Small Town Boys

Shaper/Caper presents Small Town Boys - a brand new show exploring the escapism of queer nightlife during the 80s & early 90s AIDS crisis through dance and spoken word.

A young man leaves his small hometown to find refuge in the bright lights and warm embrace of the big city; he discovers solace and joy in the city's LGBTQ+ scene, but soon finds himself navigating a terrifying unfolding health crisis, almost completely ignored by the government. 

Our cast of eight dancers take over the floor of Kings nightclub in Dundee, with a soundtrack of everyone’s favourite 80s & early 90s anthems, as well as original music. The dancers are joined by our Community Cast, a group of volunteer dancers bridging the gap between performers and spectators, bringing the joy and chaos of the nightlife scene to life.

Audience members are invited to relive their own memories of the dance floor as the boundaries between stage and club are blurred, giving them a chance to boogie alongside our cast (or just take a backseat and watch, if they’d prefer!).

Select performances have been accompanied by a Q&A from Terrence Higgins Trust, our charity partners and the UK’s leading HIV and sexual health charity, giving vital context on queer history and sexual health — and where we go from here.

Small Town Boys is produced in association with Gardyne Theatre, Dundee Rep Theatre, Dundee & Angus College, and Terrence Higgins Trust, and is generously supported by The National Lottery and Creative Scotland’s Open Fund. Small Town Boys is touring Scotland in 2024 thanks to Creative Scotland’s Touring Fund.

TJ Firmin

Alex Gosmore

Benji Knapper

Dominic Rocca

Alex McCrossan

Ellis Saul

Terrence Higgins Trust is the UK’s leading HIV and sexual health charity, offering support, information and advice services for those living with HIV and affected by HIV or poor sexual health. Our vision is a world where people with HIV live healthy lives free from prejudice and discrimination, and good sexual health is a right and reality for all.

The first named man to die of AIDS related causes, Terry Higgins died in July 1982 and his close friends formed a support group to help men like Terry and their friends. Charity status followed soon after and now, celebrating our 40th Anniversary year, we’ve been remembering Terry and reflecting on the work we’ve accomplished together over the past 40 years. We’ve seen incredible advances in prevention, testing, treatment and care for those living with HIV. But we still have big challenges if we’re to make sure that everyone can access the tools to protect themselves and others, so we finally end HIV transmissions.

HIV has changed, but we see time and again that many people’s views of HIV remain stuck in the decade when Terry Higgins died. Stigma can have devastating consequences in the lives of people living with and affected by HIV. Stigma can prevent someone from taking a test and getting the care and treatment they need. It can prevent those newly diagnosed from getting the support they need from those around them.

Our work to educate and dispel myths through changing perceptions and knowledge in the general public is as vital as it’s ever been – it’s also key to our goal to stop HIV transmissions.

If we find and test everyone living with HIV and get them onto treatment so HIV can’t be passed on, we can stop an epidemic. Working together, we can end new transmissions of HIV in the UK by 2030.