The AIDS Plays Project is reviving and republishing the theatrical works of writers whose lives were cut short by HIV/AIDS-related illnesses.
We are releasing their plays from the archive and returning them to the stage in one-off performances starring award-winning actors, writers, and drag artists. Striving for cultural recovery and repair, we seek to mend the connection between these trailblazing writers and a younger generation of artists and audiences in the UK.
Since establishing our project in 2023, we have staged plays by trailblazing writers including Charles Ludlam, Harry Kondoleon, Robert Chesley, James Kirkwood, Colm Ó Clúbhán, Alan Bowne and George Whitmore. From a drag-heavy riff on La Traviata to a tender tragedy about phone sex, a bisexual comedy once booed off Broadway to a searing exploration of queer life in 80s Ireland, we unearth hidden gems from history and return them to the contemporary stage.
Each production is accompanied by memories, tributes, and interviews with the writer’s surviving friends, family, and loved ones. Together, we’re building an archive to carry the legacies of these writers forward.
Alongside our staged readings, we also produce Play Circles: script-in-hand workshops which open up the rehearsal room and invite audiences into the process of discovery. Through our Play Circles, audiences have encountered UK-first presentations of work by Puerto Rican playwright Reinaldo Povod, French writer Jean-Luc Lagarce, and American playwright Jim Jewell.
As our project continues to grow, we’re now working to bring these plays into print—some for the very first time. We’ve previously partnered with Polari Press to republish Christmas on Mars, in a special edition featuring a conversation with Don Shewey. It serves as a moving tribute to one of America’s most enchanting playwrights.
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alastair@theaidsplaysproject.comThe AIDS Plays Project was set up by Alastair Curtis. Our project has worked with: Emily Aboud, Ben Allen, Lucas Aurelio, Nathan Armarkwei-Laryea, Rakie Ayola, Omar Baroud, Matthew Beard, Dickie Beau, Lewis Brown, Connor Byrne, Rory Fleck Byrne, Luca Kamleh Chapman, Cavan Clarke, Jeanie Crystal, Florence Dobson, Liadán Dunlea, Selina Griffiths, Helder Fernandes, Alvaro Flores, Sue Gives A Fuck, Alistair Hall, Nicky Harris, Darragh Hand, Georges Hann, Mariam Haque, Paul Hilton, Dominic Holmes, Luke Hornsby, Safiyya Ingar, Orlando/Holly James Johnston, Lauren John Joseph, Florence Keith-Roach, Katherine Kingsley, Abigail Lawrie, Ms Sharon Le Grand, Júlia Levai, Syrus Lowe, Calum Lynch, Mary Malone, Taylor McClaine, Justine Mitchell, Cyril Nri, Rilwan Abiola Owokoniran, Julian Ovenden, Rachel Pickup, Melissa Saint, Adam Silver, Malcolm Sinclair, Sharon Small, Stuart Thompson, and Alan Turkington.
It was commissioned by London Performance Studios .
Creative production by KIND. Design by Tom Joyes.