EMBRACE, The Hope Theatre
Running throughout January 2026, Write Club is The Hope Theatre’s premier festival of new writing, dedicated to showcasing bold stories and expansive ideas. Designed to breathe life into the London fringe during the winter months, the festival provides a vital platform for up to thirty selected shows to make their debut. Under the curation of Joint Artistic Directors Laurel Marks and Toby Hampton, Write Club fosters a collaborative community by offering playwrights and theatre-makers multi-night runs, professional venue support, and dedicated networking opportunities.
We’re showcasing many of the shows that will be appearing, with new interviews coming regularly during January. You’ll be able to find them all in one convenient place here as and when each is released.
Our next guest to slide into our big comfy interview seat are Kian Berry and Evan Reynolds, who are wearing many hats for their show, EMBRACE. As well as joint writing credits, the pair are also part of their cast.
You can catch bold, time-jumping piece of queer theatre that explores connections across decades when it plays at Write Club 2026 between Thursday 22 and Saturday 24 January.
What can audiences expect from the show?
2026. 1981. Kieron has an experience that will change the course of his life, Ethan and James attempt to save their broken relationship, Dominic talks to a friend online, and Todd faces ghosts of the past. When they find themselves in the same room, on the same night, they learn a lot more about themselves than they could have ever imagined. EMBRACE is a bold, new, time-jumping piece of queer theatre from Glitter Bloke Productions that asks what are we looking for, and what will we do to find it?
Is Write Club going to be the show’s first time on stage, or have you already performed elsewhere?
This is the first time this show will be shown to audiences. The birth of this company was a dream that me and Evan had since drama school, and it’s so beautiful finally seeing it come to life. A company that has an emphasis on queer, northern stories, and a space for northern creatives living in the big city to feel seen. EMBRACE, as our first piece, captures all of that. We’re so excited to start it at the Hope Theatre. It’s an intimate show, that needs an intimate space, and we’re very lucky to have this one!
What was your inspiration behind the show?
Me, and Evan are polar opposite writers, but we found, from collaborating at drama school, that it’s those differences that helped us level up each others work. But for this piece… the exact same thing happened. We had very different ideas, and visions, but one thing we could agree on from the start was that it should revolve around a gay orgy, where no sex happens. From that simple seed, EMBRACE was born.
What has been the biggest challenge in realising the writer’s vision for the show?
The show slowly expanded until we realised we needed a cast of six to bring it to life. This was a big ask, and a daunting task for two people who have never cast a project before, but we went fully at it with the vision of having six northerners on the stage in a London theatre. And not only did we achieve that, I truly think we have found some of the biggest talents of the future. I cannot stress enough the talent that this cast has… don’t believe me… you know what to do!
Being a fringe festival, we all know sets have to be bare minimum, how have you got around this with your set and props?
It’s all about the people. The whole show is about the relationships between the people. We knew this from the start, so when it came to talking about the set, we realised that our actors were enough. Of course, there are props and minor set pieces, but hopefully nothing that will distract you from the words.
Are there any plans for what comes next after the show has finished its run – for you or the show?
We have MASSIVE plans for this company, and have already started looking at our year ahead. We have plans for the future of EMBRACE, but also much much more!
If you had to describe your show as a colour what would it be, and why?
PURPLEEEEEEEE. I couldn’t tell you why, but it is definitely purple!
What words of advice/encouragement would you give anyone thinking about doing Camden Fringe next year?
No one knows what they’re doing. NOBODY! We’re all making it up everyday. Even the people at the top. Don’t worry about the future or the logistics, deal with the now. Just go for it!
Thanks to Evan and Kian for telling us more about EMBRACE. You can catch the show when it plays at The Hope Theatre as part of Write Club 2026 between Thursday 22 and Saturday 24 January.
You can book for this and all other shows performing as part of the festival via the below link.
