BWW Reviews: QUEERSPAWN: I Can't Believe It's Not Better

Mallery Avidon's new play queerSpawn is difficult to watch, but that's part of the point. In her play, The Kid (David Rosenblatt), a high school freshman, is living a hellish life as he is bullied by most everyone, but especially Another Kid (J. Alexander Coe), because The Kid has two mothers. No one else wants to be friends with The Kid, not even The Nerd (Chris Perfetti), who's just moved to town and is conscious of his low place in the pecking order. A series of more and more humiliating bullying tactics comprise the bulk of the play as The Kid monologues to the audience; he is taunted mercilessly for being gay, though he isn't gay himself, it's his mothers who are lesbians, but that distinction is lost on the bullies.

So The Kid only has his imaginary friends, The African Kid (Akeem Baisden Folkes) who represents a possibly more understanding part of the world, advice columnist Dan Savage (David Greenspan) whose viral "It Gets Better" campaign only taunts The Kid (fittingly, Savage wrote a memoir about him and his husband adopting a child titled The Kid) and insane cult leader Fred Phelps (also Greenspan), McSteamy, the character from Gray's Anatomy and Brad Pitt (both Noel Joseph Allain), who represent a sort of celebrity masculinity that The Kid can only dream of attaining. The play ends up a sort of philosophical dialogue between The Kid and the social forces that have shaped his personal hell. Playwright Mallery Avidon's original research was supported by Colage, the only national organization for people raised in LGBTQ families, where she had the opportunity to interview teens and young adult children about their experiences at home and in the world. It's a timely, unique, and fascinating piece, though it lacks a true ending aside from an idyllic dream sequence. Many deep questions are raised and then left unanswered, which may be realistic, but I found it unsatisfying. The cast is fantastic across the board. Jesse Geiger directs very well, handling some very challenging material.

Fri May 10 - Sun May 19

Tickets: $18 General/$15 Students/Seniors (with ID)

For tickets visit here.org or call 212-352-3101

Box Office opens 5pm on show days, or 2 hours before performance

Theatre:

HERE

145 Sixth Ave.

NY, NY 10013

(enter on Dominick Street one block south of Spring)