Dog Mom brings South Asian female-led comedy to Southwark Playhouse this autumn

America's largest South Asian theatre company is bringing a comedy about divorce, dogs and starting over to Southwark Playhouse this autumn

Dog Mom by Tate Elizabeth Hanyok makes its UK premiere at Southwark Playhouse Borough from 14 October to 7 November 2026. Produced by EnActe Arts with South Asian casting and direction by Ajay Chowdhury.

Sarita is newly divorced, newly crammed into a small Brooklyn flat, and absolutely certain she is not a dog person. Then a scruffy stray appears on her doorstep and refuses to leave. Dog Mom, the American comedy by Tate Elizabeth Hanyok that won the New Comedies Festival in 2024, makes its UK premiere at Southwark Playhouse Borough this autumn, produced by EnActe Arts, the largest South Asian theatre company in the United States.

The show has been developed specifically for this London production with South Asian casting and cultural perspectives, in collaboration with Hanyok. Vinita Belani, who also produces, plays Sarita. The cast includes Tom Barnes as Ruben, Patty Gallagher as Foster and Joey Holden as Nell. Director Ajay Chowdhury, whose previous work includes productions at Shakespeare's Globe and the Park Theatre, leads the production. Set design is by Sean Cavanagh, lighting by Oliver Brown and sound by Naveen Bhatia.

One of the show's distinctive theatrical choices is worth noting. Dogs in Dog Mom are not puppets and not realistic animal costumes. Human performers play both people and dogs throughout, embodying instincts, loyalty and chaos rather than mimicking animal appearance. The result is physically comedic and emotionally disarming in a way that more literal staging would not be.

Hanyok has described the play as a deliberate act of centring a woman in a midlife reckoning, an experience she says is routinely rendered invisible or treated with shame. The comedy is the vehicle, not the subject. What the play is actually about is community, unexpected connection and the discovery that the family you end up with is sometimes better than the one you planned.

EnActe Arts was founded to develop and produce theatre by, for and about South Asian communities, and their UK premiere signals an ambition to bring that work to British stages where South Asian stories in mainstream theatres remain underrepresented.

Dog Mom runs at Southwark Playhouse Borough, 77 to 85 Newington Causeway, SE1 6BD, from 14 October to 7 November 2026.

Press night is Friday 16 October.

Running time is 1 hour 50 minutes including interval.

Tickets from £16 previews, £22 standard at southwarkplayhouse.co.uk.