Quince Productions is bringing audiences a comedy-drama that can only come from toiling away in the confines of a cubicle.
“Office Politics” consists of four short plays set in offices dealing with issues of love, sex, birth and death in sometimes-comedic — and other times poignant — fashion.
One of the stories, “Box Office,” a one-person play by Elinor Jones, centers on the sole inhabitant of an off-Broadway box office named Jerry, who juggles breaking up with his boyfriend and getting his life in order while dealing with his customers’ requests.
Stephen Hyams, who plays Jerry, described the play as the first day of the rest of Jerry’s life.
“He doesn’t quite know it yet, but he’s slowly realizing that he’s taking control of his life again as the play progresses,” Hyams said.
He added that most people, regardless of their sexuality, should be able to sympathize with someone who’s trying to balance life issues while on the clock.
“As a straight actor playing a gay character, the one thing you have to realize is that it’s not about the fact that he’s gay,” Hyams said. “He just happens to be gay. It’s easy to relate to because we’ve all had that job that we don’t really love. We’ve all been in that relationship that isn’t quite working or isn’t quite the same as it used to be. We’ve had that moment of realization where we have to take control again.”
Another gay-themed play in “Office Politics” is “Annunciation,” which, as actor Michael Kobel Keutmann described it, isn’t your typical office drama.
“It’s about a gay angel who comes down to tell a young woman that her unborn child is going to be gay,” Keutmann said. “At first, she reacts rather poorly but, in the end, while reflecting on the experiences of a cousin of hers, she comes to acceptance and a place of love for this child.”
Keutmann, who plays the angel, said when he first read the play, written by Carl Morse in the early 1990s, he didn’t grasp the significance of the plot.
“I was like, What’s the point? So what? But as I reflected upon my character, particularly in the light of gay teens that have killed themselves, I thought to myself I believe in a way that the angel has come down to make the child’s life easier by letting his mom know that not only is he gay, but also how wonderful it is and how important gay people are to our society. I thought about how awesome that would be if it were possible.”
He compared the gay angel to Dan Savage’s recently launched “It Gets Better” campaign, which he describes as “folks trying to pave the way for younger gay people and make their lives easier in some way.”
“It’s really tough to be gay in America today,” he said. “It’s perhaps better than it was when this play premiered in the ’90s. That’s what I see his character as doing. So this is a really timely piece.”
Quince Productions presents “Office Politics” through Nov. 13 at Walnut Street Theatre’s Studio 5, 825 Walnut St. The Nov. 10 performance benefits the William Way LGBT Community Center. For more information, visit www.quinceproductions.com or call (215) 627-1088.
Larry Nichols can be reached at [email protected].