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SPOTLIGHT ON : Three Queer Theatre Seasons Hit London

Brian Butler July 19, 2021

An astonishing array of Queer theatre is coming our way this Summer in London . Three venues are offering a wide variety of comedy and serious drama as well as cabaret.

The King’s Head, Islington, has its annual  Queer season running from 27 July to 21 August . The season kicks off with domestic drama All That for the full season at various times. Other highlights include:

Wilde Without The Boy runs 28-31 July at 9pm. A window into the bruised but radiant life of Queer playwright Oscar Wilde through one of the most famous love letters ever written. Performed by Gerard Logan.

After The Silence  ( 1/2 August at 7pm ) Two best friends, one night in Soho – what happens when  the music stops?

Mating In Captivity ( 3-7 August 9pm) . It’s Annie and Rob’s wedding night , but Jacob, Rob’s ex , needs a place to crash.

Death And Dancing (10-14 August, 9pm ) He and She are both called Max , undergraduates fresh on London’s Queer scene, unsure who they are or what they want to be.

Tell Me Straight ( 17-21 August at 9pm). Dani is done with Him and his bullshit. The result is explosive.

Full details kingsheadtheatre.com

South of the river at Vauxhall, Above The Stag is running Not The Edinburgh Fringe with a strong Queer element. Its been put together by Tim McArthur .

Highlights include:

Keith Ramsay: Eve ( all about her ) . Co-conceived by Keith and Matt Ryan, it fuses spoken word with live music to deconstruct the concept of camp. ( 23 July )

Ryan Lane Will Be There In a Minute is an exploration of what it means to be Welsh and Queer . ( 29 and 31 July).

Maggie Macall , The Broadway Bitch Is Back presents Dame Maggie, star of Broadway, Hollywood and the yoga mat . ( 29 and 31 July ).

The Establishment Versus Sidney Harry Fox ( 30/31 July / 1 August). In 1930 a young Gay man was hanged for the murder of his mother in a Margate hotel room. But was justice done? A true story.

Alexa Vox – Leading Ladies of Broadway ( 1 August ). A celebration of Broadway and Theatreland’s Queens – Sondheim to Schwartz, Minelli to Fosse .

Queefy ( 4 august). A night to come and be Queer as F*ck and join the Queerdo family.

The A-Z Of Gay Sex ( 5, 7, 8 August ). Do you know your top from your bottom? Your sadist from your masochist? Or are you strictly Sapiosexual? All will be revealed .

Dragprov ( 13/14 August). A drag King and Queen improvise – a night of sequins, spoofs and salaciousness – from audience suggestions.

Sister Mary’s Sunday Service ( 15 and 29 August). No pulpit, no psalms, no prayers- she’s not that kind of nun.

Jarman ( 19 and 21 August). Film maker, painter, activist, writer – Derek Jarman: a life story untold until now – brought to life by Mark Farrelly.

Jack Hoosie and The Leisure Groan – an outrageous dark comedy about a Gay sauna in 1990’s Yorkshire , threatened by the arrival of the Internet. Written and performed by Gareth Edward ( 27-29 August) . This show is also at the Water Rats as part of Camden Fringe from 2-4 August.

Full details abovethestag.org.uk

The Garden Theatre, which broke ground as an outdoor pop-up venue last Summer in Vauxhall,  now crosses the river to a new pop-up venue in St Gabriel’s Halls in  Pimlico with 4 mostly Queer offerings.

First up is a sexy all-male modern ballet based on Delibes’  Coppelia, revamped to modern-day Soho.It’s partnered with a piece to the music of Tchaikovsky – The Supermarket Suite .( 3-6 and 12-14 August )

Bleach – Tyler screws his way through London at night, selling himself for money. But on a fully-booked Saturday night , Tyler’s bubble is about to burst . A  one-man show about sex, violence and city living, written and performed by Dan Ireland- Reeves ( 3, 4, 6, 7, 8 , 10 and 11 August at various times).

Happy Ending is a comedy by Ronnie Larsen. A gay man, a straight man and a massage table -what can possibly go wrong? Find out the naked truth. (9 -14August, various times ).

And finally.. Afternoon Arias is curated and accompanied on piano by David Eaton. Sit back on a summer afternoon, sipping bubbles and listening to some of he finest operatic arias ever written ( 1-8 August at 3pm ).

Full details gardentheatre.co.uk

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