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Actress Tracee Ellis Ross on motherhood, politics and fame
New membership model and online projects, including a George Takei appearance, have LGBT theater’s leader Matt Morrow looking up
Diversionary Theatre’s stage went dark in March, but its leader says the University Heights company has never been busier as it opens its 35th season with a large slate of online programming, the launch of a new membership program, and a virtual visit from stage and TV star George Takei.
Matt Morrow, executive director of the nation’s thirdoldest LGBTQ theater, said the pandemic has been a traumatic experience for theater artists, but it has also become a catalyst for creative problem-solving.
“COVID is a time for experimentation and innovation,” Morrow said in a recent interview.
One long-percolating idea that seemed right to launch during the pandemic is a new membership program that will replace the traditional season subscription model. For $99 a year, members will receive a steep discount on show tickets as well as other membership benefits throughout the year. Morrow said annual subscriptions have declined over the past 15 years as patrons become more “a la carte” in their ticket-buying habits. So he said creating a membership model keeps these customers engaged year-round and gives them more flexibility.
Another pandemicfueled change at Diversionary is the explosion of new online programming.
Under the leadership of Skyler Sullivan, Diversionary’s new director of outreach and arts education, the company is running six free online programs. They include theater classes for older adults, teens and middle schoolers; new-play readings; storytelling events; and panel discussions. The latest event — at 2 p.m. today — is a 30-minute reading of the high-school-themed musical “Cancelled,” featuring
Diversionary’s Teen-versionary Ensemble.
Still to come this fall is “Ameriqueer,” a series of at least three audio-cast plays that Morrow said “look at the queer identity within American culture.” Each play will be available for audio download for two weeks and will be free, though donations will be appreciated.
The first play is Josh Irving Gershick’s “Dear One: Love & Longing in Midcentury Queer America.” It will be directed by Gershick, and Takei is featured in the cast. The play is based on letters written between 1953 and 1965 to L.A.’S One magazine, the first openly gay and lesbian periodical in the United States. Takei has been attached to the play since he took part in a Zoom reading a few months ago. It will be available for download Oct. 16-29.
“In this play, you can see how the LGBT community coalesced at the time before there was the Internet. It explores and reveals the diversity within our community,” Morrow said.
The other two plays in the Ameriqueer series are “Lewiston/clarkston,” a pair of companion plays by Samuel D. Hunter that focus on two modern-day descendants of the 19thcentury exploration team of Meriwether Lewis and William Clark. One is set in Clarkston, Wash., and the other takes place in adjacent Lewiston, Idaho. Through the descendants’ experiences, the plays explore how these former great American frontier towns now struggle with addiction and poverty. Normally, theaters present the two 90-minute plays separately on the same day. Diversionary will record them for separate, subsequent downloads. “Lewiston” will be available Oct. 30-Nov. 12 and “Clarkston” Nov. 13-26.
Morrow said the
Ameriqueer plays all have a through-line of subtlety.
“It’s such a volatile time right now to be producing a really intensive piece of theater. So I want to offer work that is intellectually stimulating and engaging around ideas that take care of our community rather than pushing it and poking it,” Morrow said.
Diversionary plans to launch a major fundraising campaign soon, but in the meantime, Morrow said past subscribers have been generous with their financial support since the pandemic began.
“Our community is so loving,” Morrow said. “There’s a lot of people here that believe in us and want us to succeed. I feel fragile, since we have our hands tied behind our backs right now. This doesn’t feel good, but I feel we have a lot of help from our supporters.”
Visit diversionary.org.