Final Frontier: Heroes and Villains

Gadfly Theatre Productions, your local queer & feminist theatre company is ecstatic to bring you their third annual One-Act Geek Festival. Two years ago we took you to galaxies far, far away with our Sci-Fi festival. Last year we made you shriek with queer takes on Horror. THIS YEAR we examine what make a hero or a villain through the campy lens of geektastic mediums like comic books and video games and our signature queer, feminist lens. What happens when we combine those lenses for one festival? Laughter, tears, and conversation abound with plays by local darlings Michael Merriam and Eli Effinger-Weintraub, as well as playwriting stars to be Nicole Jost, Katy Koop, and Kathleen Warnock. Gadfly is ecstatic to be working with Denzel Belin, Megan Lembke, Meggie Grievell, and Shalee Coleman as well as artistic director Cassandra Snow as the directors of the shows, and we’re even more thrilled to be giving acting roles to over 20 queer, feminist, and allied local artists.

Gadfly believes, among many other things, that LGBTQ+ artists and women, especially those further marginalized by other factors, are underrepresented in nerdy entertainment, and are often mistreated when speaking out about this inequity. Gadfly provides not only a platform for works by these people to thrive in the genre they love, but goes a step further by focusing on the stories and experiences of the underheard within geek subculture. Heroes and Villains takes what we think we know about these genres and spins them on their head with both content and theme. Don’t fear though! These five carefully vetted pieces are clearly inspired by the rich world of superheroes, demi-gods, video games, and the nerdier side of action movies. It’s a stunning intersection of subcultures that brings a community of queer nerds and geeky feminists together within a community that so often wants to shut them out.

Set A is:
At the Edge of Flight by Michael Merriam
Directed by: Cassandra Snow
Mellisa Ballister used to be known as the superhero Ball Lightning until a tragic stroke takes away her power of flight. Now she spends her time in a government funded nursing home for retired superheroes while seeing her old team continue fighting crime without her. That is until a new nurse arrives with an offer from a mysterious shadow organization.
The Further Adventures of... by Kathleen Warnock
Directed by: Meggie Grievell
Journalist Maggie Day grew up watching the campy superhero teleision show Atlantis: One Million Years, B.C. Now, as an adult she wants to write a tell all book about the show and the relationship between the two men who played Prince Kal and Commander Zoron. A relationship that may have been more than the censors were comfortable with.
Your Princess is in Another Lair by Eli Effinger-Weintraub
Directed by Denzel Belin
    A young girl receives a story book from a well meaning relative. Dissatisfied with the fairy tale stereotypes and cliche stories about boy protagonists, she takes the finer plot points into her own hands.

Set B is:
Slut by Nicole Jost
Directed by: Shalee ColemanSlut addresses the theme of heroes and villains with magical and mythical characters along with and all-too-real characters inspired by truly human monstrosity.
The Amazing Cunt and Lil' Bitch Take Minneapolis by Katy Koop
Directed by Megan LembkeTaking names from insults thrown at them from their attackers the Amazing Cunt and Lil' Bitch turn from victim to vigilante as they hunt down and torture criminals who have escaped the police.