Seven Dials Playhouse is delighted to announce the launch of its inaugural Pride Season which will open this June; a programme of new work and returning hits, led by LGBTQIA+ artists, including a cowboy-clown mashup, a Celine Dion drag tribute, and a nature documentary cabaret exploring queer animal behaviour which features dolphin orgies, gay giraffes and intersex snails.

The Pride season spans absurdity, intimacy and celebration and marks the beginning of a bold new programming model at Seven Dials Playhouse – curated, collaborative, and rooted in artist support. This ambitious new chapter focuses on strengthening the theatre’s commitment to artistic development with a carefully selected programming model and expanded support initiatives for theatre makers and performers.

Highlights of the Pride season include the first London run of BI-TOPIA, a coming-of-age solo show exploring bisexuality, masculinity and mental health, written and performed by Sam Danson and directed by Rikki Beadle-Blair MBE. There is clown-cum-cowboy chaos in Lil Wenker’s BANGTAIL fusing British and American clowning in a riotous showdown. Queer Planet, a nature documentary cabaret from drag king Bi-Curious George, blends stand-up, songs and science in a wild exploration of queerness across the animal kingdom. Meanwhile, drag vocalist Moira Less takes on Celine Dion in My Heart Will Go On, a celebration of the icon’s greatest hits. Finally, Jock Night – a bold, high-energy five-hander produced by Hive North and written by Queer as Folk’s Adam Zane – returns to The House following a sell-out run in 2023. Fresh from a run at Manchester’s Hope Mill Theatre, Jock Night dives deep into a year of nights out and intimate encounters in the heart of Manchester’s Gay Village, fuelled by sex, drugs and jockstraps. But beneath the hedonism lies a quietly radical narrative – one that explores the transformative power of the U=U (Undetectable = Untransmittable) campaign and the extraordinary progress in HIV treatment. With humour and heart, Jock Night challenges outdated stigmas and celebrates a generation rewriting the rules of queer intimacy. David Paisley reprises his role from the original production – the actor and advocate for LGBTQIA+ rights now brings even more fire to this unflinching exploration of queer identity, desire and community.

Alongside these there are work-in-progress performances from comedians and theatre-makers exploring themes of identity, relationships, and community. With a mix of new work and established shows, the Pride programme reflects a broad spectrum of LGBTQIA+ experiences.

Two shows featured in the Pride season; BANGTAIL and Queer Planet were previously part of 2024’s “7from7”, an accelerator programme run by Seven Dials Playhouse in partnership with Pleasance Theatre Trust which supports seven theatre companies taking work to the Edinburgh Festival each year. The scheme offers free rehearsal space and mentorship from industry professionals.

The Pride Season will launch with Jock Night (The House) AND Andrew Doherty (The Pen) on 3rd June and will run until the 22nd June.

PRIDE SEASON HIGHLIGHTS INCLUDE:

Jock Night
Tuesday 3rd – Sunday 15th June – The House
Following a critically acclaimed run in 2023, Hive North bring the Offie-nominated Jock Night back to Seven Dials Playhouse.
The ultimate after-party set in Manchester’s hottest club night, Jock.
Meet Ben, a 40-something Victoria Wood fan looking for love, but surrounded by party boys who’ve never even heard of Mrs Overall.
Kam, a self-proclaimed ‘fabulous and undetectable’ hiding his struggles with addiction but being the life and soul of the party.
Russ, has thousands of Instagram followers but would rather be following Kam.
And Antony. At just 19 years old, just off the bus from Bury, thrown headfirst into a night he’ll never forget.

Jock Night takes audiences through a year of wild nights in Manchester’s Gay Village exploring modern gay relationships in a world fuelled by sex, drugs and jockstraps.
“Every scene is meticulously mapped out to bring the high drama while still taking the opportunity to ‘wink wink, nudge nudge’.” ★★★★★ Gay London Life

BI-TOPIA
Tuesday 17th – Sunday 22nd June – The House
This is the first London run of the hit show directed by award winning Rikki Beadle-Blair MBE and written/performed by Northern theatre maker Sam Danson. BI-TOPIA was funded by Manchester Pride’s Superbia Grant in 2023 and went on a regional tour in 2024. Rikki Beadle-Blair is credited with bringing Black, gay and working-class experiences to massive audiences, as writer and director of countless plays and films including Bashment (a play focusing on homophobic attitudes in the black community), Summer in London (the first theatrical production in the UK to have an all-transgender cast) and creating the pioneering 2001 TV show Metrosexuality on Channel 4.

BI-TOPIA is a coming-of-age story, exploring the highs and lows of the bisexual experience, bravely delving into under-represented links between poor mental health, sexuality and masculinity.

Join Sam, a self-confessed people-pleaser on the battlefield as he embarks on his biggest mission yet. Shame is coming in from the west and gay thoughts are sailing in from the east…this is War!
‘Extremely moving, nuanced piece of theatre, steeped in humour’ ★★★★ The Stage
‘Compelling storytelling, delivered flawlessly’ ★★★★★ The Reviews Hub

Queer Planet
Saturday 21st June – The House
One of last year’s 7from7, Queer Planet combines stand-up comedy, parody songs and drag in the form of a nature documentary. Featuring dolphin orgies, intersex snails, gay giraffes; this is a romp through the animal kingdom, the queerest kingdom of them all.

Award-winning drag king and London’s loveable nature boy, Bi-Curious George, invites you into a raucous celebration of queerness and the animal kingdom.
Previously performed at Southbank Centre, Soho Theatre and Kew Gardens, this show aims to shatter the heteronormative binaries through which we view the natural world; a love letter to nature that ‘shines and shimmers in queer euphoria’ (BingeFringe).

Nominee of VAULT Festival Origin Award and Lyn Gardner’s VAULT Picks of The Week.
“Wonderfully funny, entertaining and surprisingly educations. Cabaret at its most inventive” Reviews Hub

Moira Less: My Heart Will Go On – A Drag Celebration of Celine Dion
Thursday 19th- Friday 20th June – The House
With London’s drag singing sensation, Moira Less, as your guide, we navigate Celine Dion’s discography including hits such as ‘It’s All Coming Back To Me Now’, ‘The Power of Love’ and the incomparable ‘My Heart Will Go On’. You’ll feel like you’re on the Titanic with Celine herself (without the sinking, of course!).
With a voice that rivals even the original diva herself, Moira will leave you breathless and take you on a rollercoaster of emotions; her disarming charm and quick wit will leave you laughing one minute and cheering at the top of your lungs the next.
Moira Less was a finalist in Pride’s Got Talent 2023, a semi-finalist of Drag Idol and winner of The Crown.

Lil Wenker: BANGTAIL
Thursday 12th June – The Pen
Baddest. Cowboy. Texas. These are just a few words to describe the Baddest Cowboy in Texas. Join Bangtail as he roots ‘n toots from the mightiest mountains to the sauciest saloons. But what happens when a badder cowboy-er Texas-er rides into town and steals his title?

One of 2024’s “7 from 7”, this hour of unbridled cowboy clown chaos marks the first collaboration between Gaulier-trained clown Lil Wenker and award-winning director Cecily Nash to create the perfectly stupid marriage of American and British clowning. Sold out runs in New York, Minneapolis and Chicago.
Nominated for Best Variety Show (Leicester Comedy Festival) and Binge Fringe’s Top Queer Comedians and Laura Awards Shortlist at Edinburgh Fringe.
“Sheer, brilliant, well executed madness…blows the roof off the venue with laughter level ten” ★★★★★ Three Weeks
“A masterclass in clowning that made the crowd roar with laughter…truly excellent” ★★★★★ Voice Mag