ACTING SHAKESPEARE (UK 1988)
From Shakespeare with commentary by Ian McKellen
UK, Bristol, Nottingham, Birmingham, Dublin, Belfast, Leicester, Wakefield, Edinburgh, Manchester, Sussex, Cardiff, London
20 March 1988 - 2 October 1988
Words from Ian McKellen
I was accompanied on this tour of Sunday performances by two prinicipal supporters "Mig Kimpton (Playhouse manager) was my minder and manager and Audrey Cooke (now film director) was a my stage manager. Each Saturday we would drive to a new city and that evening explore the gay clubs. On Sunday we would prepare for the show and drive home afterwards. — Ian McKellen, June 2001
Comments and Reviews
UK AIDS' local charities & Stonewall benefit tour.
20 March 1988: Old Vic Theatre, Bristol
10 April 1988: Nottingham Playhouse, Nottingham
24 April 1988: Studio Theatre, Birmingham Repertory Theatre, Birmingham
1 May 1988: Abbey Theatre, Dublin
8 May 1988: Grand Theatre, Belfast
15 May 1988: Haymarket Theatre, Leicester
22 May 1988: Wakefield, Yorkshire
29 May 1988: Lyceum Theatre, Edinburgh
12 June 1988: Palace Theatre, Manchester
19 June 1988: Gardner Centre, Brighton, Sussex
26 June 1988: Sherman Theatre, Cardiff
2 October1988: Crusaid benefit: Playhouse, London
Click here for more about Acting ShakespeareFrom a local newspaper:
Gay leaflets at theatre under attack
Theatregoers attending a Shakespeare verse reading in Birmingham were confronted with explicit homosexual leaflets advocating gay sex.
The material — which was available in the foyer of Birmingham's Repertory Theatre and mentioned on stage during the production — was today attacked as "corrupting filth." The leaflets — entitled Sex Education— were on show during self-confessed homosexual Ian McKellen's one-man Acting Shakespeare show on Sunday April 24.
Today Repertory staff pledged to clampdown on future material on public display in the theatre foyer — as demands grew for a ban on explicit leaflets.
The leaflets, produced by Aids charity the Terrence Higgins Trust, recommend "new dimensions of sex and excitement" for homosexuals— and contain explicit drawings and language. But Wolverhampton Conservative Councillor Mrs Paddy Bradley, chairman ot the social services committee, said today: "This is pure filth which is liable to corrupt people and is absolutely nothing to do at all with the very serious consequences of Aids. "It is completely wrong to try and corrupt society into thinking that homosexuality is acceptable. It is not a natural way of life at all."
The general manager at the Repertory Theatre, Mr Mark Everett, said today: "We will be taking a look at future literature available in the theatre but we do not want to get into any type of censorship.
"The Terrence Higgins Trust, which produced the leaflets, is the most well-known charity dealing with the issue of Aids.
"Every single penny raised as a result of that snow has gone to local Aids charities in Birmingham and the West Midlands. This was a one-off special event and we did not vet the leaflets on display. Everybody who attended knew precisely what the event was all about." Click here for more about Acting Shakespeare