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Adam Ali

he/they Contact Patron

Adam Ali is a British-Libyan actor and director striving to celebrate queer Muslim visibility. Best known for his role as openly gay basketball sweetheart, Kai Shariff, in BBC hit Waterloo Road. Adam has also received a Red Sea Film Festival Best Actor award for their portrayal of Kamal in Europa. Growing up in Manchester, Adam trained at The Television Workshop in Salford and at Contact as a member of Contact Young Company. Adam’s short film Hamoody was commissioned by Contact and premiered as part of Queer Contact festival in 2021 and their most recent short BABA won the top prize at Iris Prize LGBT+ Film Festival.

“Engaging with theatre at Contact betters the health of young people, theatre there is seen as a form of wellness and kindness is valued above all . In an industry where often cruelty and negligence is very common, Contact is a solace and a sanctuary for artists at an embryonic phase. It’s where dreams go to blossom and lifelong collaborators meet. The past decade at Contact has seen alumni playwrights, actors and directors go on to create award winning cinema and tv that has defined British entertainment. It's a prestigious honour to be part of the alumni that once resided and trained at one of the coolest theatres in the country. Every young person that walks through those doors, always finds their way back. There's something for everyone at Contact, you just need to be willing to give everything a go.”

A young British-Libyan male with black hair wearing a black vest

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