Now we are here – but what a time we’ve had
Now we are here – but what a time we’ve had
Have you heard the one about three gay men – a Pakistani, a Jamaican and a Burundian – who walk into a theatre?
You should – it’s moving.
Now We Are Here consists of three stories of refugees who came to the UK to escape war or persecution for being gay. Each man’s story has been shaped into a monologue by poet and spoken word artist Deanna Rodger, woven into the testimony of the others and acted out on the Young Vic stage.
The result is powerful, but painful.
It starts with a riff on the absurdity of being asked “How are you?”, when your status and future are uncertain, you sleep in a hostel that you have to leave every morning, hungry and with empty pockets, to roam streets you don’t know – you don’t even know where there’s a toilet you can use.
As the men talk, their personalities and experiences fill he stage and their stories embed themselves in your mind.
Mir (his recently adopted name: “Mir is my independence”), for example, is beaten by his father and younger brother and forced into a mental hospital.
The dangers and prejudice all have faced are horrifying but there are also moments of love, affection, happiness and humour – like Mir’s recollection of fleeting moments of privacy in a lift: he and a friend press the button for the 10th floor and then back down again: 20 floors of kissing time.
After the interval, Tamara McFarlane’s story of teenage lesbian love is told – no, relived – by actor Golda Rosheuval. It’s an intense, passionate, funny tale and, because it’s set in Jamaica, it’s full of danger. McFarlane knows about the risk of discovery because she has seen the murder of a gay boy at the hands of frenzied mob that has lost all reason.
As in so many love stories, heartbreak is made doubly poignant by a crucial unread love letter.
By providing the setting of two of the stories in this short, compelling production, Jamaica comes out particularly badly, though as is pointed out it has the ingredients for providing a wonderful life. It’s tragic that extraordinary prejudice, verging on mass sexual psychosis, should make life impossible for thousands of its citizens.
The authors of these stories tell of their sense of freedom and liberation in Britain – so much so that in one case I felt like jumping up to warn the writer that openly gay sexuality can be dangerous here too. But the presentation needs to be seen by as many people as possible to help them understand why asylum matters. And it’s free, though donations to refugee organisations are welcome, so there’s no excuse not to go.
* Now We Are Here is at the Young Vic, 66 The Cut, SE1, until 30 July; free, but donations welcome in aid of Micro Rainbow International, Room to Heal and NNLS Destitute Asylum Seekers Drop In.
Info: 07922 2922/ boxoffice[at]youngvic.org
+ A Man of Good Hope, “the story of one refugee’s epic quest across Africa, brought to life with music from the Isango Ensemble”, will be staged at the Young Vic on 6 October-12 November.