They seem fatally mismatched from the start – Hakeem, a high-flying Nigerian-born professor of theoretical physics, obsessed with the minutiae of the universe and self-absorbed by the admiration of his colleagues.
And Jeremy – a gym-fit database manager, failed poet, consumed by a sex-drive that Hakeem doesn’t share.
Yet Free and Proud, by Charles Gershman, somehow shows there is chemistry between them , which actors Michael Gilbert and Faaiz Mbelizi take full advantage of.
Much of the play is made up of alternate monologues and this could lead to a totally disjointed episodic staging, but Peter Darney’s tight but light-handed direction strangely brings the actors closer together and to us.
From the outset we are told Hakeem – in the process of leaving his husband – has been killed in a terrible bus crash.
The problem is this is not Greek tragedy. Their worlds have already drifted so far apart that Jeremy feels nothing at the news and tells the audience he knows they are judging him. And we are because he shows in his many random anonymous liaisons with other men that his lack of guilt is what breaks up his marriage, not the act of unfaithfulness itself.
The play is certainly not a good morality tale promoting gay marriage, but maybe it’s not meant to be. More about the mess any of us can make of our lives.
In the acting stakes, Michael Gilbert is the stronger of the pair and is likeable in a naughty but nice kind of way.
Faaiz as Hakeem is just plain boring and this is more a fault of the writing than the acting. His very long monologue about the death of his father back in Nigeria well outstays its welcome.
The show has been simplified and pared down from an earlier version – and maybe that process should continue – give us a one-man show about Jeremy the loveable philanderer maybe?
Free and Proud runs at the Assembly Studio 4 , Edinburgh throughout August.
Forgotten histories of West Country men prosecuted for homosexuality unearthed in site-specific performance.
Image: Matt Glover
A Haunted Existence will be staged at Bristol’s Old Police Station at The Island from September 13-23
Live Artist Tom Marshman has collaborated with historian Jeanie Sinclair to create the performance
Audiences will also be able to explore a specially created installation made with local young people in the old police cells before the show
After the recent Pride celebrations saw more big-name brands and politicians than ever demonstrating their support and allegiance with tie-in promotions and personal appearances, it would be all too easy to forget that until 1967 homosexual acts were illegal in the UK, and countless gay people were prosecuted.
This September, Bristol-based live artist Tom Marshman – working with historian Jeanie Sinclair and drawing on an incredible true story that happened in the local area in the 1950s – will present A Haunted Existence.
Staged in the atmospheric setting of the Old Police Cells beneath Bristol’s The Island, the performance will bring to life some of these forgotten personal histories and ask searching questions about Britain’s all-too-recent shameful past before the 1967 Sexual Offences Act decrimimalised homosexuality.
Image: Paul Samuel White
In 1954, Geoffrey Patrick Williamson, made approaches to a fellow passenger in the train. The passenger was a railway policemen. On arrest, he gave the names of a number of other men he had been involved with, resulting in the arrest and prosecution of a number of others, including a decorated war hero who tragically used a cyanide capsule to end his life while in the police cells awaiting interview.
Tom Marshman has unearthed these stories, weaving together history and hearsay, to pay tribute to these men and ensure they are not forgotten. Using vinyl music, creative technology and projection, he will highlight the turmoil, stigma and heartbreak as he retraces these men’s footsteps.
Speaking about the performance, Tom Marshman said:“We have been working out what happened to all of the men through looking a records on ancestry and various archives, there are lots of stories and although it is heavy stuff there is also lot of happy endings in some ways. All of these stories have really got under my skin.”
Jeanie Sinclair, the historian working with Tom, says:“This has been such an exciting project to work on. Ordinary people have extraordinary stories, and it’s been a fascinating journey that has taken us to places that we hadn’t expected.”
Audiences attending the performance will also be able to experience an installation artwork including contributions from students who have taken part in Tom and Jeanie workshop that explores life in England before Decriminalisation.
Tom Marshman is a performance artist who transforms everyday accounts into theatre by weaving together stories worth telling. A Pervasive Media Studio Resident, he has created over 20 projects over the last ten years in a wide range of mediums including performance, photography, installation, publication and film. Previous work includes Kings Cross (Remix), based on the testimonies of those who lived and loved in the notorious London district in the 1980s, and Move Over Darling, which explored the personal and social histories of gay and lesbian adults living in Bristol.
He has presented his work in a variety of venues including Bristol Old Vic, Arnolfini (Bristol), Oval House, Chapter Arts Centre, Battersea Arts Centre, Basement Brighton, Colchester Arts Centre, Exeter Phoenix and within Festivals including National Review of Live Art, Inbetween Time, and White Nights.
Jeanie Sinclair is a historian who works with archives and oral history, exploring hidden and alternative histories to tell stories of people who have been often been ignored or written out of history.
Event:A Haunted Existence, written and performed by Tom Marshman with original music by Kid Carpet
Where: The Basement, The Island, entrance on Bridewell Street, BS1 2LE
Volunteer litterpickers braved the rain to celebrate the arrival of the city’s first Superbin.
THE BIN, in Preston Park, was unveiled as part of the Mayor’s Big Tidy Up event. Volunteers from the city’s Tidy Up Team were joined by Mayor Dee Simson, Environment Councillor Gill Mitchell, bin designer Ian Lilley and Cityparks rangers, to test the new bin, and litter pick in the popular park.
Entrepreneur Ian, who had travelled from his home in Manchester, explained how he came up with the Superbin design after becoming a volunteer in his local park.
“There weren’t enough tools for everyone, so I thought if we put a box in the park then all the volunteer groups could share and we wouldn’t have to buy any more!”
At first glance, the Superbin looks like a normal litter bin, but open the door at the back, and you’ll find a stash of litter picking equipment for use by volunteers.
The bin has been installed as part of the council’s Tidy Up Team project. Trained volunteers are given a code to the bin store, where equipment including litter pickers, gloves and bags are kept.
The bin enables trained Preston Park Tidy Up Team volunteers to arrange events at short notice without waiting for equipment to be dropped off and picked up.
The council launched the Tidy Up Team last year in a bid to encourage local people to help keep their parks and green spaces tidy by taking part in, and organising litter picking events. The scheme is co-ordinated by Cityparks staff and supported by Cityclean and local community groups.
“The response has been better than we ever hoped with hundreds of local people coming forward to offer their help, and keen to organise and run their own community events,” said Park Ranger Garry Meyer.
The council runs monthly training courses for volunteers to become Tidy Up Team members, so they can safely collect litter in their local parks and green spaces.
As a result, litter picking events are now taking place regularly across the city, run totally by volunteers.
Cllr Gill Mitchell
Cllr Gill Mitchell, chair of the environment committee said:“It’s fantastic that so many residents are coming forward to sign up to the Tidy Up Team projects and help keep our city’s parks and open spaces looking lovely all year round.
“The Superbin is a great idea and a welcome addition to the park and its team of hard-working volunteers.”
High levels of property development in Manchester’s gay village means a change from next year is necessary.
Thomas Cook Airlines main stage
MANCHESTER Pride has today confirmed its annual August bank holiday festival will go ahead in 2019 but will look and feel radically different to previous years.
The four-day event, known as The Big Weekend, has been around for more than 25 years being know at different times by various names including Pride, Mardi Gras and The Big Weekend and has traditionally taken place only in Manchester’s historic gay village around Canal Street.
However, significant property development in the area, including a substantial risk of development on the Sackville Street car park which currently houses the Thomas Cook Airlines Main Stage, means there won’t be the space next year to deliver the celebration in the same way it has always been.
Mark Fletcher
Manchester Pride’s chief executive, Mark Fletcher, said:“A number of reasons have led to our making this decision for 2019, in order to avoid disappointing our audience in the future.
“There has been speculation about the developments in the Portland Street and gay village area for some time. A number of developments are now underway in spaces that were previously used for event infrastructure.
“It’s becoming increasingly difficult to plan and deliver The Big Weekend in a space that is decreasing in size. Next year there will be more developments taking shape that will further reduce the space available for us to deliver a safe event to the current scale.
“In addition to this, and equally impactful, is that the terms for the use of the privately owned spaces that house our Main Arena and Dance Arena have changed. Essentially this means that we cannot be certain that we’ll be able to use these areas up until three months before the event is scheduled to take place. We simply cannot take the risk of disappointing the tens of thousands of people who come along to experience the first class entertainment provided in these spaces.”
Mark and his team have reviewed many options for the future of the event and one thing is clear – Manchester’s gay village will play an important role in the August bank holiday festival going forward.
“It’s true that Pride will never look the same again – it can’t as there simply won’t be the space”, said Mark. “But this doesn’t mean we will be turning our back on the neighbourhood which LGBT+ people have fought so hard to create as a safe space. There will always be a role for Manchester’s unique gay village in the celebration.
“We’re very excited to begin a new chapter and continue to deliver a world-class celebration of LGBT+ life, one that’s worthy of international acclaim and retains Manchester’s position as a leading city in the advancement of LGBT+ equality. The shape of the festival is changing and we can’t wait to share our big news in the Autumn.”
The Big Weekend is one of four parts of the festival, which is an award-winning four-day event celebrating LGBT+ life. It also includes The Manchester Pride Parade which takes places across the city on Saturday afternoon, the alcohol free space that is The Superbia Weekend which is hosted in the old Cornerhouse building and the culmination of the festival The Candlelit Vigil which is hosted in Sackville Gardens.
The event, which began as a bring and buy sale on Canal Street, has grown massively, raising hundreds of thousands of pounds for LGBT+ causes, especially in the last three years. It has played host to international stars including Dannii Minogue, Will Young, Clean Bandit and 2018 will see Rita Ora performing on the famous car park stage – the last time it will be used to hold such a performance.
Mark continued:“As we take on the challenge of reincarnating the festival we will provide an opportunity for Manchester’s LGBT+ people to tell us what they want from their festival in 2019. We constantly review and listen to all of the feedback that we receive from our surveys and stakeholder consultations. We hold our listening group events each year and I’m sure that this topic will be at the top of the agenda at the next one due to take place in October.”
Councillor Pat Karney of Manchester City Council, said: “We’ll be sitting down with the team at Manchester Pride to see how Manchester City Council can help in the planning for the future of the festival. We are very proud of what Pride brings to the City and we intend to offer maximum support.”
For more information about the listening groups, click here:
They seem fatally mismatched from the start – Hakeem, a high-flying Nigerian-born professor of theoretical physics, obsessed with the minutiae of the universe and self-absorbed by the admiration of his colleagues.
At first glance, the Superbin looks like a normal litter bin, but open the door at the back, and you’ll find a stash of litter picking equipment for use by volunteers.
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