A theatre company staging a production called ‘The Family Sex Show’ in Bristol and Bath have cancelled the performance because of ‘unprecedented threats and abuse’.
The controversial show aimed to educate young people and children as young as five with their parents about the human body and sex, and included an element when some of those on stage took their clothes off in what the production company described as ‘a non-sexual way’.
But the production incurred the wrath of the likes of Mumsnet, the Daily Mail and Laurence Fox’s Reclaim Party, who launched a social media campaign against the production and the theatres staging it. A petition launched calling for the show to be scrapped collected more than 38,000 signatures, and a campaign on social media saw the two theatres in Bristol and Bath - the Tobacco Factory Theatre in Ashton Gate and The Egg Theatre, which is part of the Theatre Royal in Bath - targeted.
Read more: Bristol theatre defends naked 'Family Sex Show' for children as young as five
Initially, in a joint statement to Bristol Live, the Tobacco Factory Theatre and The Egg theatre defended the production, which was being toured by a Norfolk-based theatre company called ThisEgg. That statement said the show was ‘a fun and silly performance about the painfully awkward subject of sex, exploring names and functions, boundaries, consent, pleasure, queerness, sex, gender and relationships.’
“Using real life bodies, personal stories, songs and movement, The Family Sex Show puts the good stuff at the forefront of conversation and imagines a future where there is no shame, but a celebration of difference, equality and liberation,” a spokesperson for the show said.
They added that theatre company ‘ThisEgg’ had made the show in consultation with the School of Sexuality Education, and audiences would be sent a document detailing everything that takes place on stage before they attend. Every child attending - and the show is said to be suitable for children aged five and up - has to be accompanied by a responsible adult.
“ThisEgg have created The Family Sex Show to open up conversations around relationships. It is being created with input and guidance from education and safeguarding specialists. The nakedness in the show is not of a sexualised nature,” they added.
But following the intervention of former actor Laurence Fox and The Reclaim Party, and the 38,000-signature petition, the shows at the Tobacco Factory have been cancelled. Mr Fox is perhaps most famous for claiming that he was a victim of 'cancel culture' after a controversial appearance on the BBC's Question Time.
In a statement on its website, the Tobacco Factory Theatre said: “Performances of The Family Sex Show by ThisEgg at Tobacco Factory Theatres have been cancelled. This is due to the unprecedented threats and abuse directed at our building and team. We are sorry for the disappointment this causes to those who’ve booked. You will be contacted and refunds will be made available,” it added.
It is not totally clear whether the production at The Egg theatre in Bath is still going ahead. A statement on the Bath theatre’s website said the tour had been cancelled, but the performances in Bath will go ahead to ‘invited audiences’.
“The tour of The Family Sex Show has been cancelled,” it said. “Performances of The Family Sex Show to invited audiences will go ahead at the Egg, Theatre Royal Bath later this month. Ticket buyers will be contacted during the week commencing April 18.”
A spokesperson for Reclaim described it as ‘an important victory’.
Sign up for our What's On in Bristol newsletter packed with essential stories to help you make the most of living in the city
