THE LUMINOUS TOUR DATES
RedCape Theatre’s new play The Luminous (opening this Autumn) is inspired by and set in a Book Club. If you fancy coming to see the show why not immerse your Book Club in some books and activities from the worlds of the play…
Have a look at the ideas below, pour a drink and dive in…
As protestors gather outside the hospital where they work, three women meet up for a monthly book club. This month's book is Luminous - a dark delve into Victorian London, where lurid stories are brought to life for entertainment in the penny gaff theatres: tales of an anonymous killer haunting the city and women whose bones glow through their skin.
In the twenty-first-century living room, the wine is flowing and the discussion is getting heated. Mighty thinks the book is outrageous, Mags thinks it's the best thing she's ever read, and Alice hasn't got past page three. As the women get drawn deeper into the story, memories surface, unexpected connections are made, and the worlds begin to blur.
Inspired by three protests from different eras in which women placed themselves and their bodies at the centre; the match women’s strike of 1888, the Greenham Common protests of the 70s and 80s and the Reclaim the Night movement, The Luminous is a gripping and inventive story which we can’t wait to share with you.
Suggested Books:
In the Victorian world…
The Five by Hallie Rubenhold
Five devastating human stories and a dark and moving portrait of Victorian London - the untold lives of the women killed by Jack the Ripper.
The Crimson Petal and the White by Michel Faber
'Watch your step. Keep your wits about you; you will need them . . .'
So begins this irresistible voyage into the dark side of Victorian London. Amongst an unforgettable cast of low-lifes, physicians, businessmen and prostitutes, meet our heroine Sugar, a young woman trying to drag herself up from the gutter any way she can. Be prepared for a mesmerising tale of passion, intrigue, ambition and revenge.
Little Dorrit by Charles Dicken
Classic, powerful story of love, honour, debt and hope in 1820s London.
Books about protest
Striking a Light: The Bryant and May Matchwomen and their Place in History by Louise Raw
In July 1888, fourteen hundred women and girls employed by the matchmakers Bryant and May walked out of their East End factory and into the history books. Returning to the stories of the women themselves, and by-interviewing-their relatives today, Raw is able to construct a new history which challenges existing accounts of the strike itself and radically alters the accepted history of the labour movement in Britain.
Out of the Darkness: Greenham Voices 1981 - 2000 - Kate Kerrow, Rebecca Mordan and Frankie Armstrong
Previously undocumented testimonies telling stories of love, laughter, adventure and activism from the Greenham Common Women's Peace Camp.
Protest by Sandra Alland
In this timely and evocative collection, twenty authors have assembled to re-imagine key moments of British protest, from the Peasants' Revolt of 1381 to the anti-Iraq War demo of 2003.
My Revolutions by Hari Kunzru
It’s the day before Mike Frame’s fiftieth birthday and his quiet provincial life is suddenly falling apart. But perhaps it doesn’t matter, because it’s not his life in the first place. He has a past that his partner Miranda and step-daughter Sam know nothing about, lived under another name amidst the turbulence of the revolutionary armed struggle of the 1970s.
And books about the nuclear 1980s…
Protect and Survive by Central Office of Information
Protect and Survive was first published in 1980 to advise the public on what to do in the face of nuclear war. At times shocking and unnerving, Protect and Survive is a stark reminder of how the world was poised for nuclear war.
Brother in the Land by Robert Swindell
A 1984 post-apocalyptic novel following the adventures of a teenage boy as he struggles to survive in the north of England after a nuclear war has devastated the country.
The Stirrings by Catherine Taylor
An account of growing up in northern England in the 1970s and 80s Against this backdrop, and of music, the miners' strike, fears of nuclear war, and economic downturn - all of which become a character of sorts in her writing. The author creates a series of very personal essays on subjects traditionally seen as taboo: parental estrangement, abortion, chronic illness, and how an obsession with the serial killer who stalked Yorkshire throughout her childhood became the inspiration for early feminism - all shot through with poetry, risk-taking and humour.
Penguin publishers has some ideas for Book Club snacks here: https://www.penguin.co.uk/articles/2024/03/book-club-snacks-drinks-ideas-inspiration
But if you want to go with the themes from the play you could try 1980s finger food and drinks
- Fruit punch, Cinzano, a Snowball, Bacardi and Coke or a Bucks Fizz
- Cocktail sausages, cheese and pineapple hedgehog, monster munch, dib dabs, space raiders, Vienetta ice cream, anything with hundreds and thousands, jelly!
Or some ideas from Victorian times…
- Sherry, Ginger ale, Lemonade, Beer, Gin!
- Mulligatawny Soup (shredded chicken in a veggie chicken broth), cold roasted meats, sandwiches, steamed pudding, cheesecake, stilton cheese and biscuits, blancmange
If in doubt consult Mrs Beeton’s Book of Cookery and Household Management!
And finally, some music ideas to liven things up…
- Rachel and the Unthanks
- Kiasmos
- Billy Bragg
- Marlene Deitrich
- Grace Petrie
- The Cure
- Patty Griffin
For more information on The Luminous and RedCape Theatre: www.redcapetheatre.co.uk
