Simon Callow: praise of Gay Sweatshop | Theatre | The Guardian

Contents:

• LIONHEART GAY THEATRE COMPANY
• SIMON CALLOW: PRAISE OF GAY SWEATSHOP
• GAY THEATERS NOW STGGLE TO EVOLVE
• 1964: THE BIRTH OF GAY THEATER
• MOSW GAY MAP

LIONHEART GAY THEATRE COMPANY

Essentially, this was to prevent anythg cent, offensive or blasphemo takg place theatr; censorship was particularly strict on homosexualy. Attus towards homosexualy showed signs of change when the Wolfenn Report was published 1957, which remend for the crimalisatn of homosexualy.

Ground-breakg many ways, Delaney’s play evad censorship and featured Geof, a gay stunt (played by Murray Melv) who liv wh protagonist Jo and helps her through her illegimate pregnancy. This marked a change pictg gay people wh sensivy rather than as a joke or miscreant.

SIMON CALLOW: PRAISE OF GAY SWEATSHOP

When homosexualy was crimalised England and Wal 1967 (and 1981 Stland, 1982 Northern Ireland), Queer artists were no longer unr the threat of legal persecutn. The 1970s saw the emergence of Gay Sweatshop Theatre Company, whose aim was to unteract the prevailg perceptn mastream theatre of what homosexuals were like. Read more about Gay Sweatshop’s fascatg history here.

Venu such as The Drill Hall (now RADA Stud) were dited to platformg gay, lbian and bisexual work. A wealth of work me the followg two s that fed the gay experience of HIV and AIDS wh artists such as Neil Bartlett and plays cludg Robert Chelsey’s Night Sweat, Larry Kramer’s The Normal Heart (the first play about AIDS the Wt End), Ja Hood and Bill Rsell’s Elegi for Angels, Punks and Ragg Queens as well as Tony Khner’s monumental Angels Ameri. In 1988, Jackie Kay’s Twice Over was Gay Sweatshop’s first play by a Black playwright and helped raise the profile of the women’s pany wh Gay Sweatshop.

1988 also saw Gay Sweatshop’s wily celebrated play This Island’s Me by Philip Osment. The Drill Hall ntued to be a centre for LGBTQ+ shows, cludg work om performance artists Djola Bernard Branner, Brian Freeman and Eric Gupton, otherwise known as Pomo Ao Homos (Postmorn Ain Amerin Homosexuals) – their show Fierce Love played at the venue 1992.

GAY THEATERS NOW STGGLE TO EVOLVE

The turn of the century saw a ntuatn of gay plays as well as new venu specifilly ditg their programmg to Queer work, cludg Above The Stag (found 2008).

Prolific playwright Rikki Beadle-Blair had several plays performed here at Stratford East cludg Bashment 2005, which tackled homophobia the hip-hop scene. - LGBT Foundatn, a natnal chary liverg advice and support to lbian, gay, bisexual and trans muni - more here.

1964: THE BIRTH OF GAY THEATER

- Centred, a muny anisatn n by diverse lbian, gay, bisexual, trans and queer people to provi activ, historil ntent and volunteer opportuni to their muny - more here. In a sea of nned cktails, Gay Water wants to stand out.

In other words, where Bud Light has buckled unr prsure as bigotry grows agast the LGBTQ+ muny, Gay Water’s creator Spencer Hodson wants his new boozy brand to be the anthis of that. “The key issue that Bud Light tapped to was the fact that they didn’t unrstand their re dience and know enough about them,” Hodson, a gay man, told CNN about the ntroversy that began when the Anhser-Bch beer brand sent fluencer Dylan Mulvaney a n of beer. Gay Water, however, is out and proud.

MOSW GAY MAP

The nned cktail is named after a lloquialism given to the popular mixed drk (vodka and soda) orred at bars by the gay muny. “Puttg a product wh the word gay the tle is reprentatn self,” which he hop reclaims the word om the negativy ’s sometim associated wh. He thought of creatg Gay Water about a year ago while on a vatn wh his iend that had got a job wh the beverage dtry.

The two chatted about the limed amount of gay people wh , and wh Hodson burnt out om his tradnal day job tech, started the nned cktail.