The musical will play at the theatre from the 18th July.
The European premiere of the new LGBTQ+ musical The View Upstairs will take place at the Soho Theatre this Summer, following its successful runs Off-Broadway, multiple regional US productions and recent Australian premiere.
Written by Max Vernon, The View Upstairs will be directed in London by Jonathan O’Boyle (Aspects of Love, Pippin, Hair), with choreography by Fabian Aloise (The Rink, Madagascar The Musical, Our House, Working).
Millennial fashion designer Wes has just purchased an abandoned building, but little does he know that this forgotten gem was the UpStairs Lounge, a vibrant ‘70s gay bar in the French Quarter of New Orleans, starting an exhilarating journey of seduction and self-exploration in the summertime hear with the rush of lust, sex and incense mixed in the air.
Talking about the news, Max Vernon said: “As a devotee and lover of British theatre, art, music and culture (from Caryl Churchill and Joe Orton to Alexander McQueen and Vivienne Westwood, Roxy Music, T. Rex and Siouxsie and The Banshees), it has been a lifelong dream of mine to bring an original musical to London. For that show to be The View Upstairs – which is high fashion, rock and roll, queer, subversive, and speaks to an important forgotten history in the LGBTQ+ community – that is an enormous opportunity.”
Director Jonathan O’Boyle continued: “I’m thrilled to be working with Max Vernon on his brilliant new musical The View Upstairs for its European premiere at Soho Theatre this summer. The View Upstairs is a beautiful, uplifting musical that celebrates the lives of these forgotten people. Max is a brilliant new voice in modern musical theatre, and this show, inspired by true events, takes us on a radical, rollercoaster ride through the extraordinary lives of these special human beings.”
Inspired by the true story of the 1973 arson attack that was the largest single attack against the LGBTQ+ community until the Pulse Nightclub shootings in Florida in 2016, The View Upstairs is a musical about friendship and community.
It originally opened Off-Broadway in 2017 and the musical has gained support from some of the LGBTQ+ community’s biggest advocates, including RuPaul.
The View Upstairs will play at the Soho Theatre from the 18th July until the 24th August.