Tumulus
Soho Theatre, London
16 April - 4 May 2019
Director: Matt Steinberg
Producer: Paul Casey Productions & Outside Edge Theatre Company
Cast: Ian Hallard, Harry Lister Smith, Ciarán Owens
Designer: Alison Neighbour | Sound Designer: Nick Manning | Lighting Designer: Christopher Nairne | Stage Manager: Megan Bly | Movement Director: Natasha Harrison | Assistant Director: Hugh Wyld | Production Manager: Callum Finn
Support from Arts Council England and the Royal Victoria Hall Foundation.
Overview
An off-West End remount of a chilling queer noir murder mystery set in London’s chemsex scene.
When I first read the news
I was shocked
I’d never had a lover die on me before)
(This wasn’t the ’80s)
When Anthony’s one-night stand turns up dead on the Hampstead Heath tumulus, everyone assumes he’s another casualty of London’s chemsex culture. But after a second body is discovered Anthony suspects foul play and is thrust into a terrifying, drug-fuelled journey to uncover the truth.
This fast-paced, unflinching queer noir pulses with energy. Like a gay (well, gayer) Murder She Wrote episode, an unlikely detective races to solve two murders before a killer strikes again.
Reviews
“***** Tumulus is one of those exquisite rare breeds of a play, being one of the strongest three handers I’ve ever seen…”
“**** Adams creates a piece that manages to be a thriller without forsaking the lighter mood shown at the start. His characters are witty and quick, alternating tongue-in-cheek comebacks with deeper reflections on physical contact, connection, and the urgent need to go beyond these thresholds.”
“**** A taut hour of mystery…the real star is Adams’s narrative…”
“**** Razor sharp, engaging and intelligent”
“Christopher Adams’s script is taut and propulsive with plenty of social satire”
“Tumulus takes its audience on a swift, stomach-dropping swoop into noir...Adam’s layering is dense – Tumulus runs at a brisk hour – but efficient.”
Production photography by Darren Bell.
Post-Show Events
Q&A with David Stuart (56 Dean Street) and James Barr (A Gay & A Non-Gay podcast)
Q&A with Lord Brian Paddick (politician & former deputy assistant commissioner of Met Police, whose former partner died of a chemsex overdose) & Stephen Morris (chemsex & sexual crime lead HM Prison & Probation Service).
Q&A with David Stuart (56 Dean Street) and Dorta Much (Us in Therapy)