Kit Harington says criticism of black-only play nights is vaguely ridiculous
The idea has been previously criticised as ‘wrong and divisive’.
![](https://www.shropshirestar.com/resizer/v2/5P37EFIX7RE6VKQC7IN4H5OCHA.jpg?auth=083038c66011902e411b58ec07cc2cbfdb07ece9ed04831efce6447d250d60c4&width=300&height=225)
Kit Harington has hit back at criticism of black-only nights for West End plays as “vaguely ridiculous”.
The 37-year-old Game Of Thrones actor is in the cast of Slave Play at the Noel Coward Theatre, which has set aside two performances aimed at an “all-black-identifying audience” which is “free from the white gaze”.
A spokesman for then prime minister Rishi Sunak criticised the idea in February as being “wrong and divisive”.
Harrington defended the theatrical production following the first black-out performance, and told the BBC’s Sunday with Laura Kuenssberg programme he believes it is “an incredibly positive thing” .
He said: “Number one – if you are white, no-one’s stopping you buying a ticket, it’s not illegal to buy a ticket for that show, if you want to come. It’s saying ‘We would prefer the audience to be this’.
“Number two – I’ve been going to the theatre since I was young, with my mum. I’ve only ever really known predominantly white audiences. It is still a particularly white space.
“So to have the argument that ‘Oh, this is discriminating against white people’ is, I think, vaguely strange and ridiculous.”
Harrington also called it “unlike anything I’ve ever experienced” because it provides a space where “a certain group of people can come and feel open to laughing in a certain way, reacting in a certain way, in sort of safety”.
However, he warned that audiences could feel “sucker-punched” by the play because the actors are “saying words to each other, at each other, that you shouldn’t and don’t hear uttered in society”.
![The MET Gala 2019 – New York](http://image.assets.pressassociation.io/v2/image/production/58bc7370458fcfb443f12a5fbde5fcd6Y29udGVudHNlYXJjaGFwaSwxNzIyMjQ1MDM0/2.42720335.jpg?w=640)
Harington also said he is “kind of terrified” each night due to being naked during the play.
His co-star, I’m A Virgo actress Olivia Washington, daughter of two-time Oscar winner Denzel Washington, said she thinks the play is “positive” because with “difficult subject matter, it can get hard for people to hear”.
She added: “However, to feel supported by this room in a different kind of way felt just… it felt really great.”
The production, playing from June 29 until September 21, has its second black-out night on September 17.
Previously staged on Broadway, the play was nominated for 12 Tony Awards and tells a story of “race, identity and sexuality” at the MacGregor Plantation in the southern US during the early 21st century.
The writer, Emily In Paris star Jeremy O Harris, has defended the production, saying it is not just for “black-only” audiences and there will be no restrictions on the black-out nights.
The producers said “no-one will be prevented or precluded from attending any performance of Slave Play”.
![Sunday with Laura Kuenssberg](http://image.assets.pressassociation.io/v2/image/production/2e49725b20a5e6a995f3dace6057fed1Y29udGVudHNlYXJjaGFwaSwxNzIyMjQ2NjQx/2.76976214.jpg?w=640)
Comedian and actor Stephen Fry, who also appeared on Sunday with Laura Kuenssberg, also defended it as a “fair idea” which will encourage more diverse theatregoers.
Harington has previously said a spin-off about his Game Of Thrones character, Jon Snow, is no longer in development, but told the BBC he hopes there will be a return.
“At the moment, there isn’t the right story to tell there for him and so it’s best just to leave it because you don’t want to ruin a kind of beloved character by taking it too far,” he said.
Harington is married to his Game Of Thrones co-star Rose Leslie, who played his love interest Ygritte in the series, and they have two children.