About the work
The Boys Are Kissing is the debut play by the British-Iranian playwright Zak Zarafshan, a comedy for six performers. Zarafshan developed it on Theatre503's 503Five writers' programme in London, where it premiered on 17 January 2023, directed by Lisa Spirling; the English playtext was published by Methuen Drama the same year. The author named the 2019 protests against the teaching of LGBTQ+ topics in schools as its starting point.
Plot
Two nine-year-old boys, Samir and Lucas, kiss in the playground of a small-town school, and the head calls in their parents: the lesbian couple Amira and Chloe and the straight couple Sarah and Matt. What starts as a conversation between friendly families soon escalates as far as a petition for 'traditional family values' and puts both couples' professed open-mindedness to a hard test. The action is commented on and steered by two cherubs, a heavenly authority on queer matters, who address the audience directly and double as further characters.
Cultural significance
The premiere at Theatre503 received four-star reviews from The Guardian, The Stage and WhatsOnStage. Zarafshan was nominated for Best Writer at The Stage Debut Awards 2023 and was a finalist for Most Promising New Playwright at the Off West End Theatre Awards 2024. The German translation is by Lydia Dimitrow; since 2025 the play has also been staged in German-speaking countries.