Hundreds of figures from the arts have united to condemn the cancellation of a controversial Sikh play as an affront to freedom of expression.
"To stop the production of a work of art by means of force and continued threats of force is unacceptable," said an open letter signed by some 700 actors, writers and directors.
The Birmingham Repertory Theatre in central England decided this week to ditch "Behzti" (Dishonour) -- a play featuring sexual abuse and murder in a Sikh temple, after 400 Sikh protesters pelted the playhouse with stones.
Its Sikh author Gurpreet Kaur Bhatti has gone into hiding after receiving death threats, according to friends, in an echo of Iran's fatwa against author Salman Rushdie for "The Satanic Verses" that forced him underground 15 years ago.
"Doubtless, some will see the fact that the play's production has been brought to an end by this campaign of intimidation as some kind of victory," said the letter published in Thursday's Guardian newspaper.
"The reality is we all lose by it. The violent abuse of power to silence the individual in a community is one of the main themes of this writer's play. It is a sad irony, therefore, that the violent actions of some of the protesters on Saturday have actually only served to confirm the play's relevance."
Protesters from Britain's normally low-profile 500,000-strong Sikh community were furious over the play's depiction of sexual abuse, kissing, dancing, homosexuality and murder taking place in a gurdwara, or Sikh temple.
Signatories of Thursday's letter -- titled "We must defend freedom of expression" -- included well-known figures such as actress Prunella Scales, playwright Willy Russell and poet laureate Andrew Motion.
"We all have the right to protest peacefully if a work of art offends us. We do not have the right to use violence and intimidation to prevent that work of art from being seen by others," the letter added.
"Those who use violent means to silence it must be vigorously opposed and challenged by all of us, whatever our faith, belief or opinions."
The fate of "Behzti" is not without precedent in Britain.
Jim Allen's play "Perdition", a courtroom drama suggesting some Zionists collaborated with the Nazis in 1944, was cancelled in 1987, two days before the first performance at the Royal Court in London following pickets outside.