The last time Terrence McNally's 2007 off-Broadway gay history drama Some Men played Chicago, it just a one-night-only reading presented in 2010 by Pride Films and Plays as part of a series of other McNally play readings. But now Pride Films and Plays ( PFP ) is returning to Some Men this month with a fully realized Chicago premiere production co-directed by PFP Artistic Director David Zak and Artistic Associate Derek Van Barham.
"When we started looking at this script, one of the things that interested David and us about it was how it jumps back and forth in time," Barham said. "So he really liked the idea of co-directing with someone a bit younger so that we could really try to capture the generational aspect of it."
Barham said Some Men is book-ended by scenes looking at people attending a contemporary gay wedding. In-between are scene from different decades of the 20th century, ranging from a secretive hotel rendezvous in the 1920s to New York's St. Vincent's Hospital during the deadly height of the AIDS crisis in the 1980s. It's all very much an overview looking at how far the gay community has come and to point out how different generations of gay men had to adapt to with the times they were living in.
"One of the great things about working with David is that we have very different directing approaches and styles, and it has been really nice to try and link those two together for this particular production," said Barham, adding that the intergenerational approach to the play also applies to the casting for PFP's production.
Trying to bridge the gap between different generations of gay men is a challenge faced within PFP according to Barham, and he's glad that this issue is also brought up in Some Men via a humorous scene touching upon too much political correctness.
"Two older gentlemen are approached by two younger gender studies majors for an interview, and it's a very interesting cross-generational conversation where these young people are trying to educate the older people and the older couple gets to bounce it back by saying, 'I'm sorry, we've lived through this,'" Barham said. "Even right now I'm very conscious of trying to use correct terminology so as not to offend any groups and I think that we're at a place where we're almost tongue-tied."
Because Some Men touches upon so much gay history, Barham said the play is perfect for PFP.
"This is such a great showcase for our ensemble," Barham said. "What's nice about that is you get to see some of our youngest and oldest PFP ensemble members doing these really beautiful scenes together which is something we haven't been able to find in a lot of scripts."
Pride Films and Plays' Chicago premiere of Terrence McNally's Some Men plays from Aug. 14 through Sept. 13 at Rivendell Theatre, 5779 N. Ridge Ave. Preview performances are at 7:30 p.m. Aug. 14 and 15 with an official press opening at 7:30 p.m. Aug. 16. Regular run performances are 7:30 p.m. Thursdays through Saturdays, with 6 p.m. Sunday performances on Aug. 17 and 24. Sunday matinees at 4 p.m. are set for Aug. 21 and Sept. 7. Preview tickets are $15 and $25-$30 during the regular run. There is a $5 discount for seniors and students to each performance; call 773-250-3112 or visit www.pridefilmsandplays.com .
A gay-straight friendship
Playwright Daniel Talbott isn't gay, but he's had plenty of invitations to write about gay characters. That's because one of Talbott's most-produced success is the troubled gay teen drama Slipping, which had its world premiere in 2008 by the intimate company The Side Project in Chicago before being picked at other companies around the country—including a 2009 off-Broadway run by Rattlestick Playwrights Theater.
"I just directed [Slipping] in Los Angeles," Talbott said. "It's cool that it's getting done which is really wonderful."
Talbott is really excited to be making a Chicago return to The Side Project with the Midwest premiere of his revised 2012 play, Mike and Seth. Originally commissioned by Quince Productions in Philadelphia, Mike and Seth focuses on two best friends—one gay and one straight—as they talk about relationships on the eve of one of the two's wedding.
"I wrote based upon a lot of conversations I've had. I feel that of all my best friends, half are straight and half are gay, and so it's a combination of a lot of conversations I've had with a lot of them," Talbott said. "It's also specifically based upon two friends of mine from high school who came from a very affluent background."
Talbott stated upfront that Mike and Seth isn't an unrequited love drama, just an intimate examination of the struggles that a lot of people face with emotional vulnerability and just being able to open up to somebody—even in our age of more permissiveness in terms of how people choose to structure their romantic relationships.
"Whether you're gay or you're straight or you're a woman or a man, in the end emotionally you're all searching emotionally for the same thing and struggling with the same thing," Talbott said. "I hope people just see ( the characters ) as Mike and Seth so then it's not just a gay play or a straight play or a political play. I'm hoping that it's just a play about two guys who are best friends where one happens to be gay and one happens to be straight."
The Side Project's Chicago premiere of Daniel Talbott's Mike and Seth continues through Aug. 24 at 1438 W. Jarvis Ave. Performances are 7:30 p.m. Thursdays through Saturdays with 3 p.m. Sunday matinees. Tickets are $20 general admission and $15 for seniors and students. Call 773-340-0140 or visit www.thesideproject.net for more information. See a review of the play in this week's issue.
