TheatreUpClose Brings SOCHI 2014 Play to The Hope Theatre, Now thru March 1

TheatreUpClose presents SOCHI 2014 at the The Hope Theatre, London: today, 4 February 2014 - 1 March 2014. Press Performance: Friday, 7 February at 7.30pm. Written by Tess Berry-Hart. Directed by David Mercatali. Designed by Christopher Hone. Lighting Design by Seth Rook Williams. Following 2 scratch performances at The King's Head Theatre earlier this year, Sochi 2014 comes to the brand new Hope Theatre in N1 to coincide with the real Sochi 2014 Winter Olympics. It's not about gold medals, it's about human rights.

Arrested. Beaten. Kidnapped. Tortured. Sacked. Murdered. These are the experiences of gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender people in Russia after the recent anti-gay legislation (Law on Propaganda of Non-Traditional Sexual Relations).

Combining powerful testimony from Russian LGBT people, gay activists and media commentators including Peter Tatchell and Masha Gessen, Tess Berry-Hart's verbatim play provides an invaluable opportunity to focus the eyes of the world on Russia's hardline attitude towards lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender people and suggest solutions that will continue long after the Olympics are over. What can the countries of the world do about this? What can we ourselves do? What will happen if we do nothing?

Sochi 2014 was first presented as a two-night rapid-response reading at the King's Head Theatre in September 2013 to raise awareness and funds for Spectrum HR, a leading gay-rights advocacy group in Eastern Europe. Since then the play has been developed into a full length piece. 100% of profits from all performances over the run will be donated to SPECTRUM.

Opening at The Hope Theatre at the same time as the real Sochi 2014 Winter Olympics, producers The King's Head Theatre are spearheading a theatrical multi-city event in early February. Simultaneous performances and readings of Sochi 2014 will take place in both the UK and the US at various theatres who have already expressed an interest in helping raise the public profile of the situation as a humanitarian issue that needs to be urgently addressed. For more information, visit www.Sochi2014Play.co.uk.

Tess Berry-Hart is an author and playwright living in London. Her futuristic novels for young adults, Escape From Genopolis and Fearless, are published by Scholastic Books. She trained as a playwright on The Royal Court Theatre Young Writers' Programme and was the British representative at the Young European Playwrights Festival with her first play, Legoland. She was formerly the writer in residence at the Blue Elephant Theatre in London where her play Waking Up Suddenly was performed. Her verbatim theatre piece about a real-life murder case, Someone To Blame, was produced at the King's Head Theatre in London in 2012.

David Mercatali previously directed Tess Berry-Hart's Someone to Blame at the King's Head Theatre (2012). He is Associate Director at Southwark Playhouse where he has directed world premieres of Timberlake Wertenbaker's Our Ajax and Philip Ridley's Feathers in the Snow and Tender Napalm (for which he was longlisted for the Evening Standard Outstanding Newcomer Award and the OffWestEnd.Com 'Offie' Award for Best Director). In 2012 he also directed the UK Tour of Tender Napalm. Other work includes Black Jesus (Finborough Theatre), the Fringe First Award winning Dark Vanilla Jungle (Edinburgh Festival and tour), Moonfleece (Riverside Studios and tour), Weights, The Sound (Blue Elephant Theatre), Runners: The Return (Edinburgh Festival) and People's Day (Pleasance London).

Sochi 2014 - Performance Schedule:

Overall dates: 4 February 2014 - 1 March 2014
Hope Theatre, 207 Upper Street, London N1 1RL
Tuesday 4 February 2014 - 7.30pm
Wednesday 5 February 2014 - 7.30pm
Thursday 6 February 2014 - 7.30pm
Friday 7 February 2014- 7.30pm (press performance)
Saturday 8 February 2014 - 7.30pm
Wednesday 12 February 2014 - 7.30pm
Thursday 13 February 2014 - 7.30pm
Friday 14 February 2014 - 7.30pm
Saturday 15 February 2014 - 7.30pm
Sunday 16 February 2014 - 5pm
Wednesday 19 February 2014 - 7.30pm
Thursday 20 February 2014 - 7.30pm
Friday 21 February 2014 - 7.30pm
Saturday 22 February 2014 - 7.30pm
Sunday 23 February 2014 - 5pm
Tuesday 25 February 2014 - 7.30pm
Wednesday 26 February 2014 - 7.30pm
Thursday 27 February 2014 - 7.30pm
Friday 28 February 2014 - 7.30pm
Saturday 1 March 2014 - 7.30pm

Box Office: 0207 478 0160. Online bookings via http://bit.ly/1cyAIQ4. All previews £10 (4, 5, 6 February 2014) / £14, £12 (Conc.) For more information on the show, go to: www.Sochi2014Play.co.uk or www.TheHopeTheatre.com or Twitter.com/TheHopeTheatre.

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