King's Head Theatre to Develop Protest Piece in Response to Russia's Anti-Gay Laws

Reacting to the escalating violence and oppression towards gay Russians after Putin's anti-gay legislation (Propaganda of Non-traditional Sexual Relations bill) and the current high-profile debate over the Sochi 2014 Olympics, the King's Head Theatre have commissioned a rapid-response protest piece to help raise the public's perspective of the situation as a humanitarian issue that needs to be urgently addressed. Gay activist Russians have been viciously attacked and prosecuted for "spreading homosexual propaganda", gay teens have been lured into traps and tortured on the Internet, homophobic murders are on the increase and gay parents are fleeing their homeland for fear of having their children taken away from them. Sochi 2014 provides an invaluable opportunity to focus the eyes of the world on Russia's hardline attitude towards lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender people.

For the first time, the verbatim voices of LGBT Russians will be heard on stage, providing a visceral and affecting testimony from those who endure oppression on a daily basis, and raising the important questions that cannot be avoided: What will the countries of the world do about this? What can we make our leaders do? What will happen if we do nothing?

Playwright Tess Berry-Hart is an experienced verbatim theatre writer who is interviewing LGBT Russians in Russia and the UK, and using their stories to increase deeper authentic public awareness in the UK. Interspersed with media coverage, debate over solutions and extracts from the Olympic charter which show the flagrant violations of the Olympic spirit by Putin's regime, the play uses the real words of all involved to harness the power of theatre as a political vehicle to demand change.

The piece will be given a first season at the King's Head on September 1 and 2 at 7.15pm.

100% of profits from the performances will be donated to SPECTRUM, Russia's leading human rights organisation devoted to human rights advancement on behalf of people who experience discrimination or abuse on the basis of their actual or perceived sexual orientation, gender identity or expression (http://www.spectrumhr.org).

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