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# SPOTLIGHT ON: Cam sex, drag queens and Grindr
- URL: https://www.scenemag.co.uk/spotlight-on-cam-sex-drag-queens-and-grindr/
- Published: 2023-05-25T10:23:34.000Z
- Updated: 2023-05-25T10:23:34.000Z
- Description: In the first of two articles, Brian Butler finds a treasure trove of queer shows
- Author: Brian Butler
- Tags: Arts, Brighton Fringe, Previews, Theatre, Brighton, grindr, Jack Holden, King’s Head Theatre, Manchester, The Actors, Union Theatre

In my recent hiatus due to illness, my inbox piled high with more than a dozen queer-themed shows to amuse and inform.

In this first of two articles my choices include sex, drag and opera.

![](https://www.scenemag.co.uk/content/images/wp-content/uploads/2023/05/11-08-2022600.jpg)

As **Brighton Fringe** enters its last two weeks, why not take a look at **30 And Out** – billed as “thirty, flirty and not exactly thriving”. A lesbian coming-of-age story at **The Actors**, Brighton on **27** and **28 May**, it’s a hilarious, sexy and painful portrayal of what it means to be a lesbian; to lose yourself and find yourself again. Written and performed by **Kit Sinclair**, tickets [HERE](http://brightonfringe.org/?ref=scenemag.co.uk).

![](https://www.scenemag.co.uk/content/images/wp-content/uploads/2023/05/2--banner-600.jpg)

**Tania Azevedo**’s LGBTQ+ musical theatre season called **MT Pride Lab**, kicks off at London’s **King’s Head** from **6 June**. Tania told me: “It features stories celebrating forgotten queer icons, missing siblings and found identities”. ***Sex, Drag and Opera*** features opera singer and drag artist **Freddie Love**, penetrating opera’s queer and gender-subversive history.

[**Julie** i](https://kingsheadtheatre.com/whats-on/julie-the-musical?ref=scenemag.co.uk)s an hour-long show diving into the historic **Julie D”Aubigny**, an opera star, swordswoman and flaming bisexual.

[**Lifeboats** i](https://kingsheadtheatre.com/whats-on/lifeboats?ref=scenemag.co.uk)s a new song cycle about the stories and teachings of LGBTQ+ folk giving guidance to future generations.

[***In My Sister Is Missing***](https://kingsheadtheatre.com/whats-on/my-sister-is-missing?ref=scenemag.co.uk) budding young sleuth Basil find themselves in the centre of a musical mystery.

**Guymart** is a comment on gay hook-up apps, fresh from Brighton Fringe; **Rockstar** looks at the pressures of being in the public eye and bi-erasure, with songs inspired by Queen; **Diary Of a Gay Disaster** is a musical comedy where three queer women get to grips with their gay panic after finding a teenage diary.

![](https://www.scenemag.co.uk/content/images/wp-content/uploads/2023/05/image001600.jpg)

Ground-breaking gay monodrama **Self Tape** returns for a short run. Written and performed by **Michael Batten**, and directed by **Scott Le Crass**, it asks what price will Jonas, a jobbing actor going nowhere with his career, pay to get the parts he’s always dreamed of? Descending into the murky, titillating world of cyber-sex, as a full-on naked web cam model, what depths will he not sink to? It runs **18 June** to **2 July**, and even has its own sexy underwear sponsor!

**Tickets and performance dates** [**HERE**](http://kingsheadtheatre.com/?ref=scenemag.co.uk)

![](https://www.scenemag.co.uk/content/images/wp-content/uploads/2023/05/grindr-the-opera600.jpg)

Award-winning **Grindr: The Opera** has resurfaced with a brand new production and is currently running at London’s **Union Theatre** until **8 July**. Its musical style ranges from Baroque to contemporary pop and it’s got a book, music and lyrics by **Erik Ransom**, and is directed by **William Spencer** with musical direction by **Aaron Clingham**. It’s a daring look at the changing landscape of gay relationships and that great catalyst, the hook-up app Grindr. [Tickets- uniontheatre.biz](http://uniontheatre.biz/show/grindr-the-opera/?ref=scenemag.co.uk)

![](https://www.scenemag.co.uk/content/images/wp-content/uploads/2023/05/cruise-artwork-clean-600.jpg)

Direct from London’s West End, Olivier-nominated ***Cruise*** is written and performed by **Jack Holden**. It gets its regional premiere at **HOME**, Manchester from **20 July** to **12 August**. Set in 1988 in Soho, it’s based on a true story of what should have been Michael Spencer’s last night on earth following a four-year battle with HIV.

On his last night, he decides to go out with a bang, but – spoiler alert – unexpectedly survives, living to a ripe old age. Given the gift of life, what kind of life will it be? Tickets at [homemcr.org](https://homemcr.org/?ref=scenemag.co.uk)

That’s it – next time look out for naked boys singing and dancing, the world of competitive tickling and the bitter revenge of a thwarted panto dame!