Blue Now

This event has ended
Silhouette of a person against a vibrant blue background. There is a stark contrast between the dark shadow and the bright blue backdrop. The shadow of a man on a bright blue background
Date
8 Dec 2024
Venue
The Hall, Aviva Studios, Water Street, Manchester M3 4JQ
Tickets
Standard Tickets £25
Affordable: Concessions £12.50 Aviva £10 Tickets
A booking fee of £1.50 per ticket applies to all bookings.

This event has ended

Suitable for ages 12+
Running time: 80 minutes

Accessibility features available for this event: Wheelchair Access Assistive Hearing

A live performance of Derek Jarman’s seminal film Blue

If I lose half my sight, will my vision be halved? – Derek Jarman

In 1993, just months before his death from AIDS-related illnesses, the visionary filmmaker Derek Jarman released his final feature film BLUE. Thirty years later, director Neil Bartlett presents BLUE NOW – a live performance of the film and testament to its enduring legacy.

BLUE is Jarman’s masterpiece – an unchanging shot of celestial blue accompanied by a monologue on his illness, mortality and lost loved ones. As AIDS progressively steals his sight, Jarman experiences the world through shades of blue, inviting the viewer to join him for 74 minutes.

BLUE NOW brings together a star-studded cast – Travis Alabanza, Julie Hesmondhalgh, Jay Bernard and Joelle Taylor. Together they perform Jarman’s powerful words (previously voiced by Nigel Terry, John Quentin, Tilda Swinton and Jarman himself) alongside a new score, performed live by original composer Simon Fisher Turner in collaboration with cellist and composer Lucy Railton.

Arriving at Aviva Studios after a sell-out tour across the UK last year, BLUE NOW is a unique opportunity to reflect on the impact of the AIDS epidemic and create space for compassion, rage and poetry in the face of prejudice.

Trailer

End of Media embed

Cast and Creative Team

An introduction to Derek Jarman

Still from Derek Jarman's The Garden (1990), showing a close up of Jarman's face. He is lying on a cabbage plant, wearing a black leather jacket and golden crown.
Derek Jarman was one of the great British filmmakers of the twentieth century and a titan of queer cinema. Get to know the avant-garde director, artist and activist here.

Credits

Directed by Neil Bartlett

Produced by James Mackay

BLUE NOW, in this live event version, was commissioned by WePresent by WeTransfer, first presented by WeTransfer in association with Fuel and Basilisk Communications, and originally produced by Fuel.

Tickets

We have a range of affordable tickets, including options from £10 for those who may need them. You can find out more about our Affordable Ticketing Policy here.

For ticketing and box office related enquiries, please contact tickets@factoryinternational.org or call 0333 322 8679 (phone lines are open Monday to Saturday, 10am to 6pm).

For more information please visit Ticketing and Sale of Goods Terms & Conditions – Factory International

Access

Travel information

The building can be approached along Water Street (coming from Quay Street) or along Liverpool Road (coming from Deansgate or Castlefield).

The Water Street route is the quickest way to arrive at our City Square entrance.

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