London: Hundreds of Sikhs tried to storm a theatre in the central English city of Birmingham, halting a play they say mocks their religion and slightly injuring five police officers in the melee, police has said.

The protesters at the Birmingham Repertory Theatre yesterday (Dec 18, 2004) forced the cancellation of the play "Behzti" (Dishonour), which depicts acts of sexual abuse and murder in a Sikh place of worship, they said.

Two men were arrested for public order offences, police added.

"There have been peaceful protests outside the theatre all week due to a play which has caused upset in the Sikh community," a police spokeswoman said.

Nonetheless, police said five people had been arrested during the earlier protests. Three of them had been released on police bail pending further inquiries and one had been cautioned.

"Tonight there were up to 400 people outside the theatre," the police spokeswoman added.

"A large number of these protesters made a concerted effort to get into the theatre to disrupt the performance and this caused damage and disorder," she said.

"The situation is calm and around 100 or so protesters remain outside the theatre," the spokeswoman added. "Negotiations are taking place between the theatre, protesters and police."

The play, written by Sikh playwright Gurpreet Kaur Bhatti, has a scheduled run at the theatre until the end of December and explores issues of sexual abuse, manipulation and relationships inside a Gurdwara, a Sikh place of worship.