A roller-coaster ride to redemption. The year is 1982: the golden age of boxing, the dying gasp of disco, the flowering of identity politics — a time before AIDS had a name. Two decades have taken their toll on Pedro Quinn, a gay Latino prizefighter still fighting well into his 40s, ducking his living-legend status and mourning a man he killed in the ring years ago. Meanwhile, a new generation continues to push the cultural and sexual envelope in and out of the ring. Oct. 25-Nov. 18 at The Los Angeles Theatre Center, 514 S. Spring St., Los Angeles, CA 90013; $24- $52; For reservations and information, call (866) 811-4111 or go to http://thelatc.org.
Members Only
Critics
LemonMeter
Reviews: 5
Reviews
Members Only by Oliver Mayer offers us less a play than a world. It continues the story of Pedro Quinn, who killed an opponent in the ring in Blade to the Heat, turning the entire boxing world against him. When Quinn takes a budding female fighter under his tutelage, he gives her the pass to the club's inner sanctum, and sets in motion the exposé that will eventually bring him down. Artistic director José Luis Valenzuela facilitates the cinematic flow of places and scenes while overhead, black-and-white fight footage reminiscent of 50s TV boxing matches, unspools over identical choreography onstage. Engrossing!
In essence, the queer play serves as a dynamic look into the arduous endeavor that is coming to terms with one's LGBTQ+ identity in a rampantly discriminatory world. However, the play also triumphantly showcases queer Latinx community members, as well as Latinx culture, in a vibrant and stylistic manner.
As an ensemble, the cast is excellent, giving big, passionate performances. They were rewarded by enthusiastic applause at curtain call.
...And we can readily tell from the remaining dialogue, and from the action vividly and stylishly set onstage by director José Luis Valenzuela, that jealousy, fear, tribalism and basic ignorance are the ideas at the core of Mayer's work... Ramon Espada choreographed the boxing, but especially impressive are those actors — particularly Henson, who not only repeatedly takesa fall but also then lands in exactly the same position onstage...
Jon Huertas, of “This Is Us,” is charismatic as Vinal, Quinn's former rival on his own quest for resolution; and Gabriela Ortega is lovably scrappy as Lone, Quinn's female protégé. Perhaps most unforgettable is Marlene Forte, as Sarita, who embodies the transformation from vengeful Fury to merciful Mother with remarkable dexterity. Also deserving special mention is Darrin Dewitt Henson, who brings grace and understanding to his turn as Quinn's gay doctor, who becomes the face of AIDS even as he warns of its coming.
Members Only by Oliver Mayer offers us less a play than a world. It continues the story of Pedro Quinn, who killed an opponent in the ring in Blade to the Heat, turning the entire boxing world against him. When Quinn takes a budding female fighter under his tutelage, he gives her the pass to the club's inner sanctum, and sets in motion the exposé that will eventually bring him down. Artistic director José Luis Valenzuela facilitates the cinematic flow of places and scenes while overhead, black-and-white fight footage reminiscent of 50s TV boxing matches, unspools over identical choreography onstage. Engrossing!
In essence, the queer play serves as a dynamic look into the arduous endeavor that is coming to terms with one's LGBTQ+ identity in a rampantly discriminatory world. However, the play also triumphantly showcases queer Latinx community members, as well as Latinx culture, in a vibrant and stylistic manner.
As an ensemble, the cast is excellent, giving big, passionate performances. They were rewarded by enthusiastic applause at curtain call.
...And we can readily tell from the remaining dialogue, and from the action vividly and stylishly set onstage by director José Luis Valenzuela, that jealousy, fear, tribalism and basic ignorance are the ideas at the core of Mayer's work... Ramon Espada choreographed the boxing, but especially impressive are those actors — particularly Henson, who not only repeatedly takesa fall but also then lands in exactly the same position onstage...
Jon Huertas, of “This Is Us,” is charismatic as Vinal, Quinn's former rival on his own quest for resolution; and Gabriela Ortega is lovably scrappy as Lone, Quinn's female protégé. Perhaps most unforgettable is Marlene Forte, as Sarita, who embodies the transformation from vengeful Fury to merciful Mother with remarkable dexterity. Also deserving special mention is Darrin Dewitt Henson, who brings grace and understanding to his turn as Quinn's gay doctor, who becomes the face of AIDS even as he warns of its coming.