A SAMUEL FRENCH, INC. TITLE

Angry Fags

Full-Length Play, Dark Comedy  /  4w, 3m

Topher Payne

“Payne gives us two likeable killer queens whose road to domestic terrorism is paved with Paula Deen jokes […] Witty, dark, and disconcerting.” - Out Magazine

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Angry Fags

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  • Cast Size
    Cast Size
    4w, 3m
  • Duration
    Duration
    More than 120 minutes (2 hours)
  • Audience
    Target Audience
    Adult

Details

Summary

Bennett is really trying to keep it together right now. He broke up with his boyfriend and moved in with his best friend, Cooper. It’s election season, and he’s the speechwriter for Georgia’s only gay state senator, who’s engaged in a bloody campaign against a conservative darling. Then Bennett’s ex is attacked in the parking lot of a gay bar. Bennett and Cooper are informed that the assault can’t be classified as a hate crime – because in Georgia, hate crimes against homosexuals don’t legally exist. Their frustration and fear eventually turn to rage as they realize “acceptance” simply isn’t enough. They’re still living in a society that relegates them to second-class status. They’re not respected. They’re not feared. It’s time for that to change.

History

 

Angry Fags premiered at 7 Stages in Atlanta, GA (Heidi S. Howard, Artistic Director) in February 2013 under the direction of Justin Anderson.

Keywords
Performing Groups

BENNETT RIGGS - 30s. Speechwriter for a state senator. Cautiously optimistic, affable. Conflicted.
COOPER HARLOW - 30s. Bennett’s roommate. Caustic, clever, unpredictable. A fancy badass.
SENATOR ALLISON HAINES - 40s. A former activist, now the only out lesbian in the Georgia State Senate. Pragmatic, thoughtful, flawed. A dedicated public servant now wondering what happens when she’s no longer celebrated by the public.
KIMBERLY PHILLIPS - 30s. The senator’s office manager, a married mother of two. Good-humored, quick, overworked. Probably really enjoyed her early twenties.
ADAM LOWELL - 30s. The senator’s chief of staff. Undeniably appealing and charmingly square. Likely owns a lot of books about Bobby Kennedy.
PEGGY MUSGROVE - 40s. The senator’s opponent. Genuine, witty, nimble. A black female Republican, with all the conflicts and potential advantages that implies. She’s found a way to weaponize being othered.
DEIRDRE PRESTON - 50s. A local broadcasting legend. Has the shrewd and discerning eye of a brilliant woman who believes her best days are still ahead of her.

  • Time Period Contemporary
  • Setting

    Several locations around Atlanta, GA.

  • Features Contemporary Costumes/Street Clothes
  • Additional Features Stage Combat
  • Duration More than 120 minutes (2 hours)
  • Cautions
    • Alcohol

Media

REVIEWS 

"Topher Payne's uncompromising Oscar Wilde-meets-Fight Club fantasia." - American Theatre Magazine 

"A gay gentleman's guide to love and murder [...] Filled with tension but laced with moments of black humor and rigged with unexpected twists and turns." - Chicago Tribune

"A must-see [...] The show addresses serious subject matter in an empathetic and sensitive matter, with a generous helping of relatable humor." - Examiner.com 

"Payne gives us two likeable killer queens whose road to domestic terrorism is paved with Paula Deen jokes [...] Witty, dark, and disconcerting." - Out Magazine 

"Undeniably relevant and hard-hitting." - The GA Voice

Licensing & Materials

  • Minimum Fee: £55 per performance plus VAT when applicable.

Scripts

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Authors

Topher Payne

Topher Payne

Topher Payne’s play Perfect Arrangement won the American Theatre Critics Association’s M. Elizabeth Osborn Prize for Best Play by an Emerging Playwright in 2014. The play went on to be produced off-Broadway in 2015 by Primary Stages and MARS Theatricals and was a finalist for ...

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