The Law of Mayhem at The Haymarket, Basingstoke Review
Written by Charlotte for Theatre & Tonic
Disclaimer: Gifted tickets in exchange for an honest review
‘Surely, where the mind cannot be made to fit the body, the body should be made to fit [the mind], despite the prejudices of those who have not suffered these things, yet to suffer which they so readily condemn others.’ – Michael Dillon
A couple of years ago, when researching British LGBTQ+ people of history, I came across the stories of Michael Dillon and Roberta Cowell, the first two people to receive gender-affirming surgery in the 1940s and early 1950s. So when I read about The Law of Mayhem, a play about Dillon and Cowell by Basingstoke theatre company Proteus, I knew I had to see it.
The play follows the two pioneers as they discover their true selves, find their way into each other’s lives, and then go their separate ways again, reuniting after their deaths to recount their memories of each other. We see how Roberta found Michael after reading his book Self: a study in ethics and endocrinology, and how this meeting led to her introduction to Dr Gillies, who would perform both of their gender-affirming surgeries. We see their memories of their younger selves play out in front of them, with intricate thoughts and feelings uniquely performed through aerial hoop routines at centre stage.
I wasn’t sure how this was going to be told on stage, and I was admittedly a little confused when it started, not knowing what was happening as the actors launched straight into their individual monologues. But as time went on, I found myself enthralled by their stories and the mesmerising aerial hoop performances.
With a predominantly trans and non-binary cast, each actor — Kit Green as Roberta, Pete MacHale as Michael, Mos Bain and Oran Longmuir as their younger selves, and Milton Lopes as Dr Gilles and other characters — brought such magic, warmth, and genuine emotion. There was a lovely contrast between MacHale’s stoic and matter-of-fact portrayal of Michael, and Green’s Roberta, who was more dramatic and oftentimes the comic relief among what could be quite heavy themes.
But there was one part in particular that made this play stick in my head, the goosebumps raised on my arms, and a few tears prick in my eyes: the ending, when Michael realises that Roberta went on to live an extra fifty years after his death. When Roberta tells him it’s now 2011 and they’re discussing the future of trans lives, Michael asks a devastating question: “And how about now? Are people like us okay?” It need not be mentioned that for some minorities, the world right now is a very scary place, so this play feels like an incredibly poignant and necessary story that needs to be told. It proves that gender questioning isn’t a new fad, and sadly highlights the lack of progress made in the decades since Michael and Roberta’s transition.
But, thankfully, it’s not a miserable end to the play – it’s moving, motivating, uplifting, and lights the audience’s fire to take the baton and continue their legacy, doing the hard but vital work that people like Michael Dillon and Roberta Cowell would hope to see if they were here today.
The Law of Mayhem ran at The Haymarket, Basingstoke from 18th–20th September 2025. For updates on the company’s future work, visit their website: proteustheatre.com
★★★★
