Open Space Arts Extends SUNSETS: TWO ACTS ON A BEACH To Early March

Open Space Arts will present a two-week extension of SUNSETS: TWO ACTS ON A BEACH by Cal Yeomans, a long-lost drama by an early pioneer of gay theater. David Zak directs this evening of two one-act plays, which was last performed at the 1982 American Gay Arts Festival in Chicago and offers an intimate exploration of human sexuality and relationships from an era before AIDS era and before online hookups. Both plays are set next to a men’s room on a Florida gulf coast beach – the sort of place where seaside frolics take a different turn when the sun goes down. The play, which opened on February 2, will now run through Sunday, March 3.
 
John Cardone appears in Act One: “The Line Forms to the Rear,” as Henry, a former drag performer who finds a new life purpose in a most unusual type of social service. This one-act play is a monologue that delves into the complexities of gay life with heavy yet authentic language. Christopher Sylvie and Aaron Cappello perform in Act Two: “At the End of the Road,” which explores the developing relationship – physical and emotional - between Dan (Cappello), a young, bi-curious, and married construction worker; and John (Sylvie), a forty-something realtor who is a regular visitor to this particular stretch of beach. Cardone also appears in Act Two as Henry’s drag persona Henrietta. Curen Feliciana is the understudy for all three roles. The production team includes Rick Paul (Set Design), Zahrah Agha (Costume Design), Justin Walker (Lighting Design), Zach Stinnet (Sound Design), and Greta Zanstra (Intimacy Design). All performances are in the intimate 20-seat theatre at Open Space Arts, 1411 W. Wilson Ave., Chicago.

Cal Yeomans was an award-winning trailblazer in post-Stonewall gay theater, who had critically acclaimed plays produced on both coasts and in Chicago in the late 1970s and early 1980s. He burst the boundaries of what was considered acceptable in legitimate theater. A native of Crystal River, Florida, a small Gulf Coast town, Yeomans attended Florida State University, designed sets and acted in summer stock before moving to New York, where he studied acting under William Hickey at the famed HB Studio and enrolled in a fashion course at the Parsons School of Design. In 1981, Yeoman's SUNSETS was produced by both the Stonewall Repertory Theater in New York and the 544 Natoma Performance Gallery in San Francisco. The New York production was selected to play at the Third National Gay Arts Festival in Chicago in 1982.
 
Performances are at Open Space Arts, 1411 W Wilson, in Chicago. Performances are Fridays and Saturdays at 7:30 p.m., and Sundays at 2 p.m. to March 3. Tickets are $25 for general admission, $20 for students or seniors, and $15 for OSA Members.
Find information on all Open Space Arts events at https://openspacearts.com, and Pride Film Fest events at https://openspacearts.com/category/film-fest/. Tickets for all events can be purchased at https://www.goelevent.com/OpenSpaceArts/e/Search.

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