Birds and Bees
by Charlie Josephine
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“Honest and funny exploration of the issues surrounding modern sexuality... Refreshingly unpatronising portrayal of young people”
★ ★ ★ ★ The Stage
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“Funny, educational and relevant”
★ ★ ★ ★ Broadway World
“The whole system needs a reboot, refresh, restart. Revolution’s possible, hear me share from the heart. See us youngers? Online scrolling, always visible. But the Truth is I feel invisible. The youth of today have got so much to say but no-one’s listening.”
Leilah is wondering if her Instagram is more of a burden than ‘living her best life’. Billy’s queer and proud but ignored by the education system; they’re tired of feeling invisible. Aarron is learning how to be a man online and it’s starting to feel toxic. And Maisy, well Maisy’s not that into sex, thank you very much.
Thrown together, these four confront their differences and realise their power to create change.
Birds and Bees is a new play by critically acclaimed writer Charlie Josephine (I, Joan, Cowbois) and a searing exploration of identity, consent, sex positivity, online safety and intersectionality.
Birds and Bees originally launched digitally during the 2020 lockdown and was watched by over 60,000 people across the UK. This live premiere of the play has been developed in collaboration with Sheffield Theatres and has been reworked by Charlie alongside groups of young people.
Cast
Aarron Richard Logun
Billy Milo McCarthy
Leilah Dumile Sibanda
Maisey Sandra Belarbi
CREATIVES
Writer Charlie Josephine
Director & Dramaturg Rob Watt
Sound Lee Affen
Movement Yami Löfvenberg
Lighting Hector Murray
Designer Bethany Wells
Movement Assistant Elsabet Yonas
Company Stage Manager Lizzie Bond
Production Manager Gareth Edwards
Lighting Programmer Connor O’Neil
Casting Consultant Becky Paris
Artwork Guy J Sanders
Audio Describer Chris Berry
Captioner Cara Lawless
Sign Language Interpreter Julie Fletcher
Producers Amy Michaels, Emma Rees
Assistant Producer Niamh Parker-Whitehead
Marketing for Theatre Centre Rachel Bellman
Marketing Consultants Jane Morgan Associates
Public Relations Chloe Nelkin Consulting, Jo Allan PR
Schools Resources Hannah Austin
Production Photography Chris Saunders