About
Written by Henry Waddon
Directed by Gabe Winsor
Presented by The Oxford School of Drama
“I’m giving you the opportunity to hurt yourself, a tiny bit. To hurt yourself just a tiny bit, maybe…in order to help them.”
After decades of shortcomings, a ground-breaking trial of a male hormonal contraceptive is entering Phase III. Should this final phase of the experiment be successful, the new ‘male pill’ will become available across the entire world. Okay, it’s not technically a pill. It’s a gel.
Exploring the inequality of responsibility in sex, masculine insecurity, and the transactional nature of the relationships we form with the people we love, The Gel is an intimate portrayal of ten couples and the people who circle their lives.
The Company
Cast
Daisy Bainbridge, Abigail Berry, Martha Bone, Sharitah Boulton, Danny Buttfield, Brook Exley, Maximus Farmer, Isabelle Heselwood, Lou Jackson, Will Lockey, Mia Mapp, Nico Minott, Daniel David Rock, Sara Safi, Millie Small, Jess Taverner, Sasha Worden
Creatives
Writer - Henry Waddon
Director - Gabe Winsor
Set & Costume Designer - Sorcha Corcoran
Lighting Designer - Han Sayles
Sound Designer - Ellie Isherwood
Henry Waddon is a writer, actor and newly-qualified doctor. He has written for renowned institutions such as the Old Vic, Pentabus Theatre, VAULT Festival and the Edinburgh Fringe, in addition to being selected for programmes like BBC Writersroom Voices, the Old Vic TheatreMakers, the Almeida Theatre Young Company and the NSDF Writers' Lab. He is the current Theatr Clwyd Writer in Residence, and was recently selected as a ‘Playwright of Tommorow’ by Theatre Royal Haymarket Masterclass. His first play, PLAGUED, received the Best New Play award at the Oxford University New Writing Festival.
Gabe Winsor is a writer and director from Dorset, now based in London. Gabe is the artistic director of the theatre company Buzzcut, which specialises in making live performances with live cameras. Buzzcut was one of the North Wall's 2023 ArtsLab companies. His work has been shortlisted for The New Diorama’s Untapped Award and The Pleasance’s Charlie Hartill Award. His first play Sockpuppet was an Evening Standard top pick of VAULT festival. His most recent work, Bark Bark, enjoyed a sold-out run at Summerhall as part of the Edinburgh Fringe 2024, and was described as an “A magical blend of live performance, puppetry, and cinema” (★ ★ ★ ★ The Skinny, The Scotsman, Fest). He has directed plays at venues such as The King’s Head, The North Wall, and the Curve Theatre.
The Oxford School of Drama is a world-leading conservatoire providing professional actor training. Based in the Oxfordshire countryside the School runs Three Year and One Year Acting courses as well as two Six Month Foundation courses. Alumni of the School include Richard Gadd, Lizzie Annis, Claire Foy, Jude Owusu, Maimuna Memon, Babou Ceesay, and Tanya Reynolds.
Presented at New Diorama Theatre