LSE FESTIVAL // 18 June 2025
JERMYN STREET THEATRE // 28 April - 3 May 2025
UNIVERSITY OF YORK // 2 April 2025
LANCASTER ARTS // 14 - 15 February 2025
SUMMERHALL, EDINBURGH FRINGE // 1 - 26 August 2024
THE LSE ENCAMPMENT // 4 June 2024
SOHO THEATRE // 13 February 2024
HOPE THEATRE // 26 September - 7 October 2023
"A heartfelt paean to the politics of possibility"
★★★★★ - The Scotsman
"Unique and intellectually potent"
★★★★★ - The Morning Star
'Intelligent, questioning documentary theatre"
★★★★ - The Stage
"One of my favourites of this year's fringe"
Natasha Tripney for Café Europa
THE SCOTSMAN'S BEST SHOWS OF THE FRINGE
"Completely exceptional... it reinvents the notion of lecture and the notion of performance"
- The Theatre Times
"One of the most talked about shows from this year's Edinburgh festivals"
- The Conversation
20 shows to see at Fringe 2024 - Theatre Weekly
Snack Mag Pick of the Fringe 2024
1968, London School of Economics.
Three thousand students occupy a lecture hall, demanding the university cut ties with apartheid-era Rhodesia. Tensions escalate as the students fight for radical change while the administration pushes back. The world watches, waiting to see who will blink first.
2024, a cramped Camden flat.
Two flatmates dive into the archives from 1968, discovering the student movement that electrified their local streets fifty years earlier. When the rent on their unsafe flat goes up again, they turn to the past to reignite their belief in the future.
Samuel Rees and Gabriele Uboldi’s play brings the most significant protest of a generation to life through the voices of those who lived it.
TEAM
Writers - Gabriele Uboldi & Sam Rees
Set & Video Designer - Ella Dale
Lighting Designer - Laurel Marks
Sound Designer - Rudy Percival
Dramaturg - Rafaella Marcus
Stage Manager - Vivi Wei
Performed by - Gabriele Uboldi & Sam Rees
Production Photographer - Jack Sain
Photographer & Videographer - Ella Dale
1968 TODAY ZINE
The zine collates contributions by members of the LSE Liberated Zone, who are campaigning for Palestinian liberation, and 1968 activists who similarly occupied LSE over 50 years ago demanding that the School cut ties with apartheid-era Rhodesia.
Each group asks their counterparts three questions on student activism and the legacy of ‘68, touching on historical context, the role of technology in the repression of dissent, and the future of the student movement.
With an introduction by Lessons on Revolution co-creators Gabriele Uboldi and Samuel Rees and a “the revolution is a real possibility” poster.
The zine will be available to pick up for free from Jermyn Street Theatre during the run of Lessons on Revolution from 28 April to 3 May. Alternatively the zine can be posted within the UK for a minimum donation of £3 to cover postage costs—to arrange this please get in touch with gabrieleuboldi.gu@gmail.com
Edited by Gabriele Uboldi
Designed by Ellis Miles
LSE ENCAMPMENT
We had the privilege to perform Lessons On Revolution for the students who occupied LSE in May and June 2024 in solidarity with Palestinian liberation. We were lucky enough to share our play with them, highlighting the parallels between the 1967-69 occupations of LSE and today. It was an inspiring opportunity to reflect on activism across time and generations, and the potential of theatre for activism.
More info on why LSE students occupied their University, their demands, and what you can do to support them can be found here:
https://linktr.ee/lse.encampment
Instagram and Twitter: lse_encampment
ANIMATING ARCHIVES WORKSHOP
Read our blog post on the LSE website detailing our process of bringing their archives through life through theatre and performance:
Alongside the show, we have delivered workshops on documentary theatre and using archives in performance at LSE, Central School of Speech and Drama, and Kingston University. If you'd like to book one of these workshops, please contact Gabriele on gabrieleuboldi.gu@gmail.com
Sam Rees and Gabriele Uboldi at the LSE archives
Photo by Ella Dale
The original production of LESSONS ON REVOLUTION, as well as the Jermyn Street Theatre and LSE Festival productions are supported using public funding by the National Lottery through Arts Council England.
The Edinburgh Fringe production was supported by the Unity Theatre Trust and the Keep It Fringe Award.
Special thanks to LSE student activists from 1968 and 2024, SM Publicity, LSE Library & Archives, and Soho Theatre.
Thank you to Phil Bartlett, Bob Borzello, Maria Bell, Matthew Belsey, Chelsea Collison, David Doyle, Rowan Evans, Dan Glass, James Graham, Heidi Henders, Joey Jepps, Natasha Ketel, Jessica Lazar, Lisa McQuillan, Dr Caoimhe Mader McGuinness, Chris McGill, Dr Louise Owen, Matthew Parker, David Ralf, Vivi Wei.