Click on image to buy ticket
Boobytrapped is sharp, funny, emotionally exposed, and built on the kind of lived experience that can’t be faked. When I first read Freddie’s answers, what struck me wasn’t just the craft behind the writing, but the clarity of purpose. This is a play that knows exactly why it exists and exactly what it wants to say — about bodies, identity, masculinity, queerness, and the strange, messy business of becoming yourself in a world that insists on telling you what you are.
There’s a generosity running through the interview too. Freddie doesn’t dodge the difficult parts — the frustration, the fear, the absurdity — but he also refuses to let heaviness swallow the humour. That balance is hard to pull off, and it’s part of what makes boobytrapped feel so alive. It’s a story built from real conversations, real contradictions, and real encounters with people who don’t always get it right. And that honesty gives the play its charge.
Below is the full interview with with writer, Freddie Haberfellner.
1. Your script treats a bodyswap not as a gimmick but as a way of exploring identity and perspective. When did you realise this supernatural twist could become the foundation of the story?
First of all, thanks so much for having me! The idea for a bodyswap play kind of just landed in my brain one night! I was roughly eight months on testosterone and somewhat starting to pass, had just received a date for top surgery (with more than a year’s wait ahead of me) and was spending more time around cis gay men. As a result, I was thinking a lot about what makes someone a man, how differently the world treats you based on how you’re perceived, all the different ways in which all of us attempt to affirm our gender and identity. On one hand, I was really surprised by how much I had common with the cis gays, how easy it was to feel like I was one of them and how welcome some of them made me feel. On the other hand, I was really shocked by the casual misogyny, bodyshaming and transphobia I encountered. I asked myself what I would have been like as a cis man, or how these guys would cope with being trans even for a day… and so the bodyswap seemed like the perfect way to find out!
2. Simon and Kevin wake up in one another’s bodies — but they also confront one another’s insecurities and assumptions. Which aspect of that dynamic was the hardest to write honestly?
Finding Kevin (the cis man)’s voice was definitely the biggest challenge, balancing his humanity whilst portraying the toxicity and prejudice I’ve experienced from a lot of cis gay men. I think the early drafts really reflect how much I was struggling because he barely spoke and when he did he mostly just said ‘What?’ He was really missing nuance, perhaps because I’ve been quite pissed off with (some) cis people for how they treat the trans community, or how even the ones who say they support us won’t show up as much as we need them to at this critical moment in time. But, as a writer, it’s not my job to tell people off! I had to figure out why Kevin treats Simon badly and find empathy for his pain, too. At the end of the day, we need to be hard on systems, not people – often easier said than done!
3. The show arrives at a moment when trans people are often spoken about rather than listened to. Did writing boobytrapped feel like a way of contributing your own perspective to that conversation?
Yes, absolutely. Putting on plays – both my previous show F*ckboy and now boobytrapped – is definitely my small way of standing up for my community. To say it’s frustrating to see the way we’re being spoken about would be an understatement, and the fact that the voice of misinformation and, let’s be real, hate speech is so loud and supported by some very powerful people is terrifying. We’re seeing over and over again that decisions concerning trans people’s basic human rights are being made without a single one of us being consulted, without unbiased research that is readily available actually being considered. I hope trans people like myself feel seen, understood and affirmed, but I’m also hoping that cis people seeing the show might learn a thing or two, and leave the theatre ready to double down on their support for the trans community.
4. The show is playful and funny, but it’s also set against the backdrop of debates around gender identity and the social climate referenced in your press materials. How do you balance humour with those heavier themes?
My therapist would tell you that humour is just how I cope with any difficult situation (I think they might be on to something there!). But being trans is silly, because being a human being is silly! Going through puberty again as an adult, dealing with the emotional and hormonal rollercoaster of that whilst holding down a job (or several)… it’s a goldmine for comedy in my opinion. But I think it’s so common in the queer community or any marginalised group to find the laughter in dire situations in order to maintain hope. Translated onto the stage, I always find that if a play is only sad, serious or heavy with no moments of joy and levity I’ll eventually check out emotionally, so it’s really important to me as an artist to always find the silliness and through that, perhaps, the humanity of a moment. And there’s more than enough trans tragedy out there: the prevailing narrative for too long has been that our lives are hard and miserable, full stop. While it’s true that our lives are made harder than they need to be, being trans is also an incredible gift that has brought me so much joy.
5. Body-swap stories often hinge on empathy and understanding. What questions did you most want audiences to ask themselves through Simon and Kevin’s journey?
One of the reasons I wanted to write this play was the insecurity I witnessed in myself and pretty much everyone around me regarding our own bodies. Wanting to look different, be different – bigger, smaller, more muscular, softer, harder… however we look, we always seem to think someone else looks better. I’ve been looking into the looksmaxxing movement and I’m simply horrified by the damage these young men do to themselves in order to reach some ‘ideal of masculinity’. But, of course, some people are of the opinion that I as a trans man am mutilating my own body by accessing gender-affirming care. I strongly reject that notion, yet it can’t be denied that there are similarities. So why do any of us feel the need to change our bodies? Why do we have these fixed ideas of what men and women look like? Why do our bodies determine how we are treated, what language people use about us? And how can we make peace with ourselves and the bodies we find ourselves in?
6. After touring Fckboy across Europe and receiving several awards, what part of that experience fed most directly into boobytrapped?
I love this question! I’ve absolutely loved performing F*ckboy but it’s also a very challenging and exhausting show to do. It is just my little self on the stage and I’ve definitely felt the pressure of that. So I think I was really craving collaboration with other performers and I’ve definitely found that with my wonderful co-star Ermis Makides as well as the whole team. My good friend Romeo Lau has been beyond brilliant as a director, Ro Winchester’s contribution as intimacy director has made some really difficult scenes easy and fun, and Callie O’Brien’s sound design really brought it all together. We’ve genuinely had such a blast workshopping and rehearsing this show, as well as previewing it at Prague Fringe. Plus, we’re all trans and non-binary people and it’s just been so special to be in a room with brilliant queer creatives who’ve poured so much love into my latest brain creation!
7. The gay-club setting feels vivid and central to the story. What drew you to that environment as the place where this extraordinary situation begins?
As so many transmasc people did, I grew into my queerness in sapphic spaces and I was very lucky to find some incredible community there with true care and togetherness. Once I realised that I was a) a man and b) really into men, I started spending more time in spaces predominantly frequented by cis gay men and, genuinely, I was really surprised by the difference in vibe. By no means are sapphic spaces perfect but, in my experience, they’re better at making everyone feel safe and welcome. So there was something really intriguing about starting the show in a place that, at first glance, is more welcoming to one of the characters than the other but, once you look closer, maybe isn’t the best place for either of them to be. A central theme of boobytrapped is definitely about feeling at home in your own body, but there is a wider theme of feeling at home in general. The gay club is the first of several potential homes we visit throughout the show. Slight spoiler here, but the characters also end up in the club’s accessible toilet which is where the body swap happens. I felt that was a necessary nod at the current attack on trans people’s right to use public toilets (as well as other gendered spaces).
8. The partnership with Waverley Care adds another dimension to the production. How did that collaboration come about, and what does it mean to you?
As a company, our goal isn’t just to make theatre but to use our art to inspire social change, to bring people together, make them feel less alone and raise awareness of queer struggles. Collaborating with a charity has been a goal of ours for quite some time and I’m so thrilled that we get to support Waverley Care’s vital work. Whilst sexual health isn’t a direct theme of the show, there definitely is a lot of talk about sex so their work almost feels like an extension of the play! We’ll have informational leaflets available to our audience members to hopefully raise awareness of HIV, hepatitis B, hepatitis C and general sexual health, and audiences will have the opportunity to donate too if they can. I’m also really excited to be doing a writing workshop with some of their service users. The focus will be on using your lived experience to create art but keeping yourself as emotionally safe as possible in the process. With two plays inspired by my life under my belt, I’ve learnt quite a lot along the way, and have also seen how empowering it can be to create art in this way. So being able to share this experience with other queer folks is an immense privilege.
9. Simon and Kevin’s relationship is messy, tender and often funny. What surprised you most about writing two characters with such different perspectives on masculinity and identity?
From the offset I knew that I wanted the play to be a romcom – there’s a dire lack of love stories especially for trans men – but I also knew that there would be some real obstacles for the characters to overcome. I didn’t want to trivialize or downplay the transphobia that happens at the beginning, but was also determined to show that people can learn and grow when given the opportunity. Whilst writing, I had a lot of wonderful conversations with my AMAB friends which really helped me to see all our similarities. The way we are all insecure about our bodies, about whether we’re desirable, whether we’re doing gender correctly (whatever that may mean)… With time, I realised that the two characters really are quite similar even though their struggles manifest in very different ways. They’re both damaged, they both make mistakes and hurt each other, but I’ve been genuinely surprised by the moments of care and softness we’ve found in between all the body swap madness.
10. If audiences leave theSpace on The Mile having seen the show, what do you most hope they take away from the experience?
I really need this on a shirt because I say it so often, but with any play I do I’ll genuinely be happy if I’ve made one person feel less alone. What I hope is that people leave the theatre with a strengthened sense of empathy – for themselves as well as each other. I hope their bellies ache from laughing. And I hope the cis audience members especially will have learnt a thing or two about the trans experience, and I hope they feel inspired to bring that knowledge into conversations going forward to help us raise awareness and fight the horrific amount of misinformation circulating at the moment. I hope trans and queer people seeing the show feel seen and held, and perhaps a little more in love with their own brilliant bodies.
