Review: Dumbledore is So Gay at Southwark Playhouse

Friday, 18th August 2023 at Southwark Playhouse, London.

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Reviewer: Emma Dorfman

What you might expect from a piece like Dumbledore is So Gay is something that skirts the very edge of copyright infringement laws. I was thinking Harry Potter, but taking place in some imaginary, queer fantasia. I was thinking it would be pure spoof, pure comedy. But Harry Potter only plays a very minor part in Jack’s (Alex Britt) very major story, which tackles the dilemma of coming out in the early 2000s.

In the programme notes, there is a slight nod to Section 28– an Act of Parliament that wasn’t officially ended until 2003. It’s somewhere around this time period when Jack goes through school as a young gay man. And, just like Hermione, he uses his time turner (most likely a cheap cosplay item gifted one Christmas) to reverse the clocks and live out three very different realities.

Throughout these three iterations- which witness Jack being closeted throughout school, Jack coming out and being horrendously bullied, and Jack coming out with his boyfriend and fighting the outside world together- you can’t help but notice the piece’s star-studded cast. Charlotte Dowding shifts seamlessly from Jack’s mum to best friend Gemma, to random but oh-so-memorable patron at Heaven.

Martin Sarreal, too, alternates from sometimes friend, sometimes boyfriend Ollie to a very aloof, tacit Martin (Jack’s dad). Director Tom Wright and movement director Rachael Nanyonjo, no doubt, make for a dynamic duo: the specificity of movement here defines and drives about 90% of the show. And Wright’s careful, pacey direction is a perfect complement.

As Jack reverses the clock, the cast reverses their previous actions as well, in a carefully choreographed sequence that will repeat itself twice. Even if the show’s runtime is only 70 minutes, though, I have to admit that I found myself getting a bit antsy at about the third time around. No doubt that three is a great number, structurally speaking. But as a selfish audience member, I was thinking, oh no, do we have to go through all this again? It turns out to be a small sacrifice, as the third iteration finds a happy medium. Perhaps it’s the lesson the show has to offer?

My interpretation is that it’s not only okay to come out, but absolutely necessary. Even in the world we live in today, unfortunately, blowback and harassment are to be expected, but pride should rise above this. It’s a tall order, and it’s one that I imagine not all will be able to live up to. A little fantasy never hurt anyone.

Dumbledore is So Gay is at Southwark Playhouse, London until September 23rd 2023 – more information and tickets can be found here.