Book picks similar to
Angry Fags by Topher Payne
plays
tbr-plays
gay-theatre
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Jeremy Thorpe (Abacus Books)
Michael Bloch - 2014
When he became leader of the Liberal Party in 1967 at the age of just thirty-seven, he seemed destined for truly great things. But as his star steadily rose so his nemesis drew ever nearer: a time-bomb in the form of Norman Scott, a homosexual wastrel and sometime male model with whom Jeremy had formed an ill-advised relationship in the early 1960s. Scott's incessant boasts about their 'affair' became increasingly embarrassing, and eventually led to a bizarre murder plot to shut him up for good. Jeremy was acquitted of involvement but his career was in ruins.Michael Bloch's magisterial biography is not just a brilliant retelling of this amazing story; ten years in the making, it is also the definitive character study of one of the most fascinating figures in post-war British politics.
The Normal Heart
Larry Kramer - 1985
It tells the story of very private lives caught up in the heartrendering ordeal of suffering and doom - an ordeal that was largely ignored for reasons of politics and majority morality.Filled with power, anger, and intelligence, Larry Kramer's riveting play dramatizes what actualy happened from the time of the disease's discovery to the present, and points a moral j'accuse in many directions. His passionate indictment of government, the media, and the public for refusing to deal with a national plague is electrifying theater - a play that finally breaks through the conspiracy of silence with a shout of stunning impact. As Douglas Watt summed it up in his review for the New York Daily News,THE NORMAL HEART is "an angry, unremitting and gripping piece of political theater. You are bound to come away moved."
Lips Together, Teeth Apart
Terrence McNally - 1992
But never has he blended these disparate elements into such a brilliantly cohesive whole as he has in Lips Together, Teeth Apart,hailed by Frank Rich of the New York Times as McNallys"most ambitious and most accomplished play yet."At the heart of this haunting play is a dramatically incisive portrait of two married couples - the Trumans and the Haddocks. Uncomfortable with themselves and each other, they are forced to spend a Fourth of July weekend at the Fire Island house that the brother of one of the women left his sister when he died of AIDS. Though the house is beautiful, it is as empty as their lives and marriages have become, a symbol of their failed hopes, their rage, their fears, and of the capricious nature of death. Acerbic and haunting, Lips Together, Teeth Apart probes the stifledlives of people and their prejudices with a stunning clarity that resonates long after.
All We Lack
Sandra Moran - 2015
Maggie is a funeral director from Indiana who lives a double life. Bug is a ten-year-old boy in the Pennsylvania foster care system who is sent to live with an aunt he doesn't know. Jimmy is a former paramedic and prescription drug addict on his way to meet a woman he met online who thinks he's a successful doctor. Helen is a Chicago insurance investigator who is leaving her marriage in search of the woman she wants to be. Four strangers, all traveling to Boston in search of better lives, are tied together in ways they don't even realize. Each are trying to fill the void of what's missing in their lives. Sometimes it takes a tragedy to overcome all that we lack.
Perfect Perry (Rainbow Heights Book 1)
Carla Ryan - 2018
But when she meets Zinnia Paradiso, beautiful artist and free spirit, her definition of perfection isn’t so perfect anymore.
Unmarked Treasure: Poems
Cyril Wong - 2004
The poet wonders at his own existence and struggles between actual living and the desire to die."Cyril Wong continues to explore the nuances of relationships, in language that is lyrical, beautifully crafted, and erotically charged. There are several fine love poems that reach out to embrace a common humanity. Wong swims into the undercurrents of family tensions, hidden desires, and the meaning of a self... as well as questioning our understanding of both life and death."- Rebecca Edwards, author of Scar Country and Holiday Coast Medusa"Reading Cyril Wong is always to encounter risk, the painful suturing of art and life, trials of faith and baptisms of fire. I have only the deepest respect for someone who has razed the walls between the private and the public, and in doing so, carved more space for all of us."- Alfian Sa'at, author of One Fierce Hour and A History of Amnesia
Entertaining Mr. Sloane
Joe Orton - 1965
Despite its success in performance, and being hailed by Sir Terence Rattigan as 'the best first play' he'd seen in 'thirty odd years', it was not until the London production of Loot in 1966 - less than a year before Joe Orton's untimely death - that theatre audiences and critics began to more fully appreciate the originality of Orton's elegant, alarming and hilarious writing. Introduced by John Lahr, the author of Orton's biography Prick up Your Ears, Entertaining Mr Sloane is now established as an essential part of the repertoire of the modern theatre.
Hand to God: A New American Play
Robert Askins - 2017
But when the young members of the Christian Puppet Ministry put those teachings into practice, one devout young man's puppet takes on a shocking personality that no one could have expected. In this hilarious black comedy, a foul-mouthed sock puppet named Tyrone soon teaches those around him that the urges that can drive a person to give in to their darkest desires fit like a glove. In Hand to God, a "true tour de force" (New York Times), Robert Askins has written a play of "unerring perfection" (Huffington Post). The must-see hit of the 2015 Broadway season, starring Steven Boyer and Geneva Carr, garnered an Obie Award and five Tony Award nominations, including Best Play, following its sold out, critically acclaimed off-Broadway runs at MCC Theater and Ensemble Studio Theatre.
Rotterdam
Jon Brittain - 2015
But before she can hit send, her girlfriend reveals that he has always identified as a man and now wants to start living as one.Now Alice must face a question she never thought she'd ask . . . does this mean she's straight?A bittersweet comedy about gender, sexuality and being a long way from home.A programme text edition which was published to coincide with the world premiere at Theatre503, London, on 27 October 2015
Glitter Every Day: 365 Quotes from Women I Love
Andy Cohen - 2021
Elise: A small town in Cornwall. A well hidden secret. But the past is never far behind. An uplifting, intriguing new page-turner from the author of the ... to Cornwall series. (Connections Book 1)
Katharine E. Smith - 2021
Complete Christmas Collection
Riley Knight - 2018
Billy is a firefighter, James a paramedic, and both of them have dangerous, stressful jobs that leave little time for anything else, such as romance or even dating. Then Polly, an adorable little black and white kitten that they rescue, comes into their lives and changes everything. James has always thought he was straight, but soon, he has reason to question that, and everything else, when he realizes that he's falling for his best friend. Winter Wedding in Wyoming A decade ago, Jason ruined everything with his best friend when he kissed him impulsively. The only logical thing to do at that point was to run away from his homophobic family and neighbors, not to mention his mistake, and build a new life for himself in a whole new state. Another mistake brings him back to Wyoming, back to Lance, the best friend that he’d freaked out all of those years ago. Even after all of the time that has passed, he only trusts one man on the planet enough to ask to marry him. And that’s exactly what he needs to do, if he wants any chance at keeping his exciting new life. Mistletoe Marriage When David was a teaching assistant, he met Jonathan, a beautiful young student. The two became close friends, but the romance budding between them was forbidden and impossible. After the death of David’s wife, the older man is left a single father, longing for his best friend. It isn’t until Jonathan gets divorced that they have their chance. When David invites Jonathan and his son to live with him in the aftermath of the divorce, both men begin to wonder if the spark that was once there between them still exists. As the holidays approach, will the opportunity for love rise once more? Holiday Engagement Jake Marshal is just a DJ - he never expected to be famous. After a widely publicized relationship with a high-profile pop star ends disastrously, Jake just wants to put the incident behind him. A year later, her betrayed fans are still threatening his well being, her revenge song is still on the radio, and his manager thinks he needs a bodyguard to get him through Christmas. Jake hates Christmas, but his attraction to his bodyguard is nearly instant. When bodyguard Xavier Stone gets a job protecting Jake, he has no idea how much he has his work cut out for him. At least, he figures, the tour of Christmas events that Jake’s manager has planned will keep them in high spirits. Xavier loves Christmas, and spends each year eagerly counting down from December 1st. He quickly discovers that Jake is a scrooge, still stuck on his break up. Small Town Christmas Andy is a small town Sheriff with a secret. For years he’s been in the closet, hiding the truth about who he really is--and this year, it’s even more important that he keep his secret hidden. His position as Sheriff is up for grabs. Jeffrey Smith is a big city businessman, and he’s only in town to secure an investment. When his luck takes a turn, he finds himself falling for the last person he should--the town’s Sheriff himself. Country Christmas Edward Kirby is a big-city surgeon who’s worked himself toward an early grave.
A Bright Room Called Day
Tony Kushner - 1994
His intellectual characters are tremendously passionate and expressive, so it's hard not to care about what they care about, and what happens to them.” –Washington Post“A juggernaut of a play.” -San Francisco Weekly“Unabashedly political, thought-provoking, a little scary and frequently a good deal of theatrical fun… intoxicatingly visionary.” –Sid Smith, Chicago TribunePulitzer Prize-winning playwright Tony Kushner’s powerful portrayal of individual resolution, irresolution and dissolution in the face of political catastrophe, A Bright Room Called Day follows a group of artists and political activists struggling to preserve themselves in 1930s Berlin as the Weimar Republic surrenders to the seduction of fascism. Often exquisitely lyrical, always exhilaratingly intelligent, the poetic world of the play moves beyond the bounds of historical reality with the morally outraged outpourings of a contemporary New York woman. Her fury at the Reagan and British presidencies brings into stark relief the discomfiting similarities between then and now, and challenges us to remember that although evil may seem inevitable, it is never irresistible.Tony Kushner’s plays include Angels in America; Hydriotaphia, or the Death of Dr. Brown; The Illusion, adapted from the play by Pierre Cornelle; Slavs!; A Bright Room Called Day; Homebody/Kabul; Caroline, or Change, a musical with composer Jeanine Tesori; and The Intelligent Homosexual’s Guide to Capitalism and Socialism with a Key to the Scriptures. He wrote the screenplays for Mike Nichols’s film of Angels in America and for Steven Spielberg’s Munich and Lincoln. His books include The Art of Maurice Sendak: 1980 to the Present; Brundibar, with illustrations by Maurice Sendak; and Wrestling with Zion: Progressive Jewish-American Responses to the Israeli-Palestinian Conflict, co-edited with Alisa Solomon.Among many honors, Kushner is the recipient of a Pulitzer Prize, two Tony Awards, three Obie Awards, two Evening Standard Awards, an Olivier Award, an Emmy Award, two Oscar nominations, and the Steinberg Distinguished Playwright Award. He is a member of the American Academy of Arts and Letters. In 2012, he was awarded a National Medal of Arts by President Barack Obama. He lives in Manhattan with his husband, Mark Harris.
Fifth of July
Lanford Wilson - 1978
Traumatized and bitter, Ken struggles to find meaning in his life. As he contemplates selling the farmhouse, old friends and family members descend for a vacation. A bittersweet portrait of the rock n roll generation at the precise moment they realize the fireworks ended yesterday.
In Search of the Pleasure Palace: Disreputable Travels
Marc Almond - 2004
In this volume, he is an observant guide to a world that he was once master of.