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PREVIEW: 96 Festival @Omnibus Theatre Clapham

Besi Besemar February 17, 2019

A spectacular celebration of queerness and theatre at the Omnibus Theatre, Clapham, London.

96 FESTIVAL, a no holds barred extravaganza of queerness and theatre, returns to Omnibus Theatre this year from Wednesday, February 20 – Sunday, March 31, 2019.

Events and performances setting up camp in the Clapham venue span the worlds of theatre, cabaret, drag, burlesque, comedy, music, art and activism.

Headlining this month-long festival is writer and director Sarah Chew’s LIPSTICK: A FAIRY TALE OF IRAN, part theatre, part drag, a timely story of rage and redemption.

The launch night on Tuesday, February 19 kicks off with a discussion exploring how queer communities experience divides around class, ability, race and gender and how art can bring us together in shared moments of connection. How can we reinvent queer activism?

Facilitating the conversation will be Linda Riley, board director of GLAAD and Diva Magazine publisher; Lady Phyll, co-founder of UK Black Pride, Rebecca Root actor in The Danish Girl and Colette; Jan Gooding, chair of Stonewall UK; Cassie Leon, producer of The Cocoa Butter Club – the queer collective celebrating Performers of Colour; and Nemo Martin, writer, producer, podcaster and theatre-maker.

After the conversation, a selection of artists from 96 Festival’s glittering programme will take to the stage, sharing snippets of dance, theatre and cabaret.

96 FESTIVAL was conceived in remembrance and celebration of the iconic Pride party on Clapham Common in 1996. This year the festival is being held in association with DIVA magazine.

Marie McCarthy
Marie McCarthy

Omnibus Theatre’s Artistic Director Marie McCarthy said: “I’m delighted that 96 Festival is back by popular demand, this time with glittering events that bring neo-burlesque, poetry, comedy, drag, dance, and voguing together for one spectacular celebration of queerness and theatre. The festival is poignantly headlined by Sarah Chew’s vital play Lipstick: A Fairy Tale of Iran, a fearless story that straddles Tehran, Derry and London.”

For a full list of events, click here:

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