Queerly Festival 2023

Founded in 2014, Queerly is FRIGID’s annual celebration of all things artistic and LGBTQIA2S+. Queerly strives for diversity on and off stage, seeking out queer teams and artists of all kinds as well as a wide range of shows and performances. The festival's goal is to provide a space for queer artists who’ve rarely or never seen their identities portrayed on stage to be able to represent themselves and tell their stories their way, as well as to provide a space for queer celebration, pride and strength. Queerly was started by Erez Ziv and then curated by Kevin R. Free for many years. It is now curated by FRIGID co-Artistic Director Jimmy Lovett.

Queerly is a place for self-representation, for telling the stories we want to tell and for sharing our work with our community and beyond. Regardless of how a piece makes us feel, there is joy in artistic creation and, as we raise our heads in defiance of those who would dehumanize us, queer joy is an act of rebellion. Queerly is a place for that rebellion. In light of the barrage of anti-trans legislation across the country, Queerly is prioritizing work by or featuring trans artists, and amplifying trans voices, trans joy and trans rebellion.

A Probably Disastrous Experiment
Written by Rachel Weekley
Up from the Depths, disaster strikes again! And it just might be this show in which cities are destroyed, inner Demons hold hands and a dinosaur dances through heartbreak. 

Anna May Wong: PERSONA
Written by Kai Xing Mun
A woman ahead of her time; Anna May Wong was Hollywood’s first Chinese American movie star. For all her talent, wit and charm, she’s spent her life searching for a place to belong. She was discriminated against by American society for her race and demeaned by her family for her dreams. It seemed the only place where she was beyond her circumstances was in the magical world of film, if only Hollywood could’ve seen her beyond racist stereotypes and caricatures. From rumored sapphic romances to traveling different countries to lifelong friendships with fellow legendary artists, Anna will defy all the odds as she devotes herself to her craft. Only one question remains: will there ever be a place where she can be seen as human?

At Birth
Written by Ty Autry & Thalia Gonzalez Kane
What could possibly go wrong when, one drunken night, Anna, very gay, and Isaac, very very gay, have sex to heal from a breakup? What follows is a journey covering themes of queer families, abortion rights in the South and the pursuit of building community, no matter how untypical. This queer dark comedy navigates blurred family lines, friendship and dealing with the unexpected consequences life can throw at a person.

Becoming Austin Nation: From Crack to PhD - One Drag Queen's Story
Written & Performed by Austin Nation
Becoming Austin Nation is the autobiography of a life that changed dramatically once I was diagnosed with HIV/AIDS in 1986, at the mere age of 26, when few men were getting out alive. I was told to get my affairs in order. There was no hope. I lived as though each day was going to be my last. I lost all of my closest friends over a 6-month period in 1994. I knew my time had to be near. Drugs and alcohol became my best friends and I began playing around in drag as part of my experience while getting high. I could pretend to be someone else, someone beautiful. Fast forward, and I was still alive at 40. I thought there must be something else for me and that began my journey into recovery. Today, I am 19 years clean and sober. I have tapped back into an important part of myself: this drag persona, my feminine side. Now, at age 60, I am without a doubt living my best Black gay drag life.

The Bottom's Bible
Written & Performed by Adin Lenahan
A two person show starring me and my asshole, about bottom and femme erasure in queer culture and a two-thousand year old book that still controls our narrative. 

Drag Sings
Hosted by Sam Kaseta
Did you know that the New York City drag community comprises not just an amazing array of drag artists, but also many performers who also compose music? Drag Sings will be a cabaret of singer-songwriters performing their own work in drag. Come see both Queerly alums and new faces as this celebration of both original drag and original music.

Drag Story Hour
FRIGID New York is excited to host a special Juneteenth addition of Drag Story Hour! Drag Story Hour NYC (formerly Drag Queen Story Hour NYC) produces storytelling and creative arts programs for children and teens, presented by local drag artists, in libraries, schools and other community spaces in all five boroughs of New York City, and virtually. Through fun and fabulous educational experiences, our programs celebrate gender diversity and all forms of difference to build empathy and give kids the confidence to express themselves however they feel comfortable.

Funny Women Of A Certain Age
Curated by Carol Montgomery
What began as a way to work with her friends has exploded on the comedy scene. When Carole (a veteran of the stand up scene for over 40 years) started, you would never see two female comics on the same show. Fast forward to today’s comedy scene and nothing has changed, even though there are way more women in comedy. Carole decided to do something about it. Her first Showtime special made history as the only comedy special to feature 6 female comics over the age of 50. In fact it was the network's highest rated comedy special of 2019. 

Paper Kraine Presents: Do You Queer What I Queer
We're back for a sixth season of new works in development! The Paper Kraine was created in 2016 to bring together works in their earliest stages, audiences and nonprofits. Monthly, the PK team curates a new works sampler platter around a theme related to a nonprofit. This month, all PK ticket proceeds and a passed hat go to support the work of the Ali Forney Center, which offers LGBTQ+ Youth Shelter and Services. Try something new, delicious and strange. Come for the art. Stay for the community.

The Parentheses
Written by Marissa Fleming
Sometimes we're looking for an explanation, tacking on afterthought, enriching what is already complete with a pair of rounded brackets. The Parentheses is a play about two women reconnecting and re-examining their relationship to one another. Already wholly complete and complex on their own, they look to explain, to explore and to experience one evening together in an attempt to understand what they really mean to themselves and to each other. 

The Real Black Swan
Written & Performed by Les Kurkendaal Barrett
This show tells the story of William Dorsey Swann, the former slave who became the Queen of Drag in Washington DC in the late 1800’s. She was also the first queer activist on record. Come and hear the tale of a person who was way ahead of their time. Winner of the Doric Wilson Award in Dublin Ireland and Winner of The Cincy Fringe Encore (Producer’s Pick).

Transhumance
Written & Performed by Ania Upstill
Witness one clown's lighthearted confusion with gender in Transhumance. Award-winning clown Ania Upstill playfully explores what it means to be a trans human—or any human—in a society where the gender binary often blocks us from the richness of human experience. Winner of a Best Weekly Award for Circus and Physical Theatre at Adelaide Fringe in 2020.

Two Foreskins Walk into a Bar
Written by Chris Thompson
With his 10-year relationship at an end and his career going down the toilet, loser British playwright Chris Thompson heads to New York City where he embarks on a journey of sexual liberation and self discovery. But as he searches for connection, he faces up to the harsh realities of city life and the limitations of his own desires. An unflinching and hilarious account of starting your life again when you’re a bottom who has hit rock bottom. Award-winning playwright and screenwriter, Chris Thompson, brings his five-star hit podcast to theatrical life in this laugh out loud, life-affirming show.

walkOver
Written by Elena Freck
As a teenager, Martin was the first openly trans gymnast to make the U.S. Men’s Artistic Gymnastics team. Now, he’s a broke 25-year-old with no prospects, about to be evicted from his apartment. Torn between the examples of two friends–En, a fellow trans gymnast who has carved out a second career in sports writing, and Jenna, a high school teacher who never left her hometown—Martin must pick a new direction in life after arriving at the end of the only road he ever knew. walkOver asks the question; where do you go next once you’ve completed the first line of your obituary?