If you need reminding that Oscar Wilde is not just dry one-liners take a look at this 1893 play (originally written in French) that proved such a shocker that it was banned from performance until the 1930s. It is both louche and lush and has attracted plenty of directors including Steven Berkoff, who treated it as a symbolist poem, and Jamie Lloyd, who brought it right up to date. Lazarus Theatre Company go all immersive and seat the audience around Herod’s banqueting table. The lustful Salome becomes a young gay man. The trick of any production of this play is to make sure it feels like more than a curiosity.
King Herod asks Salomé, son of the Queen to dance for him… this request leads to the Dance of the Seven Veils and one of the most shocking, thrilling, and scandalous climaxes ever seen on stage. Originally banned in Britain, Wilde’s outrageously provocative Salomé comes to Southwark Playhouse after a ★★★★★ run at Greenwich Theatre in 2019. Salomé is suitable for ages 16 plus, contains some male nudity, smoking, haze, gun shots, and scenes of a sexual and violent nature. Originally produced in association with Greenwich Theatre.