First staged in 1998, Cleansed is one of five plays by the late playwright Kane, who died by suicide in 1999 at the age of 28. It is noteworthy for its visceral violence, prolonged nudity, and dark themes.<\/p>\n
Previous productions of the play have drawn similar responses from some theatregoers, with the 2016 version at the National Theatre making headlines, thanks to a spate of faintings and walkouts among the crowd<\/a>.<\/p>\n During Wednesday\u2019s (29 July) press night performance of the play, directed for the Almeida by Rebecca Frecknall, an audience member was seen receiving assistance from staff before being helped from the auditorium.<\/p>\n In a statement, a spokesperson for the Almeida told The Independent: \u201cOne audience member required assistance during last night’s performance of Cleansed. Our Front of House team were on hand to provide care and the audience member was quick to recover.<\/p>\n \u201cWe will continue to warn audiences of the content in the production on the Almeida website \u2013 here<\/a>,<\/a> on the booking page, in pre-visit emails, and on Front of House signage in the theatre.\u201d<\/p>\n The content warning for Cleansed reads: \u201cThis production includes prolonged nudity, torture, mutilation, murder, sex, incest, violence including sexual violence, forced eating, suicide including hanging, drug abuse and drugging, gender reassignment surgery as well as homophobic and misogynistic language, needles and blood.\u201d<\/p>\n Cleansed is ostensibly set in a university campus, and follows a sadistic ringleader (played here by Leo Bill) who tortures and abuses a disparate group of outsiders.<\/p>\n Speaking to The Independent earlier this month<\/a>, Frecknall and Bill were asked about the play\u2019s propensity for causing audience members to faint.<\/p>\n \u201cIt\u2019s certainly not the aim,\u201d Frecknall said, \u201cbut I don\u2019t think it was [director Katie Mitchell\u2019s] aim when she did it at the National. People have physical reactions to all types of works; it\u2019s just some get reported more than others.\u201d<\/p>\n Bill said he had had \u201cquite a lot\u201d of friends and acquaintances tell him they were \u201cscared\u201d to see the play due to its content. <\/p>\n \u201cIt\u2019s like, \u2018Well, we could all go and watch a No\u00ebl Coward play,\u2019\u201d he said, \u201cAnd that\u2019s fine \u2013 but what world are we in, where we are afraid to be challenged? It all becomes about that, about, like, \u2018oh, some hands get chopped off.\u2019 Whereas actually, it\u2019s so beautiful. <\/p>\n \u201cAnd the beauty in [Cleansed] is so much more important than whether somebody faints or not.\u201d<\/p>\n Cleansed is at the Almeida Theatre until 29 August.<\/p>\n If you are experiencing feelings of distress, or are struggling to cope, you can speak to the Samaritans, in confidence, on 116 123 (UK and ROI), email jo@samaritans.org, or visit the Samaritans<\/a> website to find details of your nearest branch.<\/p>\n If you are based in the USA, and you or someone you know needs mental health assistance right now, call the National Suicide Prevention Helpline on 1-800-273-TALK (8255). This is a free, confidential crisis hotline that is available to everyone 24 hours a day, seven days a week.<\/p>\n![\"Stuart](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/Almeida-Theatre_Cleansed_Stuart-Thompson_Credit--Marc-Brenner-(1).jpeg\")
Stuart Thompson in ‘Cleansed’ at the Almeida (Marc Brenner)<\/p>\n![\"Lizzie](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/Almeida-Theatre_Cleansed_Lizzie-Connolly-and-Leo-Bill_Credit--Marc-Brenner.jpeg\")
Lizzie Connolly and Leo Bill in ‘Cleansed’ (Marc Brenner)<\/p>\n