The AIDS Play Project: Christmas on Mars by Harry Kondoleon

The American playwright Harry Kondoleon was once called 'a theatrical comet of the 80s’. Though his career was brief, lasting just 14 years, he premiered 18 plays between the years 1980 and 1994.

‘Christmas on Mars’ debuted in New York in June 1983. It is the story of an unconventional foursome who come to share a flat one Christmastime, written in Kondoleon’s strange, witty and antic comic style.

Bruno, an out-of-work actor, plans on marrying and setting up home with his partner, Audrey. But the couple’s future happiness is threatened by the arrival of two unexpected guests who refuse to leave.

First up is Nissim, a former flight attendant, who alleges he is, in fact, Bruno’s long-term boyfriend. Then comes Ingrid, Audrey’s estranged mother, who will do anything to atone for years of parental neglect.

This one-off, script-in-hand performance stars Nathan Armarkwei Laryea, Dominic Holmes, Sharon Small and Mary Malone. It is directed by Alastair Curtis, with music from Helen Noir and costumes by Max Allen and Elliott Adcock.