the young people's professor

Erik King and Glenn Davis co-star as members of "The House of Light" in Terrell McCraney's Wig Out!

On Saturday night I headed to Union Square to preview Wig Out!, courtesy playwright Tarell Alvin McCraney. I sat right next to gossip-guru Michael Musto of The Village Voice. The show far-exceeded my cynical expectations. Without hesitation, I highly recommend this play to anyone in the New York City area. It's so rare nowadays to find quality theater (smart casting, sharp playwriting) that also includes a predominantly black male cast.

There's so much to like about Wig Out! Aside from the delicious eye-candy (half of the men in the show are fine) and hilarious homo-histrionics, the musical offers a critical commentary on the politics of masculinity, kinship, and intimacy among queer men of color in New York City. I found the second act to be somewhat weaker than the first, but by that time I was already thoroughly in love with the show. There's something for everyone: sexy "sup niggah?" B-Boys, drag queen divas-from-a-distance, and straight-girls with big hair. What's not to love? Not since RENT have I seen so many queer people of color on stage loving, kissing, and signifying.