Beyond Ridiculous: Making Gay Theatre with Charles Busch in 1980s New York

Beyond Ridiculous: Making Gay Theatre with Charles Busch in 1980s New York

Paperback – Illustrated
Regular price$35.00
/
Shipping calculated at checkout.
Non-returnable discount pricing
Beyond Ridiculous tells the story of Theatre-in-Limbo, a downtown band of actors formed in 1984 by director Kenneth Elliott and playwright and drag legend Charles Busch. They launched Vampire Lesbians of Sodom at the Limbo Lounge, a raffish club in the fringes of the East Village, but it would later become the longest-running non-musical in off-Broadway history. From 1984 to 1991, Busch starred in eight Limbo productions, always in outrageously fabulous drag.

In Beyond Ridiculous, Elliott narrates in first-person the company's Cinderella tale of fun, heartbreak, and dishy drama. At the center of the book is a young Charles Busch, an unforgettable personality fighting to be seen, be heard, and express his unique style as a writer-performer in plays such as Psycho Beach Party and The Lady in Question. The tragedy of AIDS among treasured friends in the company, the struggle for mainstream acceptance of LGBTQ] theatre during the reign of President Ronald Reagan, and the exploration of new ways of being a gay theatre artist make the book a bittersweet and joyous ride.

Details

Publish date November 02, 2023
Publisher University of Iowa Press
Format Paperback
Pages 210
ISBN 9781609389192
1609389190

New Releases View all

New Book Releases | October 28th
New Book Releases | October 28th
New Book Releases | October 21st
New Book Releases | October 21st
New Book Releases | October 14th
New Book Releases | October 14th