National Theatre Unveils Queer Theatre Event Series
By: BWW News Desk May. 03, 2017
The National Theatre will mark the 50th anniversary of the partial decriminalisation of homosexuality in England and Wales by staging its first Queer Theatre event series from 6th - 10th July 2017.
A group of world class actors and directors will look at how theatre has charted the LGBT+ experience through a series of rehearsed readings and post-show discussions in the Lyttelton Theatre.
Launching the initiative, playwright Tarell Alvin McCraney said of directing a rehearsed reading of his play Wig Out!:
"I feel grateful to be returning to the UK and reading this piece. As we continue better to understand ourselves and how we perform in the world I hope this investigation back into the 'ball scene' will be as exciting as it is important. #Alllove&Allpride."
Director Stephen Daldry said: "As a teenager Bent was the first play I ever saw on the London stage. Amazingly at a theatre I went on to be the director of. It was a devastating experience for a young gay man from a small market town in Somerset. I can honestly say the experience changed my life. The play went on to take London by storm. I am thrilled and honoured to direct a rehearsed reading of Martin Sherman's explosive play to mark this important anniversary."
The NT's Queer Theatre event series is hosted in partnership with Pride in London and includes:
Neaptide by Sarah Daniels (1986), Thursday 6th July 7.30pm
Directed By Sarah Frankcom
Neaptide was the National Theatre's first full-length play by a female playwright. It presents a ferocious but funny account of the public and private battles of a lesbian mother in the 1980s, alongside the ancient myth of Demeter & Persephone. Having recently come out to her family, Claire now faces a bitter custody battle and uncertainty over her teaching career.
Wig Out! by Tarell Alvin McCraney (2008), Friday 7th July 7.30pm
Directed by Tarell Alvin McCraney
Witness the fiercest battle in New York as the House Of Light compete with the House Of Diabolique for drag family supremacy at the Cinderella Ball. When Eric meets Wilson, it's a good old-fashioned boy meets boy fairytale. However, when Wilson reveals his drag alter-ego Nina, questions of masculinity and gender come to the fore. In the tradition of Paris Is Burning, this big, bold and riotous play looks at gender, drag and fabulousness.
Certain Young Men by Peter Gill (1999), Saturday 8th July 7.30pm
Directed by Peter Gill
'To be really queer you have to have someone nail your foreskin to a piece of wood and generally kick up a bit of a fuss.' As the new millennium approaches, four gay couples illuminate the differences within the 'gay community'. Is gay life defined by living in coupled suburban bliss or chasing casual sex?
Bent by Martin Sherman (1979), Sunday 9th July 2.30pm
Directed by Stephen Daldry
Following Nazi Germany's Night Of The Long Knives in 1934, gay lovers Max and Rudy are taken away to Dachau by the Gestapo. Desperate to avoid the dreaded Pink Triangle, Max claims to be Jewish. In amongst the horrors of the Camp, he meets Horst who wears his Pink Triangle with pride.
The Drag by Mae West (1927), Monday 10th July 7.30pm
Directed by Polly Stenham
The play that scandalised 1920s New York follows respected, married socialite Rolly. Son of a homophobic judge and married to the daughter of an eminent gay conversion therapist, Rolly is keen to keep his homosexual tendencies under wraps. However, when he decides to host a drag ball in his drawing room, events soon spiral out of control. One of the first plays to shed light on gay counter-culture, Mae West's rarely performed comedy was banned after ten performances.
The Queer Theatre event series will coincide with the 2017 Pride weekend and tickets will be on sale from Friday 5th May, tickets include entry to each post-show discussion.
For more information on the Queer Theatre event series, click here.
DIRECTOR BIOGRAPHIES
Sarah Frankcom
After working as a drama teacher in the East End, Sarah started working with new writers and in drama schools. She spent time at the National Theatre studio, Oval House, The Red Room, and taught at The Poor School. Originally joining the Royal Exchange as Literary Manager, she has been sole Artistic Director there since 2014. Her recent productions include: A STREETCAR NAMED DESIRE, THE SKRIKER and HAMLET (all three with Maxine Peake), BLINDSIDED, THAT DAY WE SANG, Royal Exchange & MIF13 co-production THE MASQUE OF ANARCHY (with Maxine Peake), BLACK ROSES, THREE BIRDS, ORPHEUS DESCENDING, MISS JULIE (a new version by David Eldridge), BEAUTIFUL THING, A VIEW FROM THE BRIDGE, WINTERLONG (by Andrew Sheridan - Bruntwood Prize winner), PUNK ROCK (by Simon Stephens - MEN Award for Best Production), BLITHE SPIRIT, THREE SISTERS, ON THE SHORE OF THE WIDE WORLD (by Simon Stephens - Olivier Award for Best Play) and KES. Her work has also been seen at the National Theatre, Bush Theatre, Lyric Hammersmith, Soho Theatre and the Crucible.
Tarell Alvin McCraney is best known for his acclaimed trilogy, THE BROTHER/SISTER PLAYS which include THE BROTHERS SIZE, IN THE RED AND BROWN WATER and MARCUS; OR THE SECRET OF SWEET. Other plays include his edit of ANTHONY AND CLEOPATRA (which he also directed at the RSC, Public Theater NY and GableStage Miami), HEAD OF PASSES, CHOIR BOY, WITHOUT/SIN, RUN, MOURNER, RUN (adapted from Randall Kenan's short story), THE BREACH, (written with Catherine Filloux, and Joe Sutton) and WIG OUT!. Tarell's script IN MOONLIGHT BLACK BOYS LOOK BLUE is the basis for the film MOONLIGHT directed by Barry Jenkins, which won the award for Best Film at the 2017 Oscars and McCraney and Jenkins also won the Best Adapted Screenplay Oscar. Among its many other honours, the film has won a Golden Globe for Best Drama, Gotham Award for Best Feature, NAACP Image Award for Best Independent Film, WGA Award for Best Original Screenplay, the Human Rights Campaign's Visionary Arts Award, and 6 Independent Spirit Awards including Best Picture and Best Screenplay.
Peter Gill is one of the most important and influential writers and directors of the last thirty years. He has directed over a hundred productions in the UK, Europe and North America. He was responsible for introducing D. H. Lawrence's plays to The Royal Court Theatre in the 1960s and was the founding director of Riverside Studios and The National Theatre Studio. He is an acclaimed playwright whose work includes THE SLEEPERS DEN, OVER GARDENS OUT, SMALL CHANGE and THE YORK REALIST (all of which premiered at the Royal Court), KICK FOR TOUCH and CARDIFF EAST (which premiered at the National Theatre), CERTAIN YOUNG MEN (Almeida Theatre), and ORIGINAL SIN (Sheffield Theatres). Recent work includes AS GOOD A TIME AS ANY at the Print Room (2015) and VERSAILLES at the Donmar Warehouse (2014), which he wrote and directed. His book APPRENTICESHIP, written about his experiences as a young actor with the Royal Shakespeare Company in the sixties, provides a rigorous and insightful reflection into the theatre of the time.
Stephen started his career at the Sheffield Crucible Theatre and directed extensively in Britain's regional theatres. In London he was Artistic Director of the Gate Theatre and The Royal Court Theatre where he headed the £26million redevelopment. He has also directed at the National Theatre, The Public Theatre in New York and transferred many productions both to Broadway and the West End. His award-winning 1992 National Theatre production of An Inspector Calls is currently touring the UK and will play a limited engagement in the West End this Winter at The Playhouse Theatre. Billy Elliot the Musical recently commenced its first UK and Ireland tour having just completed a hugely successful and highly acclaimed multi award-winning eleven year run in London. It previously played on Broadway, in Holland, Seoul, Sydney, Melbourne, Chicago, Toronto and across the US. In 2009, the production won ten Tony awards including Best Musical, more than any other British show in Broadway history. It will open in Japan in 2017. Stephen's first four films Billy Elliot, The Hours, The Reader and Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close together received 19 Academy Award nominations and two wins. His most recent film, Trash, set in the favelas of Rio de Janeiro was nominated for Best Film not in the English Language in the 2015 BAFTAs. Stephen also directed productions of The Audience and Skylight, both were highly acclaimed and went onto win major theatre awards completing sell out runs in London and on Broadway. Stephen has previously directed for BBC Radio and Television and is currently directing the new Netflix series The Crown written by Peter Morgan. He is Director of the Pier 55 Performance Park in New York and was Creative Executive Producer of the Opening and Closing Ceremonies for the London 2012 Olympic and Paralympic Games.
Polly Stenham is a playwright, screenwriter and director. Her plays include That Face at the Royal Court, for which she was awarded the Evening Standard Award for Most Promising Playwright 2007 and the 2008 Critics' Circle Award for Most Promising Playwright. The play transferred to the Duke of York's Theatre in the West End in 2008. Tusk Tusk and No Quarter both directed by Jeremy Herrin opened at the Royal Court in 2009 and 2013. Her play Hotel opened at the National Theatre in June 2014. She is currently under commission to the Donmar Warehouse, Film Four, the Almeida and the National. TV includes: She wrote and directed Foxtrot for Sprout Pictures, as part of Sky Art's Playhouse Presents season. She directed the short film, Everyday Lives of Performance Artists for Channel Four's Random Acts programme in 2016. Film includes: Tusk her screen adaptation of her play Tusk Tusk is in development with Origin/Film4. And she co-wrote Neon Demon directed by Nicolas Winding Refn.
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