Tuesday night, February 28 saw the opening of The View Upstairs—the provocative new musical written by Max Vernon and directed by Scott Ebersold—at The Lynn REdgrave at the Culture Project in Greenwich Village. Featuring Frenchie Davis, Michael Longoria, Nathan Lee Graham, Jeremy Pope, Taylor Frey and more, The View Upstairs (see Theater Pizzazz’s review here), pulls you inside the UpStairs Lounge, a vibrant ‘70s gay bar in the French Quarter of New Orleans. This forgotten community comes to life in all its gritty, glam rock glory when a young fashion designer from 2017 buys the abandoned space, setting off an exhilarating journey of seduction and self-exploration that spans two generations of queer history. Inspired by one of the most significant yet all-but-ignored attacks against the LGBTQ community, The View UpStairs examines what has been gained and lost in the fight for equality, and how the past can help guide all of us through an uncertain future.
Theater Pizzazz’s JK Clarke and Emma Orland were on hand to witness opening night festivities, including arrivals of notable first nighters including Annie Golden, Charles Busch, Nellie McKay, Emily Skeggs and Randy Jones. See Emma Orland’s photos below.
