liegood.pages.dev

Gay theater

Published in:January-February 2014 issue.

 

IF “GAY THEATER” is defined as organism by, for, and about uncloseted homosexual people, then 2014 arguably marks the 50th anniversary of the genre’s being. In 1964, despite a social climate of homophobia that pervaded American being for the second third of the 20th century, two one-act plays presented Off-Off-Broadway at the Caffe Cino revolutionized how gay characters could be represented theatrically. The plays were Lanford Wilson’s “The Madness of Lady Bright” and Robert Patrick’s “The Haunted Host.”

Premiering four years before Mart Crowley’s Boys in the Band opened Off-Broadway, Wilson’s one-act was the longest running play ever to appear at the Caffe Cino, where it was performed over two hundred times to consistently packed houses. Similarly, since its successful inaugural move at the Cino, Patrick’s “The Haunted Host” has reached countless viewers in its many dozens of productions in the U.S. and internationally, including a 1975 Boston-area movie that featured Harvey Fierstein in his first male role. Both plays were frequently revived in subsequent years, including at San Francisco’s Theatre Rhinoceros in the late 1970s.

All Gays Love Theater

Following

"Homer, anyone who's ever acted in, written, or ever even seen a play is gay."

— Grady, The Simpsons

The stereotype that if a man is queer, he must love theater, especially musical theater. He'll know every play and musical worth knowing in a given season, will be familiar with every Broadway leading lady (living and dead), and owns the original cast recordings (they are not "soundtracks") of his favorite musicals that he sings with gusto. When he's not onstage himself, he'll religiously attend the performances in his city's theater district.

As one can imagine, this trope extends all around. If a man is a stage star or is in any way employed by a theater firm, or simply enjoys theater and listening to showtunes, questions of his sexuality will rise fast. This can be a Pet-Peeve Trope, though the degree of which varies. Most heterosexual sta

Thank You!

We have concluded  our 2025 Festival, and it was an amazing triumph, adding another 56 performances to our history.

Thank you to our audience members, volunteers, and performers. Without you this Festival would not be possible.

We possess some exciting events this year, so keep checking assist for more news, or sign up for our newsletter by sending a message to newsletter@gaytheatre.ie.

2025 Gala Award Winners

At the Gala Celebration on May 18, the following awards were given:

  • Amy Dalton Award for Volunteer of the Year: Winners: Vitaly ChakavehandThomas Wall
  • Hilton Edwards Award for Best Aspect of Production: Winner: The Little Jet Fish; Nominees: Iggy Beamish Destroys Traditional Marriage, The Strange Case of Dr. Dillon
  • Sean Meehan Award for Identity in Theatre: Winner: Oh! I Miss the War; Nominee: The Little Black Fish
  • Doric Wilson Award for Intercultural Dialogue: Winner: The Little Ebony Fish; Nomine: Iggy Beamish Destroys TraditionalMarriage
  • Patrick Murray Award for Outstanding Contribution to Irish LGBT+ Theatre: Winner: Sean Denyer, Acting Out
  • Oscar Wilde Award for Foremost New Writing: Winner:Conor O’Dwyer for Homo(s

    overview

    Opened in 1904, the Hudson Theater has staged multiple productions involving major LGBT creators and performers, including W. Somerset Maugham, Oscar Wilde, Oliver Smith, Laurence Olivier, Barbara Stanwyck, and Eva Le Gallienne, among others.

    Two plays with gay male characters that appeared here included Whiteoaks (1938) and the 1963 revival of Strange Interlude (1928).

    Header Photo

    Credit: Christopher D. Brazee/NYC LGBT Historic Sites Project, 2022.

    Clyde Fitch, playwright of the 1908 play Her Sister. Source: www.clydefitchreport.com.

    Under Fire ad, 1915. Source: wplreferenceblog.blogspot.com.

    Blythe Daly, actress in the 1921 play The Varying Shore.

    George Kelly, playwright of the 1921 play The Show-Off. Source: www.imdb.com.

    Zoe Akins, playwright of the 1921 engage The Varying Shore.

    Barbara Stanwyck in The Noose, 1927.

    W. Somerset Maugham, playwright of three productions at the Hudson Theater. Photo by Kay Vaughan, c. 1930.

    Whiteoaks postcard, 1938.

    Playbill credits page for Strange Interlude, 1963.

    History

    The