Can I Sit Down Please?

Roosterbank Productions present…

Can I Sit Down Please?

One woman. One badge. One seat.

What’s it really like navigating public transport with an invisible disability?

Described in her medical records as ‘this unfortunate 30 year old woman’ (yes really), Mia has spent the last eight years navigating London and public transport with an invisible disability. She’s now ready to spill the beans on what it’s really like spending every day asking strangers if she can sit down, to varying degrees of success. We explore human kindness, human rudeness and, most importantly, whether that man is staring her badge or her boobs. 

Can I Sit Down Please? was first presented as a 10 minute piece at LAMDA’s 2026 MishMash Festival with high praise such as:

*** ‘Definitely worth the 2 hour train commute’ (Mia’s childhood friend)

**** ‘Obviously just absolutely brilliant’ (Mia’s parents)

* ‘She didn’t look disabled at all. Disappointing’ (Anon)

Mia graduated from LAMDA in 2020 from the Production and Technical Arts course and has spent the last 6 years working backstage up and down the country as a stage manager and props buyer. Unfortunately it has become clear to her that stage management and a chronic illness are not always compatible, and so is trying to find other ways to make theatre that involve a bit more sitting down. Luckily she also writes, and now spends her time telling stories to make the invisible, visible. 

Roosterbank are a newly formed theatre company made up of actors, directors, stage managers and writers, who have all passed through the halls of LAMDA at some point or another. We are all fuelled by a love of storytelling that is exuberant, curious and unafraid to take risks. In a world of short attention spans and endless screens, we aim to cut through the noise with engaging, energetic, emotionally resonant theatre that stays with you long after the lights come up.

Previous shows such as Metamorphoses (Courtyard Theatre and Camden People’s Theatre), Archive Labs (Riverside Studios) and Can I Sit Down Please? (LAMDA’s MishMash Festival) have taken the streets of London by storm, proving to be an unexpected sensation! Our shows have sold out multiple venues, received glowing reviews and have been chosen as the ‘Pick of the Fringe’ at Camden 2025. 

All of the Roosters, including Mia, are really excited to present a new 40 minute version of Can I Sit Down Please? at The Bitesize Festival this August.

Photos:  Zoë Birkbeck.