New London production of Elegies for Angels, Punks and Raging Queens

A new interpretation of moving song cycle Elegies for Angels, Punks and Raging Queens will play London’s Union Theatre from 15 May until 8 June 2019.

Produced in support of the MAD Trust, Bryan Hodgson will direct the new version of the Tony-nominated tribute to those who have died from AIDS and the loved ones they left behind.

Featuring lyrics and a book by Bill Russell (Sideshow) and music by Janet Hood, the team behind the musical Unexpected Joy which received its European premiere in London last year, the collection of monologues and songs was inspired by the San Francisco-led NAMES Project AIDS Memorial Quilt and the poetry of American writer Edgar Lee Masters.

The cast includes: Fraser Leigh Green, Michiel Janssens, Marcus Ayton, Calum Gulvin, Aidan Harkins, Chris Cahill, Althea Burey, Jackie Pulford, Jade Marvin, Charlie McCullagh, Ailsa Davidson, Jade Chaston, Rhys Taylor, Paige Fenlon, Kristine Kruse and Matthew Grove.

Produced by the Union Theatre’s Sasha Regan, the creative team for the new London production will include musical director Henry Brennan and choreographer Adam Haigh.

Originally entitled The Quilt and developed in the 1980s at the height of the AIDS pandemic, Elegies for Angels, Punks and Raging Queens was first seen in New York in 1989. The show debuted in London at the King’s Head three years later and transferred to the Criterion Theatre for a short run in June 1993.

The show returned to the Criterion Theatre for a star-studded special performance in May 2015 to raise funds for MAD Trust (the UK based charity involved in the fight against HIV and AIDS).

Angela Thomas