▼
W o m en in t h e W o o d s
ne of the religious right wings most infa
mous anti-gay slogans is “God made
Adam and Eve, not Adam and Steve.”
Comedy writer Paul Rudnick {Jeffrey,
In & Out, Adtlams Family Values) took the
rhyming phrase as a challenge, and he set out
to write the newest stage version of the most
sacred of Christian doctrines, the Holy Bible.
Not the King James version of the world’s best
selling book, hut more like the Queen James
version.
Producer-director Don Horn and his com
pany, Triangle Productions, are debuting The
Most Fabulous Story Ever Told through June 24.
None too concerned with any charges of
heresy, Horn describes the unconventional
comedy show as “a love story between two gay
boys that just happens to interweave the Bible.
We meet Adam alone in the garden— in a
jockstrap— then along comes Steve. When
they are kicked out of the garden, they become
nude and discover a new world.”
O
an openly gay actor who’s appeared on Port
land stages for the last three years.
He notes that, at heart, the show is a love
story. “The backdrop is this framework of 2000
years of biblical history, but 1 get to explore the
lifelong partnership. "liiat's what the show is
about to me,” he explains. "The issues that
Adam and Steve deal with are the same kind
of issues that any long-term relationship deals
with: how you respond to things that go on in
your life in a different way, and how to respond
to differences between what he wants and what
I want. In this particular case, it happens to be
his relationship with God. I don’t want to play
second fiddle to God. I don’t think that the
play is about gay people or straight people or
atheism or religion. It’s about a relationship.”
Teufals also appeared in the Rudnick play /
H ate Hamlet.
“He’s a wonderful playwright, and the show
is incredibly funny and intelligently written,”
the actor says.
Triangle
Productions
debuts
'2000
J uly 20-23
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P R E S E N T E D
BY
THE
C O N C O R D
C O M M U N I T Y
AURORA CHORUS
J O A N
S Z Y M K O ,
OF
C H O I R S
STEVE EINHORN
D I R E C T O R
Sun. June 18,2000
2 S H O W S : 4 & 7:00 PM
The Most
Fabulous S to ry
E v e r Told
by
Michael Teufals (left) and Jefferson Davis
Their misadventures include booking pas
sage on Noah’s ark during the legendary flood
and falling into the clutches of an Egyptian
Pharaoh during the time of Moses. They even
show up as a couple of joke-cracking wiseguys
at the Nativity.
But lest you think gay men were the only
queers present for the creation of life on earth,
Horn promises some sisterly fun as well. Adam
(Jefferson Davis) and Steve (Michael Teufals)
also meet Jane (Angela Keene) and Mabel
(Tracy Scottel), who, according to Horn,
“think that they are the only ones in the gar
den. Jane’s not nude either— because she needs
pockets— and Mabel thinks that Adam and
Steve are ugly women without breasts."
Later in the play, Jane and Mabel are mar
ried by the disabled lesbian Rabbi Sharon,
whose slogan is "oy, gay!”
The first act is a retelling of the Good
Book, while A ct 2 takes place in a present-day
New York loft. T he characters are the same,
implying that perhaps they are reincarnated
kindred spirits.
“It’s definitely a grown-up show. My grand
mother’s not coming,” laughs Michael Teufals,
A ndy M angels
As for his nude scenes,
Teufals laughs and admits
that he has “been working
out six days a week for the
last six months.”
He adds: “Being naked on
stage is not nearly as bad as I
thought it was going to be,
but I’m still a little wary of
my friends and co-workers—
who come to support me at
all my shows— seeing my
‘block and tackle.’ ”
Actress Angela Keene,
who plays Jane, gets to have
a birthing scene, as well as a
lesbian love scene on Noah’s
ark that hints at bestiality.
“I’m not very butch,” she
admits, “but this is a very
tough woman, and that’s fun.
The character has a lot of
power and that’s a really fun
thing to explore.”
Acknowledging the controversy the play
might engender, Keene points out that “the
subject matter seems controversial, but the play
is a comedy. It’s always good to keep an open
mind. It might not change anyone’s opinions of
the way the world is, but it might at least make
people consider different points of view.”
Producer-director Horn has one caution for
the audience: He notes that Most Fabulous is
“quirky fun, but the subject matter— especially
concerning the Bible— may not be for every
one.”
Also, given the play’s scenes with male
nudity, adults may want to think twice before
bringing children...or childishly prudish adults.
■ T he M ost F abulous S tory E ver T old
plays through June 24 at Theater Theatre,
3430 S .E . Belmont St. in Portland. Tickets are
$17 at the door or $15 in advance, available from
the box office, (503) 239-59/9, or from Fastixx.
A ndy M angels is a longtime Portland enter
tainment writer with three books and hundreds o f
com ic books and magazine articles to his credit.
You can write to him at A M angelsSW @ aol.com .
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