“Creativity… if I didn’t go to C3 I wouldn’t have space for that.” 

Anxiety, avoidance, doubt - feelings we all know. But what happens when teenagers have seven years to tell their own stories and shape their own futures? Those feelings don’t disappear, but doubt stops holding us back. 

Our work is underpinned by our three rules: Be Kind, Be Brave, Be Yourself. We use these rules, and our approach to care, equity and joy, to support the young people we work with to tell the stories they want to on stage. After seven years, these rules become ways of life. They leave C3 as kinder, braver people who are confident to be their most authentic selves. 

All our activity is free for young people to take part in. This includes full-scale shows; short films; an annual festival of work co-created by local teenagers; a week-long residential; Exchange projects partnering with and sharing practice with other youth theatre groups; Affinity groups and informal fun; theatre trips; and more.

We are a youth drama company in North London, co-creating creative projects with teenagers about the things they care about the most.

Can you support Company Three?

No Doubt for Company Three.

Made with Media Trust Films.

Featuring: Jay Ansah, Messie Basilua, Harlem Wallace, Shanai Austin, Shayma Zourdani, Shane Ahabwe, Ronnie Townsend, Mazen Salah, Shiloh Basilua, Gabby Brownlow, Alex Warner-Seaton, DaQuarn Brisset-Levy, Isaiah Asomani, Jessie Coventry Townsend - members of Company Three.

Writer / Director: Ramzey Sabbagh
Producer: Luke Clifton
C3 Artistic Director: Nuna Sandy
C3 Producer: Gabi Spiro
EP Media Trust Films: Ed Wise
DOP: Dom Lake
1st Assistant Director: Paolo De Battista
1st AC: Darius Williams
2nd AC: Hana Marika Ayers
Gaffer: Charlie Manning-Walker
Spark: Alife Williams
Art Director: Sam Webster
Sound recordist: Tom Fischer
Set PAs: Gili Mcewen, Jacob Mutton
Editor: Ramzey Sabbagh
Post Producer: Will Bramell
Sound Design & Mix: Nick Ashe
Original Music: Skanda Sabbagh
Colourist: Liam Kight
Online Editor: Joe Taylor
Post Production: Clear Cut
Camera kit: Fava rentals
Lighting kit: Shl film & TV

Funded by The Mercers’ Company.

A Young Person’s story

“I’ve 100% changed since my first day at C3. Back in Year Seven, I was very shy, I acted out, and was a bit boisterous. I wasn't that social and I mainly stuck with one friend. I had horrible stage fright, so the idea of me being able to do multiple shows would have been unfathomable back then. I think I've matured a lot. Year Seven me was very naive, being ungrateful for all the opportunities. But now I can look back and be like, oh, this was like, really sick.

From the start to my first residential, I didn't talk to many people. But then in the first residential was when I properly started to integrate with people. It kind of forces you to talk to people and see them in a different light rather than some random people you have to do drama with.

For C3 shows in general, most if not all your lines are from your mouth, with some tweaks. If it doesn't sound like you anymore, you can just change it. Doing both When This is Over and #BlackIs… twice, and being able to change the shows based on how we’ve matured and grown was the cast being heard and allowing us to have the authentic nature from the first show while showing more of who we are now. It’s like… these people actually respect what I say. So then you can be more confident when something is not for you.

My time at C3 blew by very fast, and I was there for seven years, which is ages, but doesn't feel like seven years. I think you forget how many versions of yourself people have seen. Year 11 me to 11-year-old me, to like 14-year-old me, to me during lockdown, then 16, 17, to me at 18. I feel like I'd like to say I've changed a lot throughout — and even in yearly intervals, I've changed a lot. These people have seen me do all those changes, and these people are lots of the reason why I've done these changes. That's such a beautiful thing to have — so many people in your life who have seen you grow in such a way, and people who you've been really vulnerable with.

You can go as vulnerable as you want at C3. If you don't want to, you don't have to. But whenever I did take the chance to be a bit more vulnerable, I think it just made my connections with people feel a lot stronger. You realise how caring people are, because the world — at least the media — is very pessimistic, and it's like, the world's finished. We’re the loneliest generation. I think people just don't realise that other people feel the same ways as them, and they're so used to keeping everything to themselves and portraying a certain side of themselves on social media or in front of people, and not letting them see who they really are.

I think that makes people feel really lonely and really isolated. And I think C3 kind of forced me to not do that, in a very safe space where I was allowed to have my boundaries, but also felt really comfortable to just share my thoughts and how I felt in like little poems or monologues. When you do it in a play, and people in the audience come up to me saying, “that really touched me,” or “that's something I really relate to.” It makes them feel less lonely as well. It’s a knock-on effect because they realise they’re not the only one who thinks like this. Then maybe they'll talk to their friends a bit more about it. That being C3’s culture is a beautiful thing. It’s a theatre company that allows that culture to then be shared to a bunch of other people.

Something I will take with me is "wrong and strong." I think people are just very scared to just say things — especially in school or uni now. Sometimes it just takes one person to say something confidently. It can be wrong, but then you learn when other people learn, and that's how you progress.

Also the importance of reaching out to people. I think uni — I can imagine it will become very cliquey — so if someone's not in the group, they might feel really lonely. When I was in C3 and I saw a bunch of people by themselves, I'd go up to them and talk. I'll take with me to uni reaching out to people, making sure that people just don't feel lonely.”