Less than two weeks after the September 11th attacks, New Yorkers are still in shock. One of them, an editor named Joan, receives an unexpected phone call on behalf of Nick, a fire captain who has lost most of his men in the attack. He's looking for a writer to help him with the eulogies he must present at their memorial services. Nick and Joan spend a long afternoon together, recalling the fallen men through recounting their virtues and their foibles, and fashioning the stories into memorials of words. In the process, Nick and Joan discover the possibilities of friendship in each other and their shared love for the unconquerable spirit of the city. As they make their way through the emotional landscape of grief, they draw on humor, tango, the appreciation of craft in all its forms—and the enduring bonds of common humanity. THE GUYS is based on a true story.
JEFFREY
November 9-18
Read about JEFFREY in The Hudson Reporter
Jeffrey, a gay actor/waiter, has sworn off sex after too many bouts with his partners about what is "safe" and what is not. In gay New York, though, sex is not something you can avoid. Whether catering a ditzy socialite's "Hoe-down for AIDS" or cruising at a funeral; at the gym or in the back rooms of an anonymous sex club; at the annual Gay Pride Parade, or in the libidinous hands of a father-confessor, Jeffrey finds the pursuit of love and just plain old physical gratification to be the number-one preoccupation of his times—and the source of plenty of hilarity. Suddenly, just after he's reconciled himself to celibacy, Jeffrey's flamboyant friends introduce him to the man of his dreams, who also happens to be HIV-positive. What follows is an audacious and moving romantic comedy with a difference—one in which the quest for love and really fabulous clothes meet, and where unflagging humor prevails even when tragedy might be just around the corner. (NOTE: Sexually explicit behavior, adult situations.)
Obie Award, the Outer Critics' Circle Award, and the John Gassner award for Outstanding New American Play in 1993.
THE NIGHT OF
JANUARY 16th
February 22-March 2, 2008
Was it a murder or a tragic accident?
Volunteers from the audience will be the jury for this murder trial.
Bjorn Faulkner has swindled millions of dollars of money from investors by investing cash he didn’t have to control the gold trade. In the wake of a crash, he is facing bankruptcy despite a loan from a prominent banker (whose daughter he marries shortly after the loan). On the night of January 16th, in New York, Bjorn and his mistress of 10 years, Karen Andre, are in the penthouse of the Faulkner building from which Bjorn falls to his death. Now on trial, Karen Andre is being prosecuted by Mr. Flint and defended by Mr. Stevens. Within the play, the two lawyers call upon a number of witnesses, including a private investigator, the coroner, and a notorious gangster, whose testimonies build a contradictory story.
ALL IN THE TIMING
April 25-May 4, 2008
Six one act plays by David Ives -- all short, comedic and thought-provoking:
Sure Thing: A man and a woman meet for the first time in a cafe, where they have an awkward meeting continually reset each time they say the wrong thing, until, finally, they connect
Words, Words, Words: Three chimpanzees attempt to write Hamlet. It discusses the merits of literature and questions its necessity.
The Universal Language: A man and a woman fall in love while communicating in the invented language Unamunda.
Philip Glass Buys a Loaf of Bread: A musical parody of minimalist composer Philip Glass, in which he has an existential crisis in a bakery.
The Philadelphia: A man in a strange state where he must ask for the opposite of what he wants in a restaurant.
Variations on the Death of Trotsky: Leon Trotsky dies several times from a mountain-climber's ax wound received 36 hours prior.