Love Me Now to Explore Love, Sex and Consent at Tristan Bates Theatre

This spring, the world premiere of Michelle Barnette's Love Me Now will come to Tristan Bates Theatre. Throwing a sharp light on casual relationships and today's hook-up culture, Love Me Now is about the toxicity of casual dating and the grey area between love and sex, consent and compliance, yes and no.

Brutal, funny and honest as hell, Michelle Barnette's debut play explores the superficial intimacies we share and the defensive barriers we put up. The #MeToo campaign, and the conversations that have followed, have forced everyone to re-examine their behaviour in past relationships, and has emphasised the reality of consent as far more nuanced than simply saying 'yes' or 'no'.

Written in 2015, when Tinder's popularity was on the rise, Barnette asks why millennials have come to view the relationships and sex as transactional. It has since become apparent that this is not just a story that needs telling, it's a story that everyone seems to be living in some capacity.

Directed by Jamie Armitage, the team includes OV12 Alumni and Linbury Prize winner Fin Redshaw, and 2018 Offie Finalist for Best Lighting Design Ben Jacobs.

Writer Michelle Barnette comments, This play has been sitting in a drawer for longer than I care to admit, but somehow feels more relevant now than when I wrote it. #MeToo showed the world how pervasive rape culture is, and how deeply women of all ages have been affected by it. Ultimately, Love Me Now is about the emotional repercussions of consistently presenting ourselves through a male lens, accepting our emotions and needs as secondary. We have to stop allowing ourselves to be supporting characters in our own narratives. The overwhelming response from people so far is that Love Me Now is their story too - and I'm excited to put this story forward, continuing conversations about consent, self-worth, and how we can begin to change the culture that's so deeply embedded in our society.

Tickets are available priced at £15 (£12 concessions) from 020 3841 6600 or online at www.tristanbatestheatre.co.uk.

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