Theatre review: Queers Part 1

It hasn't been marked quite as ubiquitously on stage as the centenary of the First World War, the 4th centenary of Shakespeare's death or even the King James Bible were, but theatres are now starting to step up the events commemorating the 50th anniversary of the partial decriminalisation of homosexuality. The Old Vic has paired up with the BBC, whose Queer Britain season includes the upcoming Queers on BBC4, eight monologues curated by Mark Gatiss giving snapshots of gay life before and after decriminalisation, to give each one of the short plays a one-off live performance. About half of the performers from the TV version have been able to reprise their roles, with the rest recast, and Gatiss shares directing duties with Joe Murphy on Part 1 as well as writing the first of the four stories in this first collection.

Theatre review: The Boys in the Band

A genuine classic of gay theatre - groundbreaking in its subject matter at the time, and with a clear influence on later writers' work - Mart Crowley's The Boys in the Band gets revived by Adam Penford for the Park Theatre. A look at gay life in 1968 New York, its characters have found a subculture they feel reasonably safe in, but their sexuality is still something they need to keep behind closed doors. Michael (Ian Hallard) is hosting a birthday party for Harold (Mark Gatiss) who, as always, is expected to show up late. An early arrival is Donald (Daniel Boys,) Michael's on-off lover and a neurotic who's had to move out of the city as can't handle it full-time. The rest of the invited guests all soon turn up, as does an unexpected one - Michael's college roommate Alan (John Hopkins,) who hasn't been told about his friend's sexuality.

Theatre review: The Sweethearts

Sarah Page's play The Sweethearts, which has graduated from a Vibrant reading to a full production at the Finborough, introduces us to two very different sets of characters: First, a troop in Afghanistan, preparing to hand over power but still getting regularly attacked by the Taliban. Mark (Jack Derges) is the resident ladies' man with delusions of being Maverick from Top Gun; David (Joe Claflin) the intellectual of the group, teased for writing poetry; Trevor (Jack Bannon) is a relative newcomer who recently dumped his girlfriend back home, and has come to regret it. They're being supervised by their Corporal, Rachel (Laura Hanna,) one of the lads except in her obvious crush on their Commanding Officer, Captain Nicholls (Stevie Raine,) a much-decorated hero they all hold in awe to one degree or another.