Mourn and celebrate those who we’ve lost with Spank Bank Time Machine

The Festival of Independent Theatres returns with a slew of queer creatives

RICH LOPEZ | Staff writer
rich@dallasvoice.com

This month, Theatre Three is quite literally getting fit … or rather, FIT. T3 will be home for the month of August to the return, after a five-year hiatus, of the Festival of Independent Theatres (FIT). FIT, the longest-running festival of its kind, will feature new shows, improv nights, cabaret performances and even a dance party for good measure.

Performances will be held on the mainstage and in the downstairs spaces at Theatre Three.

Queer stories and creatives are a big part of FIT 2024. Heck, this year’s plays include titles like Spank Bank Time Machine, Penis and Man: On Man. Spoiler alert: Those aren’t all even gay-related.

The festival opened Thursday and runs through Aug. 24 at Theatre Three. Here’s our breakdown of all that’s queer at this year’s FIT.

Danny Anchondo Jr. stars in Seifie Conscious

Selfie-Conscious 
Queer writer and actor Danny Anchondo Jr.’s new piece is an interactive show directed by Sean McGuire. Mr. Pixie is an influencer, but is he the one we want influencing anything? He guides the audience into his new platform, Selfie Conscious. Just be ready as your selfie skills will become part of this musical show. Downstairs.
Aug. 10 and 15 at 7 p.m.
Aug. 11 at 4 p.m.
Aug. 24 at 1 p.m.

Spank Bank Time Machine
Time travel with Trauma Clown who creates a space to mourn and celebrate those who we might have lost. This show raises awareness about NARCAN and offers us a chance to go back for a do-over. This queer fantasia by John Michael will unleash your inner FunMonster. On the mainstage.
Aug. 9 at 10 p.m.
Aug. 10 at 2 p.m.
Aug. 11 and 17 at 5 p.m.

Quintin Jones
Local musician and actor off Broadway brings his particular brand of wit and charm, along with his impressive voice, to Brunch Cabaret. Jones is also part of Uptown Players’ Boys in the Band, so if you miss brunch at Theatre Three, there’s always that.
Aug. 4 and 18 at 11 a.m.

Gay playwright Rhett Goldman

All Delighted People
After a young artist named Crystal loses her connection to the Divine, she creates an experimental play to try to better understand her situation. Within the play, a boy named Henry, abandoned by his mother in infancy, is conditioned to believe that his god has disowned the world. As Henry and his mother get closer to reuniting, Crystal must face the fact that her experiment may not provide her with the answers she’s looking for. Gay playwright Rhett Goldman also directed the show with Monserrat Rodriguez. On the mainstage.
Aug. 8 and 16 at 8 p.m.
Aug. 17 and 24 at 2 p.m.

 

 

 

Jodi Crawford Wright

Jodi Crawford Wright
Returning to FIT for a second time, Wright is presenting her cabaret show, Love Is A Many Splintered Thing. This show is a funny, poignant and revealing peak into her love lives told through song. Wright has been performing for more than 30 years, with theater credits including Uptown Players and Lyric Stage. She has also performed with the Turtle Creek Chorale.
Aug. 2 and 23 at 10 p.m.

Reel Art
Presented by Random Stage, this production is a continuously evolving staging of short plays in Spanish where actors seek to transform both the audience and themselves in relation to a specific topic. The show opened the festival on Thursday, Aug. 1. Under the direction of Austin’s Joty Collet, Reel Art presents five pieces that speak on the universal theme which brings us closer to a greater discovery of ourselves as human beings — love. On the mainstage.
Aug. 3 at 5 p.m.
Aug. 4 at 2 p.m.
Aug. 23 at 8 p.m.

Show descriptions by FIT. For more information, the full schedule and tickets, visit FestivalOfIndependentTheatres.com.