Aputheatre
Encyclopedia
Aputheatre began life as the Aids Positive Underground Theatre Company. Founded in 1989 at the Sussex Aids Centre in Brighton
, England, the objective was to provide a cultural response to HIV
and Aids
. The company quickly established a reputation for hard-hitting drama very much in the In-yer-face theatre
style and a good example of queer
theatre. From 1994 onwards, Aputheatre produced work that moved away from being exclusively about HIV-AIDS. Though HIV remained a key subtext in many works, other themes like prostitution
, pornography
, sexual politics
became more important.
The company’s first production, Crying Celibate Tears by John Roman Baker
, was performed as part of the Brighton Festival Fringe
. It was an instant hit with public and critics alike and the company was invited to perform the following year as part of the main Brighton Festival
programme. This time the play was The Ice Pick and the company won the Festival Award for Best Theatre. The Los Angeles Times
called the play "vivid and compelling".
Several sponsors withdrew funds from the Brighton Festival in protest at the company's inclusion, causing embarrassment within the festival administration and much public outcry. Political controversy often accompanied the company's performances. Politicians in Edinburgh
and Forlì
, Italy tried to gain votes by calling for theatres' funding to be withdrawn. Printers also refused to print festival brochures. Even with the company's home base, the Sussex Aids Centre, there was great opposition to the company's work which was considered too strong, too gay and which never followed a politically correct line.
Aputheatre became Brighton and Edinburgh Festival
regulars. Between 1989 and 1997 their work was in many cities in the UK and internationally in Italy and the United States.
In 1998 Aputheatre’s two founders, John Roman Baker
and Rod Evan moved to Amsterdam
, where a creative relationship was established with COC Nederland
, a Dutch organization for LGBT
men and women. The company initially developed four strong plays which explored the sub-culture of prostitution among young East European
men living in Amsterdam. The Prostitution Playstogether with a later production Romophobia have charted the evolution and demise of male street prostitution in Amsterdam that has occurred at the beginning of the 21st Century.
With its establishment on the continent
in the Netherlands, the company was able to take its work to other European countries, with tours in Italy, Poland and Ukraine.
In 2003, the controversial East Side Skin was performed in Amsterdam and Eindhoven. The play explored the attraction of the far right within gay subculture and was inspired in part by the assassination earlier that year of Dutch Populist politician Pim Fortuyn
. A DVD of that production was released early in 2004.
In 2005, the play Romophobia explored the lives of two Romanians living illegally in Amsterdam, against a backdrop of sexual uncertainly and police harassment
. The play highlighted the policy of police to raid gay bar
s on Amsterdam's Paardenstrat and then arrest, incarcerate and deport young men, with no legal representation. During the run of the play, perhaps as a result of publicity generated around the issue, the Police raids stopped.
In 2006 with the production Prisoners of Sex author John Roman Baker
and Aputheatre returned to their original theme of HIV-AIDS to explores the complexity and compulsions of unprotected sex among men.
In November 2008 the company announced a new production entitled 'TOUCHED' to be premiered in Amsterdam in December 2008. The production is written and directed by John Roman Baker and performed by Luis Carrión and Richard Morris.
Brighton
Brighton is the major part of the city of Brighton and Hove in East Sussex, England on the south coast of Great Britain...
, England, the objective was to provide a cultural response to HIV
HIV
Human immunodeficiency virus is a lentivirus that causes acquired immunodeficiency syndrome , a condition in humans in which progressive failure of the immune system allows life-threatening opportunistic infections and cancers to thrive...
and Aids
AIDS
Acquired immune deficiency syndrome or acquired immunodeficiency syndrome is a disease of the human immune system caused by the human immunodeficiency virus...
. The company quickly established a reputation for hard-hitting drama very much in the In-yer-face theatre
In-yer-face theatre
In-yer-face theatre describes drama that emerged in Great Britain in the 1990s. This category coined by British theatre critic Aleks Sierz is the title of his book, In-Yer-Face Theatre, first published by Faber and Faber in March 2001...
style and a good example of queer
Queer
Queer is an umbrella term for sexual minorities that are not heterosexual, heteronormative, or gender-binary. In the context of Western identity politics the term also acts as a label setting queer-identifying people apart from discourse, ideologies, and lifestyles that typify mainstream LGBT ...
theatre. From 1994 onwards, Aputheatre produced work that moved away from being exclusively about HIV-AIDS. Though HIV remained a key subtext in many works, other themes like prostitution
Prostitution
Prostitution is the act or practice of providing sexual services to another person in return for payment. The person who receives payment for sexual services is called a prostitute and the person who receives such services is known by a multitude of terms, including a "john". Prostitution is one of...
, pornography
Pornography
Pornography or porn is the explicit portrayal of sexual subject matter for the purposes of sexual arousal and erotic satisfaction.Pornography may use any of a variety of media, ranging from books, magazines, postcards, photos, sculpture, drawing, painting, animation, sound recording, film, video,...
, sexual politics
Sexual Politics
Sexual Politics is a classic feminist text written by Kate Millett, said to be "the first book of academic feminist literary criticism", and "one of the first feminist books of this decade to raise nationwide male ire"....
became more important.
The company’s first production, Crying Celibate Tears by John Roman Baker
John Roman Baker
John Roman Baker is a British poet, playwright and novelist mainly associated with the work of Aputheatre . Winner of the Brighton Festival award for Best Theatre in 1990 for his play 'The Ice Pick'...
, was performed as part of the Brighton Festival Fringe
Brighton Festival Fringe
The Brighton Festival Fringe is an open access arts festival held annually in Brighton, England. It is the largest annual arts festival in England.- Introduction :...
. It was an instant hit with public and critics alike and the company was invited to perform the following year as part of the main Brighton Festival
Brighton Festival
The Brighton Festival is an annual arts festival which takes place in the city of Brighton and Hove in England each May. It was founded in 1966, and is the largest multi-art form festival in England...
programme. This time the play was The Ice Pick and the company won the Festival Award for Best Theatre. The Los Angeles Times
Los Angeles Times
The Los Angeles Times is a daily newspaper published in Los Angeles, California, since 1881. It was the second-largest metropolitan newspaper in circulation in the United States in 2008 and the fourth most widely distributed newspaper in the country....
called the play "vivid and compelling".
Several sponsors withdrew funds from the Brighton Festival in protest at the company's inclusion, causing embarrassment within the festival administration and much public outcry. Political controversy often accompanied the company's performances. Politicians in Edinburgh
Edinburgh
Edinburgh is the capital city of Scotland, the second largest city in Scotland, and the eighth most populous in the United Kingdom. The City of Edinburgh Council governs one of Scotland's 32 local government council areas. The council area includes urban Edinburgh and a rural area...
and Forlì
Forlì
Forlì is a comune and city in Emilia-Romagna, Italy, and is the capital of the province of Forlì-Cesena. The city is situated along the Via Emilia, to the right of the Montone river, and is an important agricultural centre...
, Italy tried to gain votes by calling for theatres' funding to be withdrawn. Printers also refused to print festival brochures. Even with the company's home base, the Sussex Aids Centre, there was great opposition to the company's work which was considered too strong, too gay and which never followed a politically correct line.
Aputheatre became Brighton and Edinburgh Festival
Edinburgh Festival
The Edinburgh Festival is a collective term for many arts and cultural festivals that take place in Edinburgh, Scotland each summer, mostly in August...
regulars. Between 1989 and 1997 their work was in many cities in the UK and internationally in Italy and the United States.
In 1998 Aputheatre’s two founders, John Roman Baker
John Roman Baker
John Roman Baker is a British poet, playwright and novelist mainly associated with the work of Aputheatre . Winner of the Brighton Festival award for Best Theatre in 1990 for his play 'The Ice Pick'...
and Rod Evan moved to Amsterdam
Amsterdam
Amsterdam is the largest city and the capital of the Netherlands. The current position of Amsterdam as capital city of the Kingdom of the Netherlands is governed by the constitution of August 24, 1815 and its successors. Amsterdam has a population of 783,364 within city limits, an urban population...
, where a creative relationship was established with COC Nederland
COC Nederland
COC Nederland is a Dutch organization for LGBT men and women. COC originally stood for Cultuur en Ontspanningscentrum , which was intended as a "cover" name for its real purpose...
, a Dutch organization for LGBT
LGBT
LGBT is an initialism that collectively refers to "lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender" people. In use since the 1990s, the term "LGBT" is an adaptation of the initialism "LGB", which itself started replacing the phrase "gay community" beginning in the mid-to-late 1980s, which many within the...
men and women. The company initially developed four strong plays which explored the sub-culture of prostitution among young East European
Eastern Europe
Eastern Europe is the eastern part of Europe. The term has widely disparate geopolitical, geographical, cultural and socioeconomic readings, which makes it highly context-dependent and even volatile, and there are "almost as many definitions of Eastern Europe as there are scholars of the region"...
men living in Amsterdam. The Prostitution Playstogether with a later production Romophobia have charted the evolution and demise of male street prostitution in Amsterdam that has occurred at the beginning of the 21st Century.
With its establishment on the continent
Continental Europe
Continental Europe, also referred to as mainland Europe or simply the Continent, is the continent of Europe, explicitly excluding European islands....
in the Netherlands, the company was able to take its work to other European countries, with tours in Italy, Poland and Ukraine.
In 2003, the controversial East Side Skin was performed in Amsterdam and Eindhoven. The play explored the attraction of the far right within gay subculture and was inspired in part by the assassination earlier that year of Dutch Populist politician Pim Fortuyn
Pim Fortuyn
Wilhelmus Simon Petrus Fortuijn, known as Pim Fortuyn was a Dutch politician, civil servant, sociologist, author and professor who formed his own party, Pim Fortuyn List ....
. A DVD of that production was released early in 2004.
In 2005, the play Romophobia explored the lives of two Romanians living illegally in Amsterdam, against a backdrop of sexual uncertainly and police harassment
Police misconduct
Police misconduct refers to inappropriate actions taken by police officers in connection with their official duties. Police misconduct can lead to a miscarriage of justice and sometimes involves discrimination...
. The play highlighted the policy of police to raid gay bar
Gay bar
A gay bar is a drinking establishment that caters to an exclusively or predominantly gay, lesbian, bisexual, and transgender clientele; the term gay is used as a broadly inclusive concept for LGBT and queer communities...
s on Amsterdam's Paardenstrat and then arrest, incarcerate and deport young men, with no legal representation. During the run of the play, perhaps as a result of publicity generated around the issue, the Police raids stopped.
In 2006 with the production Prisoners of Sex author John Roman Baker
John Roman Baker
John Roman Baker is a British poet, playwright and novelist mainly associated with the work of Aputheatre . Winner of the Brighton Festival award for Best Theatre in 1990 for his play 'The Ice Pick'...
and Aputheatre returned to their original theme of HIV-AIDS to explores the complexity and compulsions of unprotected sex among men.
In November 2008 the company announced a new production entitled 'TOUCHED' to be premiered in Amsterdam in December 2008. The production is written and directed by John Roman Baker and performed by Luis Carrión and Richard Morris.