Review Mon Jun 20 2011

The Homosexuals at Victory Gardens Theatre

By Katie Richardson

One of the major points of discussion in feminist literature often comes down to this: Is this story about a woman freeing herself from the patriarchal order a feminist commentary or a commentary on any person who has been marginalized? Can those who are not part of a certain minority relate to that minority? I don't think the play The Homosexuals attempts to answer that question. Haphazardly, though, I found myself relating immensely to the lead character, Evan (Patrick Andrews).

Evan is a 20-something gay man. I am an almost 30-year-old straight woman. When I watched him dump his much older boyfriend, Peter (Scott Bradley) in order to "find himself," he could have been my spiritual twin. We learn as this play takes us back over a 10 year period that Evan has been struggling for years with issues of identity, sexuality and freedom. Specifically, Evan struggles to live in a real capacity in a predominately straight culture. His closest ties are to a group of gay men he has known since his first days in Chicago. These ties become more tangled as Evan's sexual relationships with various men in the group develop. Like me, when Evan begins such a relationship, he often feels torn between who he wants to be and who whomever he is with at the time wants him to be.

I write this not because I want to take away from the powerful message of this play, which emphasizes the truly special and unique friendships that gay men share, but to accentuate the universal truths that are present in it as well. It is these universals and the implicit realness of Philip Dawkins' script that I found so moving. His characters are not iconic gay stereotypes, rather real men with real problems. Patrick Andrews is a force as the lead character. His Evan is not effeminate nor gauche. He is an average boy, who could come from any family and who could be any boy's best friend. Similarly, Stephen Cone shines as Evan's first friend in the group, Michael. He is a messenger bag-toting fanboy whose quick wit and quirkiness are tirelessly fresh. Even when the play drifts into the realm of the traditional gay male roles in the form of Peter, a man who is obsessed with the Tony Awards, drama and scarves, the script's easy dialogue and emotional depth do not rob him of his integrity.

I was proud to see this play. As I watched it, it was easy for me to embrace every character and to see so much of my life in theirs. It was not, to me, just a tale of a young gay man. It was a human tale. One which I think everyone should see.

The Homosexuals runs thru July 24.
Ticket Price: $28
Box Office: 773-871-3000
Tickets can be bought online at: aboutfacetheatre.com