The Confessions of Lily Dare Charles Busch New Conservatory Theatre Center As two old friends reminisce before a grave whose tombstone they describe as alabaster white due to regular cleanings of baking soda mixed with Jack Daniels whiskey, one notes lovingly and admiringly of the grave’s occupant, “She wouldn’t let a geezer squeeze her tits for less than a twenty.” … [Read more...] about The Confession of Lily Dare
New Conservatory Theatre Center
Locusts Have No King
Locusts Have No King Julian Jiménez New Conservatory Theatre Center Jonathan and Marcus are in final prep for a dinner party with their neighbors, Lucas and Matthew. All four live in the same building and work in the same profession for the same institution. All are also in the closet at work and pretty much everywhere else except in the confines of the building … [Read more...] about Locusts Have No King
Getting There
Getting There Dipika Guha New Conservatory Theatre Center As a young woman sits on a bench alone, each of four other women of varied generations approach her with highly dramatic outreach motions, lip-singing Edith Piaf’s “Non, Je Ne Regrette Rien,” or in English translation, “No, I Don’t Feel Sorry about Nothing.” As they continue to bombard her with their … [Read more...] about Getting There
Dot
Dot Colman Domingo New Conservatory Theatre Center Family gatherings during the December holidays are often a time of maneuvering about carefully on rather thin ice, with members skating gingerly around issues in order not to reopen past and often persistent cracks in relationships. For the Shealy family, skirting away from the one fact most want to ignore as they … [Read more...] about Dot
You’ll Catch Flies
The phrase “you’ll catch flies” begs for a few more words. One common saying is “Close your mouth, or you’ll catch flies.” Another one some of us may have also heard from the likes of a grandmother or an aunt, “You’ll catch flies more with honey than with vinegar.” In either case, there is a warning implied – the first to keep your mouth shut a bit more (or something bad may … [Read more...] about You’ll Catch Flies
Head Over Heels
What happens when a Renaissance tale of royal romance written in iambic pentameter collides head-on with the jukebox music of the 1980s all-female group, the Go-Go’s? And what if twists and turns of the story inspired by Sir Philip Sidney’s The Arcadia (1580s) now include same-sex love, gender-bending left and right, and a “non-binary, plural” Oracle of Delphi? New … [Read more...] about Head Over Heels
The Cake
“If cake were free for everybody, there would be a lot less problems in the world.” In fact, or at least so goes Della’s thinking, invite the leaders of ISIS into her cakery – Della’s Sweets in Winston, North Carolina – and a few bites of her butter cream icing might just improve their dispositions for good! As soon as we meet Della in Bekah Brunstetter’s play, The Cake, it … [Read more...] about The Cake
This Side of Crazy
They were once known as “the little superstars for Jesus.” Now the grown Blaylock Sisters are an atheist former stripper, a mental institution patient who once strangled her ex-lover, and a Vlogger who gives scripture-based advice on her “Good Christian Women” show after making love to her comatose husband upstairs. How they each got from Point A to Point B has much to do … [Read more...] about This Side of Crazy
“The View Upstairs”
The View UpstairsMax VernonNew Conservatory Theatre CenterNick Rodrigues & Ensemble MembersAs the fiftieth anniversary of Stonewall fast approaches and as we in San Francisco also recall in honor the drag and transgender heroes of the Compton Cafeteria riots of 1966, what better time for us to take every chance to remember those who came before us, to celebrate how far we … [Read more...] about “The View Upstairs”
“The Gentleman Caller”
The Gentleman CallerPhilip DawkinsNew Conservatory Theatre CenterBrennan Pickman-Thoon & Adam Niemann“I don’t like interviewers for the very reason they remind me of what I once said,” he says in his syrupy, Southern flow of clever quips. But a favorable interview is very much what young, boy-looking Tom Williams (“Tennessee for short”) is hoping to receive from the … [Read more...] about “The Gentleman Caller”
“Steve”
SteveMark GerrardNew Conservatory Theatre CenterGreg Ayers, Clove Galilee, Joey Alvarado, Shawnj West & Daniel RedmondFive long-term friends – two gay couples and their mutual lesbian BFF, Carrie – are meeting for drinks to celebrate Steven’s birthday. Steven arrives in a grouchy mood, snapping with a snarl every time his partner of sixteen years opens his mouth and … [Read more...] about “Steve”
“Late Company”
Late CompanyJordan TannahillNew Conservatory Theatre CenterBaela Tinsley, Cheryl Smity, Desiree Tinsley, Lawrence Radecker & Kenneth Heaton The announced menu for the dinner party includes a main course of healing and reconciliation; but as the meal progresses, the dessert begins to look like a food fight full of accusations peppered by cradled secrets, unspoken … [Read more...] about “Late Company”
“Cardboard Piano”
Cardboard PianoHansol JungNew Conservatory Theatre CenterGabriella Momah, Howard Johnson, Megan Timpane & Dane TroyFor anyone who grew up in a Southern Baptist church (and then left forever), the hymn “Just As I Am” will strike a deep and perhaps uneasy chord. The slow, soulful tune will surely bring back memories of the congregation singing the “invitational hymn” … [Read more...] about “Cardboard Piano”
“Red Scare on Sunset”
Red Scare on SunsetCharles BuschNew Conservatory Theatre CenterJ. Conrad Frank & Nancy FrenchWith the red-headed, red-lipped looks and antics when she’s happy of Lucille Ball’s Lucy and the snarls and evil eyes of Bette Davis’s Sweet Charlotte when she’s not, Hollywood starlet of 1951 Mary Dale swishes about in petticoat-packed skirts that Donna Reed would have died to … [Read more...] about “Red Scare on Sunset”
“Six Characters in Search of a Play”
Six Characters in Search of a PlayDel ShoresNew Conservatory Theatre CenterDel Shores“I’m a storytelling thief,” confesses the ever-smiling, hands-flying “minor gay celebrity” (his words) standing just a few feet from his already enraptured audience – about fifty of what must be hundreds of thousands of loyal fans of Brother Boy, Bitsy Mae, Latrelle, Sissy, LaVonda, and ‘Bubba’ … [Read more...] about “Six Characters in Search of a Play”
