Preview: 1972: The Future of Sex

Bristol’s award-winning company The Wardrobe Ensemble, made up of former members of the dynamic Bristol Old Vic Young Company, have given us some memorable productions over the past few years, each one responding to the world they see around them – remember 33, a portrayal of those Chilean miners stuck underground, or Riot, a visceral study of violence, greed and cheap sofas?

Well, now they’re back – and this time it’s, well, personal. It’s 1972: an era of possibility, polyester and pubic hair. Ziggy Stardust is on Top of the Pops, Penny is writing an essay on Lady Chatterley’s Lover and Christine is watching Deepthroat. Brian is simply confused.

In 1972: The Future of Sex, the Ensemble tell the story of the class of ‘72 with a handsome funk guitarist and some spacehoppers, using the lens of the Seventies to comment on sex and relationships today. Was it easier back then? Where did we go wrong?

So, how do the two eras compare in their sexual mores? Is one more adventurous, honest, dangerous, anxious than the other? “I think the early 70s saw the birth of many cultures that pervade mainstream culture today,” reflects director Tom Brennan. “Let’s talk about Bowie as an example (for how could we not?). Watch a couple of music videos on YouTube and you’re bound to see echoes of Bowie’s radical aesthetic experimentation. In a way, we’re still reeling from the radicalism of that time.”

Was it easier to be discovering your sexuality in 1972? Or simply different? “It was harder in many ways. We interviewed several people about their experiences growing up in the early 1970s. Most admitted that they were totally ignorant in all matters sexual. Sex education, if it existed at all, was basic and dogmatic. This obviously led to a huge amount of confusion and fear.

“Now, young people are growing up with a whole host of new potential problems. For example, social media and the proliferation of pornography have definitely impacted upon the way that young people think about sex. The consensus is that nowadays we talk about sex all the time, but I would argue that we rarely discuss our relationship to sex in an honest and helpful way. One of the show’s main intentions is to explore these differences and to question our supposed progress.”

Have the team found the show an unusually demanding and intimate piece to create? “Definitely more intimate. We’ve known each other a long time now, but we still prefaced our initial discussions by making everyone aware of the intimate, potentially uncomfortable places that our conversation could lead. The discussions we had, especially in the early stages of research and development, were some of the most important discussions we’ve had as a company.”

Humour has often been essential in defusing sexual anxieties – and, Tom reveals, it plays its role in the Wardrobe Ensemble’s exploration of changing sexual mores. “Humour has always been present in our shows. However, we’re not making the shows just to make people laugh. Instead, I think it’s our natural voice as a company.

“I think this is because we have a problem with total sincerity and sentimentality, so you’ll often find our work switching between the serious and the silly. We’re interested in using humour to relax an audience, to get them to a place where we can talk about the difficult themes that interest us. If audiences are having a good time, they’re more open to the serious stuff.”

Plus, sexual awkwardness is a ‘goldmine of hilarity’. “In rehearsals we referenced movies like Superbad, Dazed and Confused and American Pie but were aware that all those films featured male protagonists. We asked: if our protagonists were female, how might that affect the kinds of narratives that would emerge? Often, in creating this show, we had to restrain our funny side to make sure that the pertinent questions we were asking about pornography, power and sexual identity were being heard.”

1972: The Future of Sex plays at the Wardrobe Theatre from Mar 8-26 as part of Tobacco Factory Theatres’ BEYOND season. For more info and to book tickets, visit www.thewardrobetheatre.com/livetheatre/1972-the-future-of-sex