From 1915 to 1940, Michael Dillon struggled against a world that insisted he was a girl. The only way he could live a full life was to invent gender affirming care for trans men. Body aligned, he began work on his soul. Heart-break, world travel, and life as a Buddhist monk followed.
Today, trans identities are openly mocked in British parliament, and gender affirming healthcare increasingly difficult to access. Far from “new and experimental”, hormone and surgical treatments developed by and for Dillon, in partnership with an emerging plastic surgeon, are established best practices for the global medical community.
Follow Michael’s journey from his childhood in Folkestone, through his medical training and transition, to the Merchant Navy and Buddhist monasteries in India. Described by biographer Liz Hodgkinson as “the world's first female-to-male transsexual”, Dillon’s extraordinary life comes to the stage for the first time, with an all-trans cast.
Tobi King Bakare and this theatre deserve a shout-out for such a young, diverse audience. There is so much talk about audiences being full of over 60s and why, why can’t theatres get the crowds in to reflect society in general? Well, I’m happy to say that on a rainy Thursday evening, the theatre was completely full.
Caiti Grove on Before I Go in CPT's Spring 2023 season London Theatre Reviews
