JADAR

★★★★☆

Adam Zane had long hoped to direct The Night Larry Kramer Kissed Me but held off until he found the right performer. That moment came when he met actor and activist Gabriel Clark during last year’s revival of Jock Night and quickly realised he’d found his lead. Like the one-man-play’s writer, David Drake, and the semi-autobiographical character at its centre, Gabriel was galvanised into activism by Larry Kramer’s The Normal Heart.

A coming-of-age play, it uses a series of vignettes to track an NYC gay man’s journey of self-discovery from childhood through the height of the AIDS crisis. There is something meta about the play, with the performer achieving key life milestones at the theatre, which reveals the political power of art. At the Worlds Aid Day Candlelit Vigil in Manchester, Gabriel said, “Words are weapons, and the right artist has the ability to find the right words that can wake people up to injustice, rally people to stand together, to act up, to fight back. Art can inspire activism; that is its power,” ahead of a reading from the play.

The Performer’s first theatre experience (West Side Story – one of the most political musicals) occurs on his sixth birthday, which coincides with the Stonewall Riots. He comes out to his friend on his 16th birthday, after seeing A Chorus Line (a coming-of-age, chorus-led musical, which explores topical subjects, such as sex). On his 22nd birthday, he sees The Normal Heart, sparking his involvement with ACT UP, which was founded by Larry Kramer.

The play is a real rollercoaster. Drake crams a lot into it but it never feels overstuffed. However, its incantatory style – rich with repetition and rhyme and undeniably aurally astonishing – can feel a bit repetitive. It occasionally becomes a little difficult to follow, some of the scene changes are slightly abrupt (but the director and designers have done their best to make them feel smoother), and a couple of scenes, particularly 12″ Single, go on so long that they risk losing their impact.

But interest is never lost thanks to a tour de force performance from Gabriel Clark. I was nervous at the prospect of reviewing a friend’s one-man show but I knew he would be sensational – yet he exceeded my expectations. His characterisation and multi-rolling are masterful, with each character completely distinct, aiding the audience in understand who’s who. This is particularly strong in the aforementioned 12″ Single (director Adam Zane and sound designer Hannah Bracegirdle brilliantly chose to use Madonna’s ‘Vogue’ for this scene – again, political art) and Why I Go to the Gym.

The play occasionally leans into archetypical depictions of gay men, but there are so many characters, which ultimately celebrates the diversity of the community. Gabriel does his best to bring humanity to even the most clichéd character – or he fully embraces the humour of the characterisation, perhaps reflecting how the protagonist sees (and remembers) the colourful characters he meets only briefly, ultimately reducing them to stereotypes, perhaps, in part, because of his own insecurities.

Gabriel is believable as everything from an innocent six-year-old to a toxic fitness gay. It’s jarring seeing one of the loveliest people you know play an absolute asshole but, in that moment, he was no longer Gabriel; he was an absolute asshole!

The real Gabriel did repeatedly shine through, however. Gabriel is as much an activist as he is an actor. Every time he goes to an event, he wears a trans or Palestine badge. After his casting in Russell T Davies’ Tip Toe was announced, he filled his Instagram story with pro-Palestine content. When I interviewed him (article coming soon!), I asked him if he fears push back for being so unapologetically pro-Palestine, but he said he would not want to be part of an industry or a project that denies people the right to talk about human rights. That fire and drive burn brightly in his cathartic performance in this play. It’s semi-autobiographical for David Drake but also very relatable for Gabriel, who was also inspired into activism after being “kissed” by Larry Kramer.

Adam Zane told me that this is the hardest play he has ever directed. Not only is it a one-man-play, but there are so many scenes, so much time travel, and so many characters played by only one person. It’s a heavy text, so bad direction and design could render it boring, but Zane makes exceptional use of space, giving Gabriel not only thousands of words to remember but also hundreds of movements. His husband, Dick Longdin, has designed a beautiful, multi-platformed, geometric set which captures the layered and evolving nature of the play. The focal point of the set is a huge LED triangle, which eventually lights up bright pink, evoking the badge used in Nazi concentration camps to identify and shame gay men. It’s but one example of this production’s exceptional attention to detail. Hannah Bracegirdle creates a sensuous soundscape, which – with David Clare’s lively lighting – smoothly transports the audience from Broadway to a gay club to a gay gym, aiding us in understanding where we are and when.

It is remarkable what Hive North have managed to do with this play, and without a huge budget. Every single member of the team (cast, creatives and producer Mike Lee) has worked effortlessly to bring this beautiful text to life, staying true to its historical context but making it feel relevant to today. The pink triangle, in particular, references the never-ending brutality faced by the queer community. Shortly before press night, the Trump administration removed the LGBTQ+ Pride flag from Stonewall national monument, but a group of NYC officials, advocates and residents defiantly re-raised it.

I have been interested in activism since I was a teenager, and art continues to influence me. David Drake and Gabriel Clark were kissed by Larry Kramer, and now I have been kissed by David Drake and Gabriel Clark.

Act Up. Fight Back.

The Night Larry Kramer Kissed Me runs at Hope Mill Theatre, Manchester until February 14 before transferring to Seven Dials Playhouse, London from February 17 to March 1. Select nights are followed by in conversation events, including members of Larry Kramer’s Act Up New York and Act Up Manchester (which includes Dick Longdin). The sold-out Gala Event on February 14 will feature Russell T Davies.

Photo: Dawn Kilner