May Day at King's Head Theatre Announces Its Majority Trans Cast

A New Musical About Hampstead Heath's Trans Exclusion Row Is Coming to King's Head Theatre This June

May Day follows a genderless water sprite navigating a world that does not know what to do with them. The cast and creative team are majority trans.

The protests surrounding Hampstead Heath Ladies Pond became one of the flashpoints of the gender recognition debate in the UK. A musical built directly from those events is now heading to King's Head Theatre, with a majority trans cast and creative team, opening 17 June 2026 as part of the venue's LATER programme.

May Day follows Rae, a water sprite who arrives in human form on May Day morning with 24 hours to save the Heath from an ancient fire. They have no knowledge of the surface world or the gender rules that govern it. They also fall in love with Billy, whose desire to see everything burn is not helpful.

The show treats the Hampstead Heath ponds debate as a starting point rather than a subject. Myth and magical realism take over from there, pulling the story into questions about safe spaces and who gets to decide what safety means — without letting the politics swallow the characters.

Olivier Award nominee Jo Foster leads as Rae, a role they originated in the 2025 work-in-progress run then titled Like a Rat. Tylan Grant, known for Hollyoaks, plays Billy. Gracie McGonigal from Bridgerton, Joni Ayton-Kent and Dillon Scott-Lewis, whose credits include People Places and Things at the National Theatre, complete the cast.

Co-directors are Millie Foy and Molly Stacey. Book is by non-binary writing duo Pound Puppy, Barney Doran and Anna Fenton-Garvey, whose previous work includes 10 Things to Tell Yourself in the Line to Gay Club at the Almeida. Music and lyrics by Sam Woof, Artistic Director of GOYA Theatre Company.

The show started with interviews with queer and trans swimming groups at the Heath. Those stories fed directly into the music. Producer Lilli Lehmann described the Supreme Court's 2025 gender recognition rulings as part of why this production feels necessary right now.

May Day runs at King's Head Theatre from 17 to 21 June 2026.

Tickets at kingsheadtheatre.com.

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