David Schmader’s Straight

In “Straight,” Seattle writer and performer David Schmader explores the world of conversion therapy, the psychological and spiritual procedure by which homosexuals are reputedly made âstraight.â With characteristic wit and intelligence, Schmader plunges into the heart of this highly charged territoryâattending sessions with a German psychoanalyst, going undercover at âex-gayâ support groups and engaging in an intensive crash course in heterosexuality deep in the heart of Texas. Concurrently, Schmader casts an equally critical eye on the gay community, whose limitations at times seem to rival those of the conversionists. Throughout, Schmader blends an essayistâs insight with the spark of stand-up comedy to face difficult questions, avoid easy answers and get to the bottom of just what it means to be âstraight.â
“Straight” runs at Richard Hugo House for TWO NIGHTS-ONLY Saturday, Nov. 13, 8 p.m. and Sunday, Nov. 14, 7 p.m.
Tickets are $15 and are available at thestranger.com/straighttickets
CRITICS ON “STRAIGHT”
âBrilliant, biting, and fall-off-your-seat funny. An ambitious, fiercely intelligent exploration of being gay in America.â âSeattle Weekly
âStraight exacts sweet revenge, as Schmader spins sentence after sentence with wit, style, and flashes of naughtiness.â âLos Angeles Times
âFabulously intelligentâŚWitty, risky, and important.â âSan Francisco Weekly
âBeautifully written, with a stand-upâs ear for the absurd.â âSeattle Times
âPerfect. This is a stripped-down show with a script that sings. Schmaderâs performance is a delight.ââSan Diego Union Tribune
ABOUT DAVID SCHMADERDavid Schmader is the Texas-born writer and performer whoâs been living and working in Seattle since 1991. His solo plays include “Letter to Axl” and “Straight,” which heâs performed in Seattle and across the U.S., including productions at Los Angelesâ Highways Performance Space, San Franciscoâs Theatre Rhinocerous, New York Cityâs Dixon Place, Columbus, Ohioâs Wexner Center of the Arts and Seattleâs Bumbershoot Arts Festival. In his spare time, Schmader is the worldâs foremost authority on the brilliant horribleness of Paul Verhovenâs “Showgirls,” hosting annotated screenings of the notorious stripper drama at film festivals across the country and supplying the commentary track for MGMâs special-edition Showgirls DVD in 2002. Since 1999, Schmaderâs been an editor and staff writer for the Seattle newsweekly The Stranger, for which he writes the weekly pop culture-and-politics column âLast Days.â Heâs currently working on a new solo play, “A Short-Term Solution to a Long-Term Problem,” which will debut at Seattleâs Hugo House in September 2011.