Maya’s latest project is a refreshing, urgent and daring new musical in development.

Sheffield. It’s the Sixties

It’s Mabel’s birthday and she’s celebrating, Anglo-Indian style, with music and dance at St Catherine’s Church Hall, Pitsmoor, Sheffield.

M.A.B.E.L explores the story of a mother who has taken a bold step to overcome the darkness of her past. She brings her family, from South India, to start a new life in Sheffield, arriving with memories of home, hopes for a brighter future and a promise to fulfil.

Set against the backdrop of post-war Britain, M.A.B.E.L (formally Benny and the Greycats) follows an Anglo-Indian family navigating migration, identity, loss, and belonging while building a new life through music and community.

The play is rooted in working class northern culture and follows a migration journey exploring themes of cultural heritage, mental health, the legacy of colonialism and music.

It is a story inspired by Artistic Director Suzanne Gorman’s family history, whose uncles played in the Madras Jazz Group in the 1950s in India, and then played in pop combos in Yorkshire clubs in the 1960s.

Maya Productions entered into an exciting new phase of development this year leading to rehearsed readings sharing extracts of the musical. We were delighted to welcome audiences, partners and supporters to our rehearsed readings in June 2026 at Soho Theatre, London and at Performance Lab, Sheffield, where we also work created by participants in our Routes to Roots project.

Please find our tour pack and promotional video below for more information about M.A.B.E.L

We were delighted to share an extract at BEAM2023 at Oxford Playhouse. This followed a workshop development period in 2022 at China Plates Musical Theatre Darkroom at Royal & Derngate Northampton.

Taster of Benny and the Greycats Showcase Performance 2021

A performance of scenes and songs at Migration Matters Festival 2021.

Maya Productions showcased a work-in-progress performance of Benny and the Greycats at three festivals in July 2021:

Arcola Theatre as part of the Today I’m Wiser Festival on the 7th July at 5:00pm

Disrupt 21 on the 8th of July at 1:45pm

Migration Matters Festival on the 12th at 6:pm

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The piece was originally developed through the Open Lab at Barbican and then, through a workshop week and early-stage sharing at Sheffield Theatres.

Due to Covid 19, we postponed our next workshop and sharing of work to July 2021. We continued to develop the piece, at home, and eventually tested out some of the material in an online workshop in November 2020.

If you are interested in finding out more about the play and/or being partner or co-producer in the next stages, please contact Producer Lydia Idakula at producer@mayaproductions.co.uk

Images from R&D at Arcola Theatre and Deli Sheffield during Migration Matters Festival 2021

“Really interesting the way the characters’ stories open up the politics of the time but how that directly links to issues of today related to immigration, Brexit, diversity of Britain”

“Good challenging themes, the need to assimilate and integrate”

“Great humour and very poignant story”

“Interesting and little explored story, Anglo-Indian v Indian/post empire fallout. Right to be challenging and real – the price of dreams can be high.”

“The relationship between the family, mother and son especially was moving”

Our company said

I really want to see a true story of immigration with great music hit the British stage, a non-stereotypical story of immigrants in the UK to highlight the importance of our multi-cultural society.”
( Natasha Lewis)

“I think this musical shows us what it means to be British from a point of view that hasn’t been seen before. As such, it is a very important piece.”
( Paul Sirett)

“I feel the piece is moving in a unique and exciting direction.”
( Adam Samuel Bal)

“the family was symbolic for every single family in the entire world who have HAD TO MOVE (forced) to seek survival and a future.”
(Jason Patel)