Theresa Ikoko

Theresa Ikoko is a British playwright and screenwriter of Nigerian descent. Her play "Girls", about three girls abducted by terrorists in northern Nigeria, won the Alfred Fagon Award and other awards.
Early life and education.
Ikoko grew up with her mother and eight siblings in the Hackney neighborhood of London. Ikoko has said that the label "poor" was put upon her and that communities that are poorer are misrepresented by the media as "problem areas" which ignores the potential of these areas and the fact that the negativity coming from these communities is a societal issue. She says that "poverty isn’t all about suffering and darkness," and describes her upbringing as "rich in joy." 
Growing up, Ikoko was inspired by authors Malorie Blackman, Sister Souljah, and Eric Jerome Dickey.
Ikoko earned an undergraduate degree in psychology from Royal Holloway, University of London and a master's degree in Criminology and Criminal Psychology from the University of Oxford. While at Royal Holloway she contributed to a journal article on "how the conversation dynamics of women from ethnic majority and minority groups varied in different conversational contexts."
Ikoko has worked on social inclusion and community engagement projects within prisons, including facilitating creative and performing arts workshops with incarcerated persons. She worked with Islington Integrated Gangs, a London organization that focuses on gang violence in youth communities, from 2014 until 2019, when she began writing full-time.
Playwriting.
Ikoko's first full-length play was "Normal", which was produced as a staged reading as part of the Talawa Firsts' series in 2014. Ikoko came to greater attention and acclaim for her second full-length play, "Girls", which won the Alfred Fagon Award for best new play in 2015; the award honors excellence in playwrights by authors of African or Caribbean ancestry living in the United Kingdom. "Girls" went on to be produced by Talawa Theatre Company, HighTide Theatre and Soho Theatre in 2016, before being revived for a tour in 2017 which also took in shows at the 2017 Edinburgh Fringe. At the time Ikoko said: 
Ikoko was one of five winners of the Channel 4 Playwrights Scheme for her play "Girls", which earned Ikoko a year-long playwriting fellowship the HighTide Theatre. Ikoko also received the George Devine Award for most promising playwright in 2016. "Girls" was produced at the Birmingham Repertory Theatre, the HighTide Festival, and at the Soho Theatre in 2016. It was Ikoko's first professionally produced play. The play addresses issues of kidnapping, forced religion, sexism, and arranged marriage as well as themes of friendship and resilience. A review in "The Times" called the play "pungent", "provocative", "scorchingly intelligent and as powerful as a gut punch."
Ikoko cites as inspirations playwrights debbie tucker green and Dennis Kelly, author Chinua Achebe, and recording artist and activist Sister Souljah. Speaking about her motivation for writing, she has said 
Screenwriting.
With Claire Wilson, she cowrote the screenplay for Sarah Gavron's 2019 film "Rocks". The film premiered at the Toronto International Film Festival in 2019 and opened in Britain on 18 September 2020.