About the Play:
Standing on Ceremony: The Gay Marriage
Plays is the collective title for this anthology of monologues
and short plays. How do you address a topic as complex and weighty
as gay marriage in a 10-minute play without being superficial? It
sounds like an impossible task. That was the challenge presented to
eight playwrights, including Obie Award winner Mo Gaffney,
Heideman Award winner Jordan Harrison, Pulitzer
Prize winner and Tony Award nominee Moisés Kaufman, Tony
Award nominee Neil LaBute, Sundance Jury Prize winner Wendy
MacLeod, Obie Award winner José Rivera, Obie and Outer
Critics Circle Award winner Paul Rudnick, and Pulitzer Prize
and Tony Award winner Doug Wright, who created a heartfelt,
funny and altogether illuminating evening that celebrates the courage
to be in a relationship – any relationship.
Two little words, and suddenly your whole world
changes. Long before the battle for marriage equality
throughout the United States came before the Supreme Court, some of
America's most illustrious and Award-winning playwrights were testing
the waters and advancing the idea that marriage equality for all not
only wasn't a bad thing, but was something that deserved to be
regarded as a fundamental right. This A-list lineup of writers (with 2 Pulitzer Prizes, 4
Obies, 1 Emmy and 3 Tony nominations) offered their unique takes on the
moments before, during and after "I do." Witty, warm and
occasionally wacky, these plays are vows to the blessings of
equality, the universal challenges of relationships and the often
hilarious power of love.
The Revision by Jordan Harrison is
an amusing look at how two men go about writing their wedding vows to
reflect the limited options available to a gay couple.
This Flight Tonight by Wendy MacLeod
asks if there can be any hope for happiness when a lesbian couple
travels to Iowa to take their vows.
The Gay Agenda is Paul Rudnick's
sad, yet hilarious appeal for restricting marriage to that between a
man and a woman by an Ohio homemaker, who is a member of the extreme
right wing religiously conservative, Focus on the Family.
On Facebook by Doug Wright takes on
social media by following an actual Facebook thread chronicling a
discussion on the subject of gay marriage, which starts out
innocently and ends up as an all-out assault.
Strange Fruit by Neil LaBute is the
story of two men in love whose plans to get married "the
old-fashioned way" are stymied when reality rears its ugly head.
A Traditional Wedding by Mo Gaffney
gives a glimpse of a long "married" lesbian couple
reminiscing about their "wedding."
My Husband by Paul Rudnick gives a
delightful glimpse into the machinations of an ultra liberal Jewish
mother who is desperate to find a husband for her gay son.
London Mosquitoes by Moisés Kaufman's
poignant story of a man who, at his husband's funeral, tries to make
sense of the loss.
Pablo And Andre At The Altar Of Words is
José Rivera's snapshot of two men who use their wedding vows
to say the things that people never really say to each other.
Cast: 3 female, 3 male (doubling, flexible
casting)
Standing On Ceremony: The Gay Marriage
Plays, started in 2011 in Los Angeles as a series of fund raising
events, when the issue of same sex marriage was in the news in an
on-again, off-again legal fight for legalization in California,
taking on a life of their own as an inspiring theatrical evening.
Brian Shnipper conceived and directed the world premiere at
the Coronet Theatre in West Hollywood (Los Angeles Drama Critics
Award) where it was hailed in the Los Angeles Times as "a
burgeoning phenomenon" and a "vital achievement". It
has since been performed in over 100 theatres around the world
What people say:
"Standing
on Ceremony puts a human face on a hot-button issue and
delivers laughter and tears rather than propaganda." —
BackStage
"All you have
to do is listen, shed an occasional tear and laugh a lot. There is
something for everybody… Standing on Ceremony
holds a magnifying glass to the highs and lows, joys and fears,
courage and silliness, of people bucking trends and making history.
It's a fine evening, heartily recommended." — New
York Observer
"A feel-good
show celebrating gay marriage. The unifying theme of same-sex
marriage gives this collection its strong identity. The individual
plays don’t share the same perspective or speak in the same voice.
Which keeps things interesting." — Variety