#eric hoff

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REVIVAL /// rewilding

One Night Only / June 11th / doors at 9.30pm / begins at 10pm

Masonic Hall / 941 W Lawrence Ave / Chicago

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Updates coming soon. #REVIVAL-EVENT2016

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Out of the Clostets & Into the Streets: a Review of Hit the Wall

  by: H. Melt

It's a shame that Hit the Wallended its run early at the Greenhouse Theater, before its original closing date scheduled for the same day as the pride parade. Many people forget or are unaware that the pride parade in Chicago occurs the last weekend of June to commemorate the 1969 Stonewall Riots. Hit the Wall retells the story of the riots, reminding us of the power of queer resistance. The play first premiered as part of Steppenwolf's Garage Rep in 2012 and played at Theater on the Lake before moving Off-Broadway to New York's Barrow Street Theatre. It returned home to Chicago this spring with most of the original cast intact.

As the audience entered the theater, it felt as if we were walking into a gay dive bar. The cast lured members of the audience onstage to dance along to a live band. Steve Lenz, who played a romantic beatnik traveler named Cliff, asked people if they had a cigarette. An energetic revolutionary played by Shannon Matesky handed out fliers to recruit people for WILD (Women Internationally Learning Divisiveness), whose rules were to "fight the man, fuck the pigs, and do not trust the gays." During the raid scene, a thick mustachioed, intimidating cop played by Walter Briggs shined his white flashlight on the audience, making us feel as vulnerable to policing as the characters themselves.

Ike Holter's poetic writing structured the beautiful chaos onstage. The repetition of the phrase "The reports of what happened next are not exactly clear" emphasized the messiness of history, that queer history in particular is full of more questions than answers. Hit the Wall reminds us that our history is one of community rebellion. A community made up of homeless youth kicked out by their families, trans women of color, political activists, and sleazy gay white men. The phrase "I was there" reminded us that all of these people were present together at Stonewall.

Hit the Wall centered the stories of trans and gender nonconforming characters as those most affected by violence and policing in the community. It highlighted the story of a trans woman of color named Molly Minnelli, who was played by Manny Buckley. While Buckley's performance was phenomenal, I was disappointed they didn't take the opportunity to cast a trans woman in the role. Hiring a man to play the part seems to undermine the fact that trans women are women. I wonder how the show would've been different if a woman was chosen for the role. When the cop viciously pulls off Minnelli's wig in the middle of the raid, Sara Kerastas's character Peg grabs the cop's gun, points it at his face, and demands he give it back in an act of solidarity that I wish happened more often today.

Hit the Wall did not only expose the tensions between the queer community and the police. When Madeline, an uptight resident of Greenwich Village proclaimed to Minnelli, "this is my neighborhood, you're making people uncomfortable," I was reminded of the ongoing tensions in Boystown between its wealthy residents and the young queer and trans people who flock there to access resources unevenly distributed throughout the city. The play also portrayed tensions within the queer community, pointing out the trans misogyny of the gay men who harassed Minnelli, to whom she replied, "I am not a mister." Hit the Wall is an honest portrait of a defining moment in queer history that looks strikingly similar to the lives many of us lead today.

~*~

H. Melt is a poet and artist who was born in Chicago. Their work proudly documents Chicago's queer and trans communities. H. Melt has recently been published by Chicago Artist Writers, Lambda Literary, and THEM, the first trans literary journal in the United States. They are the author of SIRvival in the Second City: Transqueer Chicago Poems.

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The Remount of "Hit the Wall" Revisits the Stonewall Riots Onstage

BY: ALLISON SHOEMAKER | 5.2.2014 

“Happy Ishtar,” said Eric Hoff as he sat down to talk about his production of Hit the Wall, now back in Chicago for a third electrifying run. “The festival of fertility and sex.”

It’s a fitting way to begin a conversation about Hit the Wall—a raw, riveting piece of theater now back in Chicago for a third time since its world premiere at the Steppenwolf Garage in 2012. Written by Ike Holter and directed by Hoff, the play tells the story of the first night of the Stonewall Riots in New York City, considered by many to be the beginning of the modern gay rights movement.

Holter and Hoff’s visceral creation, complete with an onstage bar and a wall-rattling rock band, reveres that legacy. In anticipation of the Chicago Commercial Collective’s remount at the Greenhouse Theater, we spoke with Hoff about the importance of the riots (and of Pride Weekend), and what work still needs to be done.

GROUPON: Has anyone who was involved with the riots seen the show?

ERIC HOFF: In New York, Martin Boyce and Danny Garvin, both of whom are what I’d call Stonewall veterans…they both attended the opening night, and were also really helpful as consultants on the project. Danny worked with my movement coordinator in New York on specific dances they used to do [at Stonewall, including] The Spider, which looks not unlike the Electric Slide.

G: Do you feel like the conversation around the play has changed since the original production?

EH: I think the biggest change—or not “change,” but the evolution—in the conversation is primarily related to…trans folk. [The character of] Carson goes by “drag queen” in the play, because back in 1969 “transgender” or “trans woman” wasn’t a commonly used expression or phrase. So for biologically male people who identified as female, “drag queen” was really the term available to them.

And [the character] Peg, who is the “Stone Butch”…that was an entire subculture within the queer community that doesn’t exist in the same way that it did back then. So I think it’s really important to note that Ike [Holter] has done a really amazing job of featuring people who live outside of gender norms [as] the torchbearers of this play.

G: Is there a moment in the play that’s of particular personal resonance to you?

EH: There’s a scene between sisters…[that] is full of content that a lot of us queer folk have heard from our family members. [A character] says things like, “Mom doesn’t want you anymore” and “If you could just hold it in…” For many people who grew up and had to come out, we’ve been there, and we’ve heard those things, and we’ve heard family members say things like, “If you could justnot do what you do.” That’s an exact line from the play. “Don’t be you, just conform, just do what we want you to do and everything will be fine.”

G: Do you think the play has changed the minds of people with that kind of viewpoint?

EH: A lot of people leave and ask, “Are the Stonewall Riots a real thing? Was it really that bad, or was that just for dramatic purposes?” So I think one of the really big things that the play does is, from a historical perspective, [lift] the veil for a lot of people. Most people don’t know that Pride is celebrated on the fourth weekend of June because of the Stonewall Riots. What the riots did [was] galvanize and coalesce a group of people who, prior to that moment, weren’t really a group per se, in part because…The whole point was to not draw attention to yourself.

G: Do you think people forget about the historical significance of Pride as they celebrate it?

EH: Yes, absolutely. A lot of people think of Pride as a big drunken celebration, and it is, and there’s a good reason for that. I don’t want to disparage people who come to Chicago for Pride, who need an outlet, because that’s a crucial thing—especially if you have to return the next day to a place where you don’t feel like you can be yourself. [However,] it’s important that we remember why we celebrate.

G: When you were growing up, did you have a safe space?

EH: As a queer person? Not at all. I was a church kid. Then I went to a religious college. I was the only out gay person on my campus for four years. I had good friends on campus who were my people, but even those friends…it took some of [them] a long time to come to terms with me being gay. My family (now) is phenomenal, and everyone is a big ally, a big supporter. But it took awhile.

G: Have they seen Hit the Wall?

EH: They have. They were all there on opening night. It was kind of insane. At the end of the night, after the curtain call and everything, there’s my entire family. My sisters and my mother…were all in black heels, black tights, black skirts, black sweaters, and they looked like a coven. They were all bawling. And my dad couldn’t speak to me, he was so verklempt—he couldn’t get words out. So it was a pretty powerful thing.

G: If people are moved to take action by Hit the Wall, what would you suggest they do?

EH: Well, we’ve got a real issue in Chicago with providing safe spaces for our queer youth, primarily for those who don’t come from neighborhoods or homes where they feel comfortable expressing themselves or being who they are.

Queerness extends to the poor, queerness extends to people of all different gender expressions and realities, and I think that if people are moved to take action, they should think about…what we as a community need to continue to build. We need to build centers for homeless queer youth in Chicago. We need to find ways to provide education and job resources. [laughs] I feel like I’m getting on my soapbox here, but there are thousands of ways to get involved.

For ways to get involved in LGBTQ advocacy, particularly in serving the needs of at-risk and homeless youth, Hoff recommends these organizations: Broadway Youth Center and Center on Halsted (Chicago); Ali Forney Center (New York City); The Trevor Project (national).

The remount of Hit the Wall runs at the Greenhouse Theater (2257 N. Lincoln Ave.) through June 29. Click here for tickets ($45–$55) and showtimes. 

Eric Hoff portrait: Andrew Nawrocki. Hit the Wall photos by Ryan Borque. 

[jrvmajesty]

The Inconvenience produces multi-disciplinary events by creating an environment of collaboration and celebration. Ticket sales cover approximately 1/3 of what it takes to produce these events. By donating to this campaign in any dollar amount you are supporting the creation of new work in Chicago.The funds cover things like space rental, costumes and props, lights, sound, and most importantly: paying our artists a more competitive wage. 

We are asking for 16,000 dollars to help fund our 2014 season. Your contributions will go directly to all of our productions, collaborators and general operating costs.

In 2014 we promise to continue to define ourselves as one of the premiere contributors to the artistic landscape of Chicago.

And here's how!

The Midwest Premiere of Love Tapes

A Play by Steven Banks and Penn Jillette 

Directed by Shade Murray

•Aftertaste:

A sensory experiment in food and dance. 

•The remount of the 2012 Smash Hit The Wall

By Ike Holter

Directed by Eric Hoff

In association with the Chicago Commercial Collective

•The Fifth Annual 

Fly Honey Show

•A unique and immersive visual art experience. 

•A very special, one of a kind knockout collaboration to be announced at a later date! 

Other Ways You Can Help

 Hey -- We're artists and we TOTALLY understand if you are not able to  make a contribution, but if you like what you see here, then spreading the word about THE INCONVENIENCE is just as helpful for us! Sharing our campaign with your friends and family goes a long way -- or just find us on your favorite social media and give us a "like". 

And that’s all there is to it.

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THE TIME HAS COME!  THE FINAL 24 HOURS!  Only a few hundred dollars to go, SHARE, DONATE, SUPPORT queer performance work on the stage of the Pritzker Pavilion! Be a part of the REVIVAL. 

HOLY QUEER HOLY SUBVERSION HOLY DISCORD From the divine dreamscapes of Jesse Morgan Young & Eric Hoff comes REVIVAL.  http://kck.st/1ajf4AH

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Winnifred Coombe

http://www.winnifredcoombe.com/

REVIVAL is a sexy, immersive experience. Equal parts dance party/performance art/spectacle. Come get sweaty with us.

REVIVAL asks you to plug into a visceral and sexy experience that asks: What are we praying for? What are we willing to sacrifice? The chrysalis is in formation. Prepare to be converted.

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Shea Couleé

facebook.com/SheaCoulee

REVIVAL is a sexy, immersive experience. Equal parts dance party/performance art/spectacle. Come get sweaty with us.

REVIVAL asks you to plug into a visceral and sexy experience that asks: What are we praying for? What are we willing to sacrifice? The chrysalis is in formation. Prepare to be converted.

revival-event.com