Lesbian Plays

[oxfordsimon]

I am doing some research into queer theatre ahead of a new launch next year.

Whilst I am fairly well versed in gay plays, I am struggling to find plays written by lesbian writers or exploring the lesbian lived experience.

I know that female writers have never had easy access to the stage compared to their male counterparts. And so a disparity in inevitable given the history of theatre.

I know the big titles such as The Killing of Sister George, The Children's Hour, Boston Marriage.

But there has to be more out there and so I thought I would appeal to the hive mind that is our community here to seek suggestions.

Thanks in advance.

[Mark]

Have you looked at Paula Vogel/Indecent and also God of Vengence? That's the one that springs to mind

[amyja89]

Es & Flo by Jennifer Lunn and Stop Kiss by Diana Son come to mind.

[aloysius]

Fun Home if you're including musicals.

[marob]

A couple of years ago Theatr Clwyd produced Celebrated Virgins by Katie Elin-Salt, a modern take on the story of ‘the Ladies of Llangollen,’ two women who are assumed to have been in a relationship back in the 18th century.

When Eleanor and Sarah found each other, they were forced to leave their homes and cast out by society. Taking up residence in Llangollen they became minor celebrities, forced to witness their own lives written about by those who could never understand. Now, they are back, ready to take back the story that's rightfully theirs - on their own terms.

A play based on the true story of Lady Eleanor Butler and Miss Sarah Ponsonby.

When I saw it I was struck by how few stories there are about lesbians compared to gay men.

I didn’t see it but there was an adaptation of Sarah Waters’s The Night Watch at the Royal Exchange.

[oxfordsimon]

Thanks all for the suggestions so far. Please keep them coming.

Certainly opening my eyes to new possibilities.

[happysooz2]

Oct 1, 2024 14:54:34 GMT aloysius said:

Fun Home if you're including musicals.

came here to say this 😹😹😹

[max]

There was an excellent programme on Jackie Kay, on BBC 1 last week; it's quite a story. The first play I saw of Gay Sweatshop was Jackie Kay's play 'Twice Over' (1988). It featured a young Adjoa Andoh, and Cleo Syvestre who died recently.

"A 17 year old Black girl gets to know her grandmother after she has died. Through photographs and flashbacks she discovers her grandmother’s concealed secrets and gets to know herself better. The play deals with school-age girls discovering lesbianism".

Here's the BBC iplayer link for 'In My Own Words: Jackie Kay'
www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/m0023998

[kate8]

Seven Methods of Killing Kylie Jenner.
Out of Water by Zoe Cooper.

[anthony40]

Not necessarily a lesbian play, but a play written by a lesbian- Steaming.

A play about a group of women- six in total, including a mother and an adult daughter with special needs- who regularly meet at a steam bathhouse.

Don't forget the lesbian relationship in the musical Rent.

[happysooz2]

The PowerBook by Jeanette Winterson? (Not that she ever writes anything that’s straightforward lesbian experience…)

[Phantom of London]

The play ‘The Writer’ that played the Almeida a couple of years ago had a very graphic Lesbian scene

[fiyerorocher]

The Captive by Édouard Bourdet is one of the first that made it to Broadway. It had a short run in 1926 before being shut down.

Then, in terms of recent additions:
Cowboys and Lesbians by Billie Esplen was masterfully acted at Park Theatre earlier this year.

Lauryn Redding's Bloody Elle is a one-woman play with some music, but definitely not a musical.

Wendy Beckett's Sappho is also an option, although not one I recommend.

Northanger Abbey by Zoe Cooper could also be on the list.

Plus arguably Isobel McArthur's Pride and Prejudice* (*sort of) - all the characters are played by women so even the 'straight' relationships are queered, and there is also a sapphic character.

[oxfordsimon]

More fascinating suggestions.

I shall certainly be adding some of these into the mix.

I am particularly thrilled to learn more about the earlier plays as they are so little known these days.

en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Drag_(play) was a piece I had never encountered until a few weeks ago as my research kicked up a gear!

So more early stuff would be fab if people know of any more

[Deleted]

The Ministry of Lesbian Affairs by Iman Qureshi.
Bloody Elle by Lauryn Redding.

[Jane Parfitt]

Dare we mention The Colour Purple?! 🫣

[oxfordsimon]

Oct 3, 2024 8:38:29 GMT Jane Parfitt said:

Dare we mention The Colour Purple?! 🫣

I mentioned it once but I think I got away with it...

[couldileaveyou]

Last Summer at Bluefish Cove

[anthony40]

There’s also the Lesbian couple in the musical Fallsettoa

[LDN_Theatreland]

Rotterdam - Jon Brittain

[samuelwhiskers]

King's Head Theatre just announced a play which improbably is about lesbian dogging.

kingsheadtheatre.com/whats-on/puppy

[oxfordsimon]

Well there we are. An opportunity to learn something new.

[wiggymess]

Turkey - Frankie Meredith