RIVERSIDE STUDIOS ANNOUNCE
BOYS CRY
Riverside Studios present
Boys Cry
Written and performed by Christian Graham
Director: Ebenezer Bamgboye; Sound Design: Catherine Hawthorne; Lighting Design: Matthew Carnazza
Riverside Studios
14 September – 26 September
Omnibus Theatre
30 August – 9 September 2021
Riverside Studios today announce the world première of Boys Cry written and performed by Christian Graham. The production runs at Riverside Studios, opening16 September, with previews from14 September, and running until 26 September, following its run at Omnibus Theatre, 30 August to 9 September 2021.
“How do I begin?
I’ll try my best to be clear.
To make sense of things….”
When Mark is mugged on the way to college, his reality is shattered. This life-changing event forces him to confront some of his deepest issues and to begin to interrogate his connection to masculinity. For Mark, being a boy has always meant closing up and shying away from complex emotions. His typically masculine dad is looking for a quick solution, his mum there to be a shoulder to cry on when he is ready to release. As he begins to reassemble himself, he develops a sharper image of the person he wants to be.
Bringing us back to the first decade of the 21st Century – the early 2000s – Boys Cry explores self-image, maturity, life after trauma and definitions of manhood. It fights to overcome toxic aspects of masculinity and interrogate the norms we have come to accept about gender.
Christian Graham, writer and performer of Boys Cry, said today, “I wrote Boys Cry to talk about how vulnerability is a strength rather than a weakness but I hope that audiences also walk away with an awareness of how to question some of the false narratives about masculinity we have grown up with. It’s especially important for young men to be able to free themselves from these misconceptions.”
Rachel Tackley,Creative Director of Riverside Theatre,also commented: “I am really looking forward to sharing this intensely personal, moving piece with audiences at Riverside. I am sure it will captivate audiences and inspire debate, which we look forward to being part of.”
Marie McCarthy, Omnibus Theatre Artistic Director, said: “Developed in Engine Room, our monthly scratch night, Christian Graham’s Boys Cry is a powerful, inspiring and insightful piece exploring the impact of trauma and sits proudly in our Autumn Season.”
Christian Graham is an actor/writer. His credits as an actor include Hong Kong City (The White Bear), Miniaturists (Arcola Theatre) and Heat and Light Company (Hampstead Theatre). He is an alumnus of The Soho Theatre Writer’s Labs, Hightide Academy and Orange Tree Theatre Writers Collective.
Ebenezer Bamgboye is the deputy director of Jermyn Street Theatre and a resident director at the Almeida. Recent credits include Two Horsemen (Jermyn Street Theatre) and Six Artists in Search of a Play (Almeida). He has also made work for venues including CPT, Battersea Arts Centre, Hampstead Theatre and the Omnibus.
BOYS CRY
LISTINGS
Omnibus Theatre
1 Clapham Common Northside, SW4 0QW
30 August – 9 September 2021
Post-show Q&A: Friday 3 September
https://www.omnibus-clapham.org/boys-cry/
Riverside Studios
101 Queen Caroline Street, Hammersmith, W6 9BN
14 September – 26 September 2021
https://riversidestudios.co.uk/see-and-do/boys-cry-9097/
Runtime 1 hour
Age 12+