Following three critically acclaimed runs in London and a highly successful transfer to New York, Donnacadh O’Briain’s Olivier award winning production of Rotterdam will head to Theatre Royal Brighton from Monday 8th to Wednesday 10th April.
Written by acclaimed playwright Jon Brittain, co-creator of Margaret Thatcher Queen of Soho, writer of A Super Happy Story (About Feeling Super Sad) and staff writer on The Crown, Rotterdam is a bittersweet comedy about gender, sexuality and being a long way from home.
It’s New Year in Rotterdam, and Alice has finally plucked up the courage to email her parents and tell them she’s gay. But before she can hit send, her girlfriend Fiona reveals that he has always identified as male and now wants to start living as a man named Adrian. Now, as Adrian confronts the reality of his transition, Alice faces a question she never thought she’d ask… does this mean she’s straight?
Trans non-binary actor Lucy Jane Parkinson (multi award-winning Joan, international tour; Communion, Young Vic; DragKing Cabaret artiste ‘LoUis CYfer’) will star as Fiona/Adrian, playing opposite Bethan Cullinane (Salt, Theatre503/RADA Festival/The Rosemary Branch, King Lear, RSC; Othello, Globe Theatre) as Alice. Trans actor Elijah W Harris (And The Rest of Me Floats, Bush Theatre; Rituals in Romance, Spill Festival; The Butch Monologues, Birmingham Rep, Soho Theatre, WoW Festival) will play Alice’s lovable brother Josh and Ellie Morris (The Comedy About A Bank Robbery, Criterion; Peter Pan Goes Wrong, Apollo Theatre and BBC1) returns to the production to play Dutch partygoer Lelani.
The producers felt it was important to work with with trans and non-binary actors to bring this very important show about relationships and the process of transitioning to life. Elijah W Harris takes on the role of Josh in the UK tour of Rotterdam and, in a short break from a hectic schedule, he told us all about the show, and a bit about his amazing life as well…
Hi Elijah, can you tell us a bit about your show, Rotterdam.
Rotterdam is a play about a couple navigating their relationship when one of them, Adrian,comes out as a trans man. It is a lot to do with identity and how one’s identity can grow and shift, and the impact that has on those around us.
What do you hope the audience will take away from the production?
Well I hope they enjoy it! Jon Brittain’s writing is very nuanced but has an everyday feel to it, which makes it so easy to see yourself in the characters and their words, whatever the subject matter. It has definitely made me think about my relationships and how I communicate so I hope it does that for the audience also.
And of course, I hope that the content plus seeing trans and non-binary people on stage will encourage people to embrace the trans people around them. And allow the LGBTIA+ audience members to feel seen, because it doesn’t happen often enough!
Rotterdam has had a very successful life in London. How do you think the show will be perceived by audiences around the country?
I am so excited to be touring this show. It often feels like everything happens in London, and it is easy for creatives to become London-centric. I am from Leicester and seeing this show growing up would have changed my life, and I am not just saying that. Of course, the internet connects anyone at any time but seeing someone like you, telling a story like yours, in the flesh, in your space? Well there is truly nothing like it.
Can you tell us about you and your story please?
I grew up in Leicester and moved to London when I was 18 for university. I never really knew where I fit within society and struggled with my mental health for a long time. I started to understand that I needed to transition at some point along the way, between acting and seemingly endless bar jobs. I began medically transitioning about 3 years ago – transitioning doesn’t solve all of life’s problems but now I walk down the street with a straight back and my eyes up.
Did you always want to act?
Yes, though I was also really into sports growing up and played pretty much anything I could. I remember playing one of Fat Sam’s gang in Bugsy Malone at High School and just feeling like that made a lot of sense.
When I moved to London, I got a degree because I thought that was the most sensible option – I would be able to get a ‘proper job’. I didn’t know anything about drama schools and I certainly didn’t think that I was welcome in a place like that. They can’t teach that confidence or entitlement in state schools that private education seems to create. You are automatically on the back foot, feeling like an intruder somehow.
Any advice for budding actors?
Be kind to yourself, the industry can be hard and sometimes not very nice, so make up for that by giving yourself time and be patient. Learn to lift yourself up, make your own contacts and create opportunities for yourself. If you or your experiences are not represented on stage or TV then create something, be the change, be the person that you needed to see growing up.
What would you say to encourage people to buy a ticket?
This show has so so so much heart and is a lot of fun. It won’t be like anything else you’ve seen or will see for a while so don’t miss it!
Age guidance 15+
Rotterdam appears at Theatre Royal Brighton from Monday 8th to Wednesday 10th April with evening performances at 19:30 and a Wednesday Matinee at 14:30 Tickets are available online at www.atgtickets.com/brighton or through the Theatre Royal Brighton box office on 0844 871 7650