Alexis Gregory’s Riot Act returns to West End for World AIDS Day 

Following a sell-out Pride 2022 date, writer and performer Alexis Gregory’s critically acclaimed Riot Act returns to the fabulous West End cabaret venue Crazy Coqs for a special performance to mark World AIDS Day on Thursday, December 1st 2022. The hard-hitting, poignant, but outrageously funny verbatim solo-show was created from Gregory’s own interviews with a Stonewall survivor (Michael-Anthony Nozzi), a radical 70s drag artist (Lavinia Co-op), and a 90s AIDS activist (Paul Burston). The World AIDS Day date is a chance to see the hit show in an intimate setting following performances at London’s Duchess Theatre, three UK tours, and an online digital reimagining that’s now streaming globally via stream.theatre and Broadway on Demand.

“I’m really excited to be bringing Riot Act back to Crazy Coqs”, Gregory shares with The Queer Review. The Pride show there earlier this year was one of the most electric evenings in the Riot Act’s history. Something about the show’s confessional yet epic nature really lends itself to this beautiful venue. While the show’s unifying thread is the exploration the effects of AIDS on the LGBTQ+ community, Riot Act is ultimately a celebration of queer survival against the odds.”

Directed by British theatre legend Rikki Beadle-Blair MBE, who wrote the screenplay for the 1995 feature film Stonewall starring Guillermo Diaz, Riot Act sees Gregory channel the three characters, bringing their stories to life in a breathtaking journey through six decades of queer history.  

“No matter how many times I see this extraordinary performance, in rehearsal or live, I get transformed into a laughing, crying, goosebump-covered fanboy”, admits Beadle-Blair. “From moment to moment, it’s hard to know whether to laugh or cry. Sometimes we find ourselves doing both at the same time. Every show is incredible, both due to Alexis’ increasingly nuanced performance and the audience’s hunger for untold history and that unmistakable sense of queer joy.”

Alexis Gregory’s Riot Act plays for one night only this World AIDS Day Thursday, December 1st, 2022 at 7pm at Crazy Coqs’ at Brasserie Zedel, London.