Based on the diary kept by real-life Dutch sailor Leendert Hasenbosch during his exile on Ascension Island in the South Atlantic, this play written and performed by Dan Hazelwood takes the audience through the rollercoaster of emotions and internal torment Leendert (known in the play as ‘Lee’) underwent as the result of his homosexuality, the cause of his remote exile. This includes harrowing reenactments of Lee struggling to live on Ascension whilst suffering from starvation and dehydration interspersed with showing how his sexuality affected his life and relationship with God. Also depicted are Lee’s nightmares where he is haunted by not only guilt over his queerness but also the memories of a former lover whose significance increases as the play progresses.

Hazelwood handles the tonal shifts well, with the grim reality of Lee’s internal and external conflict over his sexuality interspersed with surreally euphoric and surprisingly funny moments that reference contemporary culture. A stand out moment is a crazed rant by a dehydrated Lee that manages to include references of Cher and the fundamentalist Westboro Baptist Church! The staging also effectively depicts the physical and emotional states Lee inhabits, with blues and yellow lighting used to convey the deceptively tropical setting of Ascension, pink for Lee’s sexual euphoria and individual white spotlights denoting intimacy.

Hazelwood gives a multifaceted performance as Lee, encompassing his inhibition, seeming religious/sexual turmoil and manic exhilaration both in desire and growing madness at his isolation. Conor Mainwaring as Lee’s past boyfriend provides a more aggressive and arch counterpoint to the character of Lee and plays off Hazelwood well. The two actors also share an undeniable chemistry in their more intimate moment.

A last minute twist concerning the feelings of shame Lee felt on the island provides a much-needed correction to the past translations of the diary, righting past injustices done to him by societal bigotry. However, whilst this action is laudable, its placement in the narrative results in its corrections feeling somewhat rushed, an earlier reveal would have allowed for the assertions to unfold at a slower, more natural pace.

This issue aside ‘Ascension’ works as a moving, emotionally gripping and surprisingly energetic attempt to really tell a historical queer story the way it should be told.

‘Ascension‘ is at Bedlam Theatre – Theatre until Mon 25 Aug 2025 at 14:00