An evening of LGBTQ+ heritage, local history, theatre, and creative exchange will take place at Department next month, featuring the launch of a new book and the presentation of a Historic England-funded project exploring Ryde’s hidden LGBTQ+ past.
The event, held on 13th August, will feature the launch of a new book and the presentation of an Historic England-funded project exploring Ryde’s hidden LGBTQ+ past.
StoneCrabs Theatre will bring together local history, community research, and live storytelling for a special evening celebrating LGBTQ+ arts, heritage, people and places.
Taking place at Department in Ryde from 19:00 to 21:00, the event will showcase the results of Celebrating LGBTQ+ Working Class Histories, a project funded by Historic England, alongside the launch of Stories Underfoot, a new book published in collaboration with Figmentum.
The Celebrating LGBTQ+ Working Class Histories project brought local people together to investigate the hidden LGBTQ+ history of Ryde.
One outcome of the project was UNION, a 50-page, full-colour zine exploring the history of Isle of Wight Pride, the shops of Union Street, LGBTQ+ nightlife in Ryde during the 1980s and 1990s, and figures including Phaedra Kelly, Peter Woodnutt, and Oscar Wilde.
The project also worked with Dr Lena Mattheis and the Listen Queer app to create an audio tour of Union Street, highlighting the history of shops and venues, including some that no longer exist.
The evening will see the launch of Stories Underfoot, published by Figmentum. The book includes the complete scripts of StoneCrabs’ open-air promenade performances, bringing the stories and characters of Stories Underfoot to readers beyond the original performances. Alongside the scripts, the collection offers a unique insight into the research behind the stories, reflections from the director and actors, and photographs by Maria Bell.
There will also be an exclusive screening of Girls Who Saved the World and Old Town Hall in Newtown, one of our immersive promenade performances, written by Anmarie Bowler.
The event is free and open to all; those wishing to book a slot can do so here.
“Hidden LGBT+” Ryde is a concept that means different things to different people. I understand that some people came out later in life but often those same people were not necessarily very LGBT+ friendly when they were in the closet during the difficult times, particularly during AIDS and Section 28. It is fine celebrating their subsequent openness but often that coincided with changing attitudes which made it much easier to come out. The really admirable people were those who were prepared to stand up and be counted in the face of often violent opposition and who paved the way for that cultural change. Coming out from the mid 1990s onwards was a great deal easier. Living an authentic life is always to be celebrated but please let us not rewrite history and portray people who came out when it was safe to do so as pioneers.
Strange how everyone was warned by the lgbt lot to stay clear Phaedra Kelly when she was alive