Topher Payne doesn’t seem like an angry fag. But then, at first glance, neither do Bennett Riggs and Cooper Harlow, the main characters of Payne’s new play, “Angry Fags,” opening Feb. 21 at 7 Stages Theatre.
They picnic in the park. They banter about cheese and wine. They tease each other about everything from letter writing to dating with the loving sarcasm gay men seem to have perfected.
Then they set off a bomb.
Gay performer Tim Miller can always be counted on for a healthy dose of theatrical activism. His brings his politically-charged “Lay of the Land” to 7 Stages this week.
The one-man show, slated for Nov. 10-13, deals predominantly with marriage equality and queer citizenship — the status of being gay in America right now. It came about shortly after Prop 8.
“For me, the big prompt is always about what you can’t make peace about and for me, it’s my state – California,” Miller says. “For five joyous months we had marriage equality followed by this endless and visible battle and eventually it was declared unconstitutional.”
In previous shows Miller has talked about immigration laws, which is especially relevant as that his partner since 1994, Alistair McCartney, is an Australian that he is not allowed to marry. The couple has had to deal with threats of deportation for many years. Miller admits they face an uncertain future, as do all LGBT couples in the country.