aware, please get in touch with us on 020 8980 2092 or email emily@stmargaretshouse.org.uk so we can arrange this for you.
Date: Tuesday 16th December
Time: 7-9pm
Tickets: Free