Sir Ian McKellen (known as Gandalf) will open a historic production of Twelfth Night, featuring an all-trans and non-binary cast.
The one-night-only rehearsed reading, staged by the theatre group Trans What You Will, will take place at The Space Theatre in London on July 25, 2025, and will be livestreamed globally. All profits will go to the UK-based trans charity Not A Phase.
The production reimagines Shakespeare’s gender-fluid classic through a trans lens, emphasizing themes of mistaken identity, cross-dressing, and shifting gender roles.
Director Phoebe Kemp describes the reading as an act of joy, solidarity, and protest, celebrating trans and non-binary artists at a time when trans representation is under threat.
‘Twelfth Night already toys with gender and performance—it feels like Shakespeare wrote it for us,’ they tell Metro.
The event is scheduled ahead of London Trans+ Pride.
Hey yeah, I’m very sorry and I definitely regret my comment. But I’ll still do my best to answer regardless.
To me, pride is certainly much needed and that at the end of the day, this is an lgbt person making art and should not be concerned on who takes issue, but yeah I’ve been feeling so defeated that it really showed in that comment.
Again, I’m sorry and I made sure to edit it.
Hey, we all get defeated sometimes and post not-well-thought-out stuff on the internet!