NEW '26: XL Bully

Eight friends take a shortcut home after a night out. They end up trapped in a locked room, with something unseen waiting on the other side of the door.

As the pressure builds, jokes sharpen, tensions rise, and fear starts to take over. What begins as a darkly comic situation slowly shifts into something stranger and more unsettling. A tense, funny, and provocative new play by Stef Smith about fear, responsibility, and the stories we tell ourselves when we feel threatened.                 

Part of NEW '26: Royal Welsh College of Music & Drama’s acclaimed annual new writing festival, NEW, works closely with leading writers and directors on new plays commissioned by the College in association with companies like Paines Plough, Sherman Theatre and Royal Court. Productions premiere at the College’s home in Cardiff before moving to London.

The Company

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Credits

Writer - Stef Smith
Director - Rob Watt

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Company

The Royal Welsh College of Music & Drama attracts the best creative talent from across the globe. As Wales’ national conservatoire, we fire imagination and drive innovation, offering training to almost 800 actors, musicians, designers, technicians and arts managers from more than 40 countries. Our students’ extraordinary talent and potential is fused with exceptional teaching and unrivalled industry links, to bring dreams to life. A space for everyone, creative ambition and collaboration are central to our excellence.  
 

https://www.rwcmd.ac.uk/