I had my own introduction to Ginger Johnson and Sink the Pink a year ago when I chaired a Q&A for How to Catch a Krampus, the first in a new queer trilogy at the Pleasance Theatre, which also marked the drag collective’s first-ever theatrical residency after a decade of mega club nights, festivals and glitter-doused parties.
‘My determination was fired up by the junior doctors’ strike’: Tania Amsel on writing & performing Blood Orange
When helping others is at the heart of your career, what happens when you’re the one who needs help? We talked to Tania Amsel about her new one-woman play Blood Orange, told from the perspective of an overwhelmed junior doctor at Christmas.
‘There are scenes that will remain with you long after the performance is over’: THE HOUSE OF THE SPIRITS – Cervantes Theatre ★★★★
After a cinematic start with the characters caught in spotlights mid-activity, we tumble into The House of the Spirits with a series of brutal scenes – rape, bullying, exploitation, pain.
WATCH The House of the Spirits Q&A video: How does Isabel Allende’s novel work onstage?
Are you fans of Isabel Allende’s The House of the Spirits? Allende’s multi-award-winning debut novel, released in 1982, charts four generations of one family from the 1920s and the 1970s, and how tightly entwined their personal fortunes are with political winds of change.
FEATURED SHOW: Different From the Others is a ‘sure-fire hit’, ★★★★ reviews are in!
Five- and four-star reviews are in for “certain and sure-fire hit” Different From the Others … but there’s only a fortnight left to see this world premiere play, which must finish on 16 November 2019 at London’s White Bear Theatre. We’ve rounded up a selection of our favourite review highlights.
NEWS: New play Blood Orange exposes the pressure on junior doctors at Christmas
As we head towards another annual winter crisis for the over-stretched NHS, new play Blood Orange, written and performed Tania Amsel, explores the extra pressures heaped on junior doctors at Christmastime. It runs at London’s Old Red Lion Theatre from 10 December 2019 to 4 January 2020, with a press night on 12 December.
‘Find honour & truth in being yourself’: DIFFERENT FROM THE OTHERS – White Bear Theatre ★★★★
The past often offers a convenient intellectual space which we can all look down upon and feel smug about how far we have come in moral terms. Different From The Others gleefully kicks us off our moral high ground.
FIRST-LOOK PHOTOS: Different From the Others focuses lens on gay cinematic history
A hundred years after the release of the first-ever pro-gay film, Claudio Macor’s new play telling the story behind its making, Different From the Others, has premiered at London’s White Bear Theatre. “A well-crafted look at a bygone era and a story from gay history that demands to be told,” says Boy Magazine.
NEWS: The Bunker Theatre will close its doors in March, after three years
The Bunker Theatre will close in the new year ahead proposed redevelopment of its London Bridge site. The Bunker will present its final show at 53a Southwark Street on Saturday 28 March 2020, three-and-a-half years after it opened in a converted car park beneath the Menier Chocolate Factory.
‘Men are men until they err & then it’s the victims who are blamed’: WHEN THE CROWS VISIT – Kiln Theatre
Anupama Chandrasekhar’s tense and searching new play When the Crows Visit is a theatrical response to the 2012 Delhi gang rape of a young woman on a bus. These men walk among us, protected by the very society they are undermining; how does that happen?
FEATURED SHOW: ★★★★ reviews are in for the UK premiere of Sam Shepard’s Ages of the Moon
Ten years after its world premiere and two years after the playwright’s death, Sam Shepard’s Ages of the Moon receives a “finely tuned” UK premiere care of director Alexander Lass and stars Joseph Marcell and Christopher Fairbank. We’ve rounded up review highlights. Time to get booking!
PHOTOS: Behind the scenes exploring gay film history in Different From the Others rehearsals
Claudio Macor’s new play Different From the Others, which runs at London’s White Bear Theatre from 29 October to 16 November 2019, tells the story behind the making of the first-ever pro-gay film, 100 years after it was released. Have the cast been making history in rehearsals? Time to get booking!
FEATURED SHOW: More ★★★★ reviews & an Offies nomination for The Good Scout in London
After its rave reviews and New Writing award at Edinburgh Fringe, Glenn Chandler’s new play The Good Scout has won another round of plaudits and an OffWestEnd.com nomination on its London transfer to Above the Stag Theatre, where it continues until 2 November. We’ve rounded up the review highlights. Time to get booking!
New post-show Q&A: Join Terri for the UK premiere of Sam Shepard’s Ages of the Moon
As part of her ongoing post-show Q&A series, Mates co-founder Terri Paddock reunites with producer Debbie Hicks at The Vaults for her production of the much-anticipated UK premiere of Sam Shepard’s Ages of the Moon. Got any questions?
New post-show Q&A: Join Terri for the award-winning premiere of Glenn Chandler’s The Good Scout
As part of her ongoing post-show Q&A series, Mates co-founder Terri Paddock will talk to writer-director (and Taggart creator) Glenn Chandler and the company of The Good Scout in its London transfer. Any questions?
BEHIND THE SCENES: Peek into the rehearsal room for new psychological thriller Mites
An isolated woman, a pest controller and a talking cat… but which is which? We think we’ve got one character sussed! Take a look at these candid images from the rehearsal room of new darkly comic tale Mites for a hint of what to expect from James Mannion’s latest play, then book your tickets!
‘Cinematic history fascinates me, I find the hypocrisy staggering’: Claudio Macor on dramatising the making of first pro-gay film Different From the Others
How much do you know about “the Einstein of sex” Magnus Hirschfeld and his film Anders als die Andern? Discovering this 1919 silent gem one night on YouTube inspired playwright Claudio Macor to pen his new play about another little-known corner of cinematic and LGBTQ history.
Danelaw Q&A video: Is there a difference between racism & ‘racist attitudes’?
Why revive the play in 2019? How are people separate from their beliefs? What happened to the real Combat18 (and what does its name stand for)?
NEWS: Cast announced for the premiere of Claudio Macor’s Different From the Others
Casting has been announced for the world premiere of Claudio Macor’s new play Different From the Others, which tells the story behind the first pro-gay film ever made and premieres 100 years after the film itself. It runs at London’s White Bear Theatre from 29 October to 16 November 2019. Time to get booking!
WATCH: The 1919 film that inspired Claudio Macor’s Different From the Others
Claudio Macor’s latest play Different From the Others premieres 100 years after the film that inspired it. Have you heard of Anders als die Andern, the first-ever pro-gay film? Watch below – and then get booking!