QUEER AND NOW

‘Wow, so fun and emotive. I honestly have no words to say but that was just so beautiful’ – Queer and Now Audience Feedback 

ABOUT THE SHOW: Queer and Now is a whirlwind showcase of short work in progress performances from the next generation of queer Midlands theatremakers. Join us for a packed evening full of delicious new queer theatrical goodness, where local artists have the chance to test and develop new performance ideas in front of a live audience for the first time. Showcasing the extraordinary skill of LGBTQ+ artists from the West Midlands, expect theatre, stand-up, music, drag, and all manner of performance yet to be imagined!

LINE-UP:

ALBERT SMITH (he/him) – Boxer Shorts, airing my queer laundry  in public
Albert is a comedian, live art performer a storyteller, raconteur and a baker. He has performed in Europe, and South Africa. He is known for using the bread baking process to tell autobiographical stories. He is currently exploring men’s boxer shorts.

ABOUT BOXER SHORTS: Come to see how I select to air my queer laundry. Explore with me how we use our boxer shorts as sexual fetishising. How we buy it and generally try comfortable about being uncomfortable. You going to have fun choosing a boxer shorts.

HERMIONE PURVIS (She/Her) – The Woman who Works in Lidl Fancies Me

Hermione’s creative practice aims to celebrate, exagerrate and meditate on the “mundane-ness” of life, everyday moments and the human condition.

ABOUT THE WOMAN WHO WORKS IN LIDL FANCIES ME: An anti-self-deprecation solo performance about a female who fancies females. She compiles a comprehensive list all of the females that she thinks fancy her. This performance showcases the guessing games and agony many queer people face when attracted to people of the same sex. Expect awakwardness, agony, fantasy, delusion and empowerment.

JASMINE GARDOSI (she/her) – BODY SHOT

Jasmine Gardosi (she/her) is a multiple slam champion, Birmingham Poet Laureate finalist and workshop facilitator, who takes a guilty pleasure in watching cage fights.

ABOUT BODY SHOT: Jas is the only female in her advanced Muay Thai kickboxing class. It’s her second session, and she’s desperate to prove she belongs there… until a transphobic incident sets her mind racing. This piece combines spoken word and martial arts to follow her thought process in the moments after.

GEORGIA KELLY (she/her) – SICK

Georgia Kelly does things. Lots of things. Most of them in Coventry. Currently theatre things but also sometimes visual art and music things.

ABOUT SICK: When Lou’s girlfriend dumps her she finds herself reaching out to her ex-best-friend, Logan. But they haven’t spoken in ten years. A spiteful, witty look at bullying, queer isolation and community, ‘SICK’ asks is it ever really too little, too late?’ (strong language + TWs: violence and homophobia mentions) 

CHINA (they/them) – ‘ISLE OF THE LOTUS EATERS’

China is a changeling made from wax and dirt.

ABOUT ISLE OF THE LOTUS EATERS – This is a work in progress that uses drag, confessional poetry and the allegory of Greek myth to explore queer monstrosity and find new ways of storytelling. In this excerpt, Pan, dying god of the wild, gets pissed and goes off on one. 

SEBASTIAN H-W (He/They) – ‘OUT of the BLUE’ (Afuera Del Azul)

Sebastian H-W (MX:UK) is a Live Artist based in the West Midlands whose work explores memory, identity, technology, participation, and bodies: @SebastnHW 

ABOUT OUT OF THE BLUE: Inspired by Derek Jarman’s film ‘Blue’ and Latinx AIDS artist-activists, ‘OUT of the BLUE’ (Afuera Del Azul) is an autobiographic queer dreamscape of spoken word and physical theatre, that explores the intimate complexity of Poz visibility, toxicity, mortality, protection, stigma, and healing, around the ongoing marginalized narratives of HIV.

SHOUT SAYS: When we started Queer and Now in 2018 we had no idea how incredible the talent was going to be! Artists from last year’s showcase have developed full length pieces, toured the UK, and created their own festivals. We don’t know what’s coming for 2019, but it’s basically guaranteed you’ll be watching the queer stars of tomorrow.

IMPORTANT INFO: Suitable for ages 16+