Rapture

The debut show from Pink Sky, an emerging collective of LGBTQIA+ artists taking an interdisciplinary approach to making queer theatre, Rapture was originally written under the mentorship of Tabby Lamb.

Rosy, Tommy and Kit are clued-up, kinky and queer as f*ck - until safe spaces fracture and identities start to shift. As events in the present bring past traumas to the surface, the bonds within this chosen family must shudder and transform if they are to survive. A vibrant portrait of community, power and healing set in contemporary queer London in all its forms, Rapture pulls at the boundaries of mainstream queer theatre in its safe representation of kink and sensitive take on the role of chem sex in the queer community. The piece speaks to the LGBTQIA+ and d/Deaf communities, those in Recovery and sexual assault Survivors, actively developing artists and audiences from counter-cultural drag, burlesque, kinky and sober spaces.

Rapture was initially a solo show created during the Queer Theatremakers Handbook course 2020. It had a scratch sharing in May 2021 at The Glory as part of club performance producer Xanthony’s Werk in Progress evenings, before evolving into its current three-character multi-disciplinary form during an R&D Residency at London Performance Studios.

Sophie Leydon (she/her) is a theatremaker whose practice centres staging LGBTQIA+ experience through interdisciplinary forms. She is the recipient of a Developing Your Creative Practice Grant and has participated in Mountview’s inaugural Director’s Studio. Their work has previously been supported by funding from Arts Council England and Thrive London and has been nominated for the Sit Up Awards for ‘groundbreaking work that platforms social issues’.