Dreggs Opera by Sunderland Platform Theatre group at Arts Centre Washington

Описание: Hear audience reactions to 'Dregs Opera,' a bold musical inspired by the true story of Alonzo Johnson—a historic local queer figure convicted and deported to Tasmania because of his sexuality. This powerful production took to the stage at Arts Centre Washington on Friday 4th April 2025.

Dregs Opera follows the journey of local historic figure Alonzo Johnson, a 19th-century 'strolling player' (a travelling performer) who defied the legal and social conventions of his time. Despite multiple convictions for theft and for what was then considered an 'unnatural crime,' Johnson remained true to himself. He was known to dress in women’s clothing and was openly involved in a romantic relationship with a fellow artist, painter David Denham. Their arrest in Newcastle in 1844 led to a death sentence, later commuted, by none other than Queen Victoria, to transportation to Tasmania. Johnson’s largely forgotten story challenges 19th-century narratives of LGBTQ+ identity and highlights the courage of those who defied societal norms.

Written and performed by artists with learning disabilities and autistic artists, Dregs Opera is an original work by the Sunderland Platform theatre group at The Twisting Ducks Theatre Company. Presented as an adaptation of Gay’s Beggar’s Opera and Brecht’s Threepenny Opera, Dregs Opera features live music by members of the local all-female jazz group Wild Women of Wylam, including Andrea CE Harris, (AKA Hannah Jones), whose iconic cover of Gloria Gaynor’s I Am What I Am became a 1990’s LGBTQ+ club anthem.