“It’s not in saliva, mum, it’s not the fucking Norovirus.”

Positive tells the story of Benji, a twentysomething Londoner living with HIV. This isn’t a story about doom, gloom and death, though – it’s about Benji’s struggles with stigma, and the anxiety that comes with it. One year after his diagnosis, he’s become something of a recluse; and now it’s time he grabbed life by the balls and properly started living it again.

The play debuted as a one-act piece for two weeks at the Edinburgh Festival Fringe, 2013. Following further development into a full two-act play, it played at London’s Waterloo East Theatre as a one-off fundraiser on World AIDS Day that same year, where it sold out. Following more development, it returned to the same theatre from May 13 – June 1, 2014, where it picked up a heap of critical acclaim and an Offie nomination for Most Promising New Playwright.

In 2015 it had its biggest outing yet: at the Park Theatre, London, under the direction of Harry Burton. More acclaim followed, as well as one-to-watch tips from the likes of The Guardian and Metro.

The play has been published by Playdead Press and the playtext is available here.

Director: Rob Ellis [Edinburgh 2013], James Callas Ball [Waterloo East 2014], Harry Burton [Park Theatre 2015]
Cast: Timothy George, Nathalie Barclay, Shaun Kitchener, Paul Heelis [Edinburgh 2013, Waterloo East 2014 & Park Theatre 2015], Sally George, Ryan J Brown [Waterloo East 2014 & Park Theatre 2015], Claire Greenway [Park Theatre 2015], Jamie-Rose Monk [Edinburgh 2013 & Waterloo East 2014], Will Marsh [Edinburgh 2013], Lorna Baillie [Edinburgh 2013].

“Kitchener can write a brilliant comedy sketch and he scatters them generously. Clearly, he’s a playwright to watch” The Times
★★★★★ Attitude
★★★★★ LondonTheatre1
★★★★★ QX
★★★★★ West End Wilma
★★★★★ So So Gay
★★★★★ Beyond Positive
★★★★ The Gay UK, The Public Reviews, Everything Theatre, Remote Goat, Viva la Musical!, Views From The Gods, ThreeWeeks, Broadway Baby, Boyz, EdFringeReview

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