POSITIVE, the acclaimed debut by Shaun Kitchener, is returning to London for a special charity reading this December in support of World AIDS Day.
The heartfelt comedy - which was compared to an "exceptional sitcom" by The Stage and dubbed "equal parts hilarious and heartbreaking" by Attitude - follows Benji, a Britney-obsessed gay millennial trying to reboot his social and love lives after an HIV diagnosis dented his confidence. With a big nudge from his room-mate Nikki, is it about time he got his mojo back?
Ten years after its outing at London's Park Theatre in July 2015, the play has been updated for 2025 and is set for a special script-in-hand presentation in at Seven Dials Playhouse in the Pen studio on Monday 1st December. 100% of net proceeds are heading to the National AIDS Trust.
The reading will be directed by James Robert Moore (associate director, THE HUNGER GAMES: ON STAGE - Troubadour Theatre Canary Wharf; 2:22: A GHOST STORY, Apollo Theatre); while Timothy George (THE PICTURE OF DORIAN GRAY, English Theatre of Hamburg; THE RAILWAY CHILDREN, King's Cross Theatre) and Sally George (THE RISE & FALL OF LITTLE VOICE, Park Theatre; PEOPLE PLACES AND THINGS, National Theatre & West End), a real-life son and mother, will reprise the roles of Benji and his mother Margo respectively. Kitchener, who also performed in the original production, will return to the role of Matt.
Further casting is to be announced.
Positive started as a one-act play at the Edinburgh Fringe in 2013, before being redeveloped into a two-act piece and staged at Waterloo East Theatre one year later. In 2015, it was picked up by the late, great producer Ann Pinnington for production at Park Theatre.
Previous praise for Positive:
“Kitchener can write a brilliant comedy sketch and he scatters them generously. Clearly, he’s a playwright to watch” - The Times
★★★★ "Akin to an exceptional sitcom" The Stage
★★★★★ "Equal parts hilarious and heartbreaking" Attitude
★★★★★ LondonTheatre1, QX, West End Wilma, So So Gay, Beyond Positive
★★★★ Everything Theatre, Broadway Baby, Boyz
Key art by Myfanwy Davies