Two demonstrators from Just Stop Oil have interrupted a performance of The Tempest, featuring Sigourney Weaver in London’s West End.
On Monday evening, a man and woman representing the environmental campaign group ascended the Theatre Royal Drury Lane stage.
A confetti cannon was launched, and a voice announced, “We must pause the show, ladies and gentlemen, my apologies.”
Actress Weaver, seated on stage, was escorted away by a theatre staff member.
A video released by Just Stop Oil depicts the protesters receiving a mixed response from the audience, characterised by both boos and a few cheers before they were escorted off stage in under a minute.
During a scene, Alien star Weaver and another actor were interrupted.
The demonstrators displayed an orange banner stating, “Over 1.5 degrees is a global shipwreck.”
The reference was to the narrative of Shakespeare’s Tempest, which includes the motif of a sinking ship.
In an online statement, Just Stop Oil indicated that the sign referred to a recent discovery that the annual global temperature exceeded the internationally agreed 1.5C target for the first time in 2024.
In recent years, Just Stop Oil has focused on several prominent events and venues, including the Chelsea Flower Show, the Proms, Stonehenge, and the National Gallery.
Earlier this month, two women were apprehended for vandalising the grave of naturalist Charles Darwin located in Westminster Abbey.
