Jordan Amos-Forbes from Enfield led Don't Write Me Off, a forum play that toured to more than 350 young people. His next goal: the West End by 2030.

Jordan Amos-Forbes, an actor who lives in Enfield, has just finished a schools tour playing the lead in Don’t Write Me Off, a forum theatre play by the arts organisation Actively SeeK.I.N.G.. He now has a deadline for his next step: a West End stage by 2030.

He played Jubal, described by the company as a talented Black teenager who dreams of becoming a professional musician and entrepreneur. The production toured schools in Essex, East London and South East London and reached more than 350 young people, Actively SeeK.I.N.G. says. The tour closed with an industry performance at Theatre Peckham on Friday 16 October, as part of the theatre’s Young, Gifted and Black festival.

From engineering to the stage

Jordan did not come to acting by the usual route. He studied mechatronic engineering at the University of Essex before deciding to act.

“I studied mechatronic engineering at the University of Essex. After graduating, I decided to pursue acting. I started out doing a lot of TV and film work, but I wanted to branch out into theatre,” he said.

His way into theatre was Actively SeeK.I.N.G.’s Easter workshop, I Am Tobi Brown. From there he went on to a full performance and a live showcase, and then to the lead in Don’t Write Me Off.

“The experience has been very telling about where I stand as an actor and where I want to get to,” he said. “Working alongside other K.I.N.G.s has also given me the opportunity to see many different shows in different theatres. My next goal is to perform in a West End theatre by 2030!”

Two actors in white shirts on a stage, one holding a guitar case, in a scene from Don't Write Me Off
A scene from Don't Write Me Off. Photo: Nocturna Photography, via Actively SeeK.I.N.G.

A play that stops and asks the audience

Don’t Write Me Off was co-written by Actively SeeK.I.N.G. and the writer Martin Edwards. It was developed in 2024 through a research and development process funded by Arts Council England, working with young Black boys from the organisation’s own arts programme.

The company’s projects page says the play follows Jubal and a second character, NM, through friendship, dreams, faith, family and the pressures around them, and ends in a confrontation that shows how far their paths have split.

It is forum theatre, which means the audience does not just watch. Key scenes are opened up so that people can reflect on them, ask questions and look at how a different choice, or different support, might change what happens. That is the point of taking it into schools. The company has also released a music EP that follows on from the play, Don’t Write Me Off: K.I.N.G.’s Collective.

One actor with a guitar case on his back stretches his arms out while another bends down behind him on a stage in Don't Write Me Off
Another scene from Don't Write Me Off. Photo: Nocturna Photography, via Actively SeeK.I.N.G.

“Why opportunities matter”

The play is directed by Natasha Cox, a Churchill Fellow, who runs the company.

“Jordan’s journey from taking part in our programme to playing Jubal shows why opportunities matter,” she said. “Young people need the space to develop their gifts and the chance to show what they can do.”

Actively SeeK.I.N.G. describes itself as a creative arts social impact organisation. Its aim is to use the arts to help young Black men rebuild what it calls the K.I.N.G. within them: Knowledge, Identity, Nurturer and Gifts. Its work includes creative projects, community activity and the House of K.I.N.G.s, a Saturday school for performing arts, leadership and life skills.

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