Director Izzy Ponsford and producer Lew Forman make their professional London debut with award-winning musical theatre composer Gus Gowland and musical director Ben Mark Turner to present new song cycle, Lifeboats, as part of the King’s Head Theatre’s MT Pride Lab from from 14-19 June.

Featuring a star-studded cast of Nicole Raquel Dennis (Dear Evan Hansen, Dreamgirls), Jaz Terry (& Juliet, Kinky Boots) and Meg Hill (Heathers, But I’m a Cheerleader), Lifeboats is a heartwarming song cycle that explores the shared experiences of LGBTQ+ people through a range of unique personal stories. Further casting is to be announced.

Throughout history, LGBTQ+ people have found solace, support, and security in the stories of others. In Lifeboats, a cast of four take on different roles throughout the cycle, sometimes playing the role of someone in the LGBTQ+ community, and someone inhabiting a queer icon from history. They come together to share their stories; a young man recounts having his eyes opened on a family holiday in Italy, a woman pines for her next-door neighbour, Oscar Wilde shares his wit and wisdom, and Anne Lister remembers her wedding day. 

Each tale that is told shows us that someone just like you has walked this path before. As the people on stage learn about one another’s lives and loves, they come to recognise that they are part of a history and a community that is rich and vibrant, resilient and hopeful. 

Each song acts as a lifeboat, a little moment of hope, for the audience to use to steer themselves to shore. Lifeboats gives LGBTQ+ people moments of identification and recognition. More importantly, it presents a joyful, shared experience, rejecting stories of queer tragedy. 

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