2024 Queerly Festival to Take Place This Summer At UNDER St. Marks

FRIGID New York will present the 10th annual Queerly Festival at UNDER St. Marks (94 St Marks Pl, New York, NY 10009), June 13-July 3. Most performances will also be available to livestream from home.

Founded in 2014, Queerly is FRIGID New York’s annual celebration of LGBTQA+ artists. Queerly strives for diversity on and off stage, seeking out queer teams and artists of all kinds as well as a wide range of shows and performances. Our goal is to provide a space for queer artists who’ve rarely or never seen their identities portrayed on stage to be able to represent themselves and tell their stories their way, as well as to provide a space for queer celebration, pride, and strength.

Asexuality! The Solo Musical

Written by Rebecca McGlynn

What does it mean to be a man in the 21st century? How does toxic masculinity affect those of us assigned male at birth? What’s so great about sex, and why won’t people shut up about it for two goddamn seconds and just let me play my video games in peace?! Written and performed by transgender award-winning artist Rebecca McGlynn, “Asexuality! The Solo Musical” is an autobiographical musical comedy about Rebecca’s pre-transition life. The story follows Robert, an asexual man navigating a hypersexual world. Through music and comedy, he explores sex, romance, love and loss… and, eventually, HER true gender identity. 

Calico

Written by Kai Xing Mun

After coming out as queer, Peach (she/they) doesn’t speak to their mother Chyou (she/her) for several years. Still, the future looks bright as Peach has built up a reputation as a burlesque artist, and is surrounded by a glamorous community that loves Peach for who they are. Suddenly Chyou gets into a car accident and develops retrograde amnesia, Chyou seems free of her trauma and prejudices which allows the two to bond closer than ever before. As Peach cares for her now amnesiac mother, Peach and her closest friends, Naveena and Sunshine, begin to wonder if finding closure with their families is possible. Sunshine begins to renew hope about reconciling with her own estranged family, while Naveena struggles to find romantic love to spite and replace the parental love she never seemed to receive. They all begin to wonder if dance could be the path to healing not only themselves, but salvaging their given familial relationships too? 

The Chico Raro Band

From Bushwick, Brooklyn, Chico Raro Band emerged in 2021 with a distinctive sound and a resolute commitment to inclusivity. Led by Jei Fabiane, aka "Chico Raro," the collective showcases their multicultural talents, from Lina Silva's piano and guitar prowess to Juan Sebastian Monsalve's bass and Diego Maldonado's dynamic drumming. Their genre, "Y2K-influenced glam synth pop," pays homage to early 2000s pop and glam rock. Beyond music, they've become a symbol of empowerment in the LGBTQ+ community, championing rights and freedom of expression amidst uncertainty. 

Flayed

Written by Josiah Blount

In conservative Southwest Virginia, a puritanical pastor attempts to deliver his first sermon, but is interrupted by the many obscene voices in his head. He must confront his theology, sexuality, and identity in order to finish his sermon and... to survive. In the 2023 HFF, Flayed won the Soaring Solo Social Impact Award and a Best of Broadwater Award. It was nominated for The Fringe First Award (Best World Premiere), the 2Cents Immersive Worlds Award, and the San Diego International Fringe Festival Exchange Award. Its entire run was sold out! 

Give Me The MacArthur Genius Grant

Written by Tarek Ziad

In Tarek Ziad's “Give Me The MacArthur Genius Grant," the idea of The MacArthur Fellowship—a shining $800,000 symbol of validation and success for creatives—becomes a gateway into discussions of achievement, self obsession, passion, and how they all fit under one umbrella: Financial Security. The 50-minute solo comedy juxtaposes larger notions of what exactly a "genius" is with Tarek's own successes, failures, and feelings of accomplishment (or lack thereof) as a budding-yet-broke queer artist of color. Through a high octane exploration of universal tensions felt by creatives as they attempt to piece together livelihoods, a meta-commentary on fiscal anxiety and the role self obsession plays in defining one's status as an “artist” begins to emerge. Faced with an uncertain future and the reality that no one is promised anything despite everyone deserving the world, Tarek begs the absurd—potentially satirical—question, "why not give ME the Genius Grant?!" 

Hottie Bop

Produced by Lina Zikas and Duane Stanford

Hottie Bop is a variety show with a changing lineup of music, comedy, dance, improv, and more! 

If I Did, You Deserved It

Written by Jess Lauricello

If I Did, You Deserved It is a new absurdist play from award-losing playwright Jess Lauricello that’s probably a comedy. A party seemingly thrown by no one that you definitely wouldn’t have been invited to full of people that you hate, followed by eternal damnation! Come judge other people for fun. Don’t worry, you totally have every right to. 

Ladies at a Gay Girl's Bar, 1938-1969

Written by Maggie Cee

A 1990’s teen lesbian explores history and reckons with the power of femininity in this solo dance/theatre performance. Maggie Cee brings the history of 20th-century American fem(me)/butch lesbian bars to life, illuminating the feminine women whose stories are too often forgotten, but whose strength and determination paved the way for the gay rights movement that followed. This intimate performance imagines the queer past and passions between people who loved, fought, and created space to be themselves out of sheer necessity and determination. 

Paper Kraine

Written by Elena Freck

We're back for an eighth season of new works in development! Paper Kraine was created in 2016 to bring together works in their earliest stages, audiences, and nonprofits. Monthly, the PK team curates a new works sampler platter around a theme related to a nonprofit. Try something new, delicious and strange. Come for the art. Stay for the community. Paper Kraine was created on the principle that we all know writers, directors, actors, and creators who make wonderful work. All they need is a space. The Paper Kraine is committed to creating a venue for early-career artists to show humor-focused work in the spirit of adventurous discovery. We encourage risk-taking, question-asking, and the development of a supportive community of artists seeing, encouraging, and challenging each other’s work with the ultimate goal of enriching the artistic community through cross-pollination and meeting new people. Learn more at www.paperkraine.com. 

Pearl Necklace: A Gay Sexcapade

Written by Jamie Brickhouse

On the eve of marriage—an institution Jamie resisted for 30 years—he replays his sex life, which gives new meaning to the term parks and recreation. “Pearl Necklace” is funny, sharp, and a hysterical romp through Jamie’s amorous adventures in bathrooms, beaches, bookstores, and appallingly decorated apartments “delivered with a bawdy panache and a naughty sense of the comic.” Called “a natural raconteur” by the Washington Post, this 6-time Moth champion’s darkly comic stories of his sybaritic journey reveal his struggle to shed shame and guilt and reach self-acceptance before finally tying the knot. Award-winning writer and storyteller Jamie Brickhouse has recorded voices on Beavis & Butthead, appeared on PBS-TV’s Stories from the Stage and The Moth Podcast, and his daily #storiesinheels TikTok videos have over 6 million views, one million likes, and 75 thousand followers. He’s the creator of the memoirs and solo shows Dangerous When Wet: Booze, Sex, and My Mother and I Favor My Daddy: A Tale of Two Sissies. 

RADICAL: BLACK QUEER PLEASURE

Produced by Queerly Femmetastic

RADICAL: BLACK QUEER PLEASURE, features all Black queer burlesque artists with their most pleasurable acts. The acts that make them smile, laugh, moan, and shout. The acts that consistently bring audiences to their knees, leave them flabbergasted, bewildered, sweating, and already asking for more. Audiences can expect to experience artists in their most embodied states, doing the things that feel good for us along the four types of human pleasure: physio-pleasure, socio-pleasure, psycho-pleasure, and ideo-pleasure. We will extend the invitation to fall into pleasure with us to the audience with prompts and discussion questions between acts in this revue. 

The Goblin Woman

Written by Mackenzie Krestul

“The Goblin Woman” explores gender, queerness, desire, and identity through the lens of Christina Rossetti’s acclaimed poem, “The Goblin Market.” Through ensemble work, movement, and poetry, this play tells the story of Lizzie and Laura, two fragmented parts of the same self, and Jeanie, a long lost, almost love. As Lizzie suffocates beneath societal bounds and fear of herself, and Laura yearns for freedom and adventure, the two find themselves increasingly at odds against the backdrop of the Goblin Market. The need for honesty, expression, and relief drive them to a moment of critical change, and bring us to our ultimate questions: is there forgiveness? And will there be a release? 

The Ho Must Go On

Written by Phillipe Andre Coquet

"The Ho Must Go On" a biographical burlesque, a confessional cabaret, follows Phillipe through his boyhood on the Broadway stage in the late 1960s, teen years as a disco queen in Hollywood of the 70s, as a young adult in a New Age spiritual cult, and a midlife career as an Erotic Masseur. Interwoven with songs from the many characters in musical theater who were Ladies of the Evening, from “Love For Sale” and “Big Spender” to “Bring On The Men”. 

A Bit Too Much Hair

Written by Ania Upstill and William Duignan

A Bit Too Much Hair is a gender euphoric musical chaos for thems, mens, femmes, and everyone in between. According to the Binge Fringe at Edinburgh 2023, "However you express your gender, and whatever form it takes, Butch Mermaid make you feel at home instantly in this uproarious gender reveal party for the ages." The 2022 New Zealand premier was nominated for Excellence Awards for Theatre for Social Change and Best Ensemble at the 2022 Wellington Theatre Awards. Theatreview called it “a big, silly party where transness is centred and everyone is welcome!” 

War and Play

Written by Danielle Levsky

War and Play is an interactive, devised show that explores human resilience in the face of Russia’s devastating invasion of Ukraine, rendered through the transformative power of clown.

Our story starts by following the journey of a queer clown couple, Vira (Ania Upstill) and Nadiya (Danielle Levsky), whose peaceful world is shattered after Russia launches its full-scale attack on their homeland. After escaping the initial bombing of their town, the clowns struggle to rebuild community when they are displaced to an underground shelter, and then as refugees far from home. Throughout the show, the third clown (Mariko Iwasa) transforms to embody different characters that contextualize the many faces impacted by war—street performers, soldiers, aid workers, families separated across borders, and a new friend named Lubo. The clowns trace an emotional arc from fanciful optimism to sudden, wrenching grief. Our production utilizes clowning's unique capacity for vulnerably expressing universal human experiences to connect deeply with audiences on the very real trauma unfolding in Ukraine now and across the world. How can moments of friendship, music, and play be restored after watching your city burn? Through clowning, we explore this precarious 

Woo and Aah: Homecoming

Written by Nazlah Black and Rachel Weekley

If silent films met the world of children's television, this is where we find Woo and Aah. Two intrepid souls, discovering their way through the world, but is there room enough in this studio apartment for the two of them? Shenanigans ensue as we find out! 

FRIGID New York’s mission is to provide both emerging and established artists the opportunity to create and produce original work of varied content, form, and style, and to amplify their diverse voices. We do this by presenting an array of monthly programming, mainstage productions, an artist residency, and eight annual theater festivals that create an environment of collaboration, resourcefulness, and innovation. Founded in 1998, the aim was and is to form a structure, allowing multiple artists to focus on creating and staging new work and providing affordable rental space to scores of independent artists. Now in our third decade we have produced a massive quantity of stimulating downtown theater. www.frigid.nyc  

Tickets ($25 in-person; $20 streaming) will be available for advance purchase at www.frigid.nyc.

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