The 11th Annual International Dublin Gay Theatre Festival programme was launched on March 18 at The Oak Room at the Mansion House.

The Festival will take place from May 5 to 18 at various locations around Dublin and present plays from abroad – USA, Canada, South Africa, Israel and Australia – as well as plays from closer to home from Northern Ireland and Britain. This year’s Festival will also feature a record number of plays by Irish playwrights.

In his speech at the launch, Festival Artistic Director and Chairman, Brian Merriman, highlighted the need for inclusion of all people in the festival events. “So many people look at the event and go ‘well done’ and then self-exclude themselves from it because they are not LGBT, or they think they are not into theatre,” he said. “I believe we all profit from this visibility, this diversity, this inclusiveness of all, regardless of their identity, in a unique artistic celebration of new voices, new work and new horizons.”

This year the Festival audience will have the opportunity to experience stories about family and gender, musings on love and happiness with a poignant look at gay marriage and divorce, love and loss. There will be talk about gay rights, politics and sex in the 80s, a rethink of children’s tales and fairytales.  Love will blossom in the trenches of World War One, football pitches and Northern Ireland, and in spite of and despite religion.

The heroes of 1916 will feature, as will the work of Oscar Wilde and Jean Genet, and Stephen Sondheim. Booking is available online at www.gaytheatre.ie or at the Festival Box Office at The Arlington Hotel Temple Bar, Lord Edward Street from April 28, 12 noon to 3pm daily.