Cast
Jamie David Clements
Ste Tom Bucher
Sandra Fiona Cullen
Tony Chris Learmonth
Leah Rita Goodhead
Jonathan Harvey's critically acclaimed play, Beautiful Thing comes to the SLT stage, in a lavish production to mark the theatre's 40th birthday celebrations.
With the Bell Stage transformed into a Thamesmead housing estate (complete with a bedroom that miraculously appears as if by magic!) get ready for the feel-good, make you wanna clap your hands and dance up and down phenomenen that is Beautiful Thing - An Urban Fairytale.
Jonathan Harvey's best-known play was first staged at the fringe Bush Theatre in 1993, then went on to become a big West End hit and was filmed in 1996.
The title refers not to gay love as such but to the first love experienced by two 16-year-olds, Jamie (David Clements) and Ste (Tom Bucher), one summer on a council estate in south-east London. Jamie bunks off from sport at school, while Ste is renowned for his all-round sporting prowess, but when Ste stays over one night after a violent argument with his father and brother, their mutual attraction develops into sexual awakening and romance blossoms.
Jamie's mother Sandra is too preoccupied with her shift work as a barmaid and with her dope-smoking artist boyfriend Tony (Chris Learmonth) to notice what's going on, but the Mama Cass-obsessed girl next door, Leah, soon realizes why Ste hasn't responded to her advances.
Much has changed since the play was written - including the repeal of the discriminatory Section 28 of the 1988 Local Government Act forbidding the "promotion of homosexuality", the lowering of the homosexual age of consent to 16 and, most recently, the introduction of 'civil partnerships' for gay people - but Beautiful Thing has dated well because it is more romantic than polemical. This tender comedy of adolescent love retains its charm.
Jonathan Harvey’s tale of love blossoming between two teenage boys in a Thamesmead council block still retains all the humour and emotional clarity that it did when the original opened over a decade ago. Great writing stands the test of time - the voices are still true.
About this site
This site will provide a blog of the show up until the final performance. Come back for regular updates to find out how the show is progressing.
Who I'd like to meet:
Julie Andrews and Mama Cass sing together! How sublime is that!
Jonathan Harvey, Tim Luscombe, Harvey Fierstein, Armistead Maupin, David Leavitt, Patrick Gale, Felice Picano. And Muffin the Mule.
Happy Birthday! Hope you can make it to our ROCKY HORROR THEME PARTY on 27th OCTOBER @ The Vauxhall Griffin. It would be FAB to see you! Lets do the TIME WARP again!
It's my very great pleasure! The glory of the show will ring out for a long time to come. You're all stars! Not sure whether I'm happy to following you with MSNDream or not!!
I've been distributing some of our lovely fliers around the Edinburgh Fringe Festival. Might seem a bit of an odd thing to do, but it feels like half of London is up here the noo.
I have been away for a while - but what I saw tonight was amazing.
If you see this production you will believe you are seeing the actual boys that Jonathan wrote about: all other productions were acting it. This is real. It's scary.
Hi there! That's brill news. I just know this one's going to be brill. Lots of people are talking about it. I was at SLT yesterday for MSNDream rehearsal and what I could sounded brill!
It is the best play ever. On a complete different note, for the cast and crew, I was actually up all night chatting on MSN last night. How wrecked am I going to be on Wednesday!
Awww, actually I take that back. Sorry Daywie! I know what it's like to break things and it's really not pleasant. Hope you feel better soon. So when do I get to meet the lovely cast? x
The title refers not to gay love as such but to the first love experienced by two 16-year-olds, Jamie (David Clements) and Ste (Tom Bucher), one summer on a council estate in south-east London. Jamie bunks off from sport at school, while Ste is renowned for his all-round sporting prowess, but when Ste stays over one night after a violent argument with his father and brother, their mutual attraction develops into sexual awakening and romance blossoms.
