Viva Brighton Issue #77 July 2019

THEATRE
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Riot Act
Stories from Stonewall
“I’ve always been
interested in representing
queer lives truthfully,”
says playwright and
performer Alexis Gregory,
“showing the ups and
downs and complications,
and creating hard-hitting,
humorous work.” But he
admits that even for him,
the process of making new
play Riot Act has been a revelation.
The project began when he was approached
by Michael-Anthony Nozzi, one of the few
remaining survivors of New York’s infamous
Stonewall riots – the violent protests of
June 1969 when police and punters clashed
during a raid on the Stonewall Inn in
Greenwich Village, Manhattan, a hub for the
city’s LGBTQ community in a time when
homosexuality was still illegal. The fight-back
was a key moment in the birth of the gay rights
movement and Nozzi wanted Gregory to tell
his story, as someone who was there. What else
could Gregory say but yes?
After meeting Michael-Anthony, Gregory
wanted to extend the story across the Atlantic
so he went to meet Lavinia Co-Op, a member
of the radical 1970s drag troupe Bloolips
and now an ‘elder stateswoman’ of London’s
contemporary drag scene. He also interviewed
Paul Burston, a journalist and author who was
a key member of London AIDS activism group
Act-Up in the late 80s and 90s, when fear and
misunderstanding about the disease was at its
peak. The result is a piece of verbatim theatre
– work constructed from the exact words
of people interviewed – that sees Gregory
channel each man to tell the story of three
extraordinary gay lives.
“Each monologue starts
at a particular, pivotal,
moment but runs right
up to the present day. We
examine family; addiction;
community; being a young
gay man versus being
an old gay man – and of
course we look at Judy
Garland and the legend
that’s tied into the Stonewall story [some have
suggested a connection between the Stonewall
riots and Garland’s death].”
The start of the show’s UK tour coincides
with the 50th anniversary of the Stonewall
riots. “It felt like the right time,” says Gregory.
“Our history as queer people, especially in
the UK, is not necessarily documented and
we haven’t always had the infrastructure to
share our stories.” He felt it was important to
look at how much progress has been made in
LGBTQ rights – but also wanted to highlight
how much work still remains to be done.
“Michael’s experience as a gay man in 1969 is
not that different to my experiences in 2019.
So activism is still very important – and the
play is really about the different forms that can
take.” It comes to Brighton on the eve of Pride,
at the city’s much-loved Marlborough Theatre,
described by website Culture Trip as ‘The
jewel in the crown of Brighton’s queer and nonbinary
scene’. “I don’t think there’s anywhere
like it in the country.” says Gregory. “It’s such a
hub of radical, pioneering work that represents
our community. I just love the place.”
Nione Meakin
Riot Act, July 30 and August 1, The
Marlborough Theatre.
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