It has been a long time since Frederick Rolfe has been on the stage. Longer still since his life has inspired a dramatist to create a new piece. So if you are in London in March it will be well worth checking out this new production, Now We Are Pope, which will also be seen at the Edinburgh Fringe later in the year. Martin Arbery is a writer whose themes often touch on sexuality, literary subjects and religion, previous productions have included Tadzio Speaks in which Thomas Mann's beautiful boy returns to the Lido as an old man, so it seems wholly appropriate that he should be turning his pen towards the life of Frederick Rolfe and in particular Rolfe's final years in Venice.
Martin says: "Although the play itself is a work of imagination, all the incidents referred to in Now We Are Pope either took place in real life or are taken from Rolfe's fiction. Furthermore, much of the play consists of quotations from his letters and novels. Among the many sources consulted in writing the play, most notable is Miriam J Benkovitz's Frederick Rolfe: Baron Corvo; Robert Scoble's recently published Raven was also of help. An annotated version of Now We Are Pope will be available later in 2014."