Presented as a concept album on stage, STARS, an "Afrofuturist space odyssey", has its first northern dates at Contact, Manchester from May 9-11.
A joint production between London's Institute of Contemporary Arts and global majority company Tamasha, Debra Michaels (Strange Fruit, Bush Theatre) leads the company as Mrs, an older woman who goes into outer space in search of her own orgasm.
Created by Alfred Fagon Award winner and George Devine Award finalist Mojisola Adebayo, the idea for the show was conceived during a writing retreat on a canal boat in Lancashire. Crucial to its development was African women-led organisation FORWARD - working to end violence against girls and women - as well as intersex activists and women in Accrington who shared workshops on the power of pleasure. Mojisola Adebayo said: “As I developed the play, I realised how many people struggle with sex and how millions of women all over the world are cut off from the possibility of pleasure because they go through traditional harmful surgeries as girls.
"Connecting with FORWARD and intersex activists, I reflected on the shared roots of female genital mutilation and non-consensual surgeries faced by intersex children – including in Britain; two issues rarely talked about on the same page." The show premieres at the ICA (April 13-May 4) then has other northern dates at Northern Stage in Newcastle (June 19-20) and Liverpool Everyman (June 22-24). More info and tickets here