Roger Q. Mason's THE PINK Will Receive an Industry Reading at Caveat Next Month

Acclaimed Black Filipinx playwright and Kilroys List honoree Roger Q. Mason will receive a staged reading of THE PINK, directed by Kevin Newbury. The cast will feature Mason as ‘Mel' and Pierre Jean Gonzalez as ‘Herman'. The intimate reading, presented by producer Christophe Desorbay, will take place at Caveat (21 A Clinton St, New York, NY 10002) on Monday, August 5 at 3pm.

THE PINK is an intimate play about the power of queer love. We follow a liaison which starts as an evening of passion and ends in a transformative experience of bodies, minds and spirits. As two humans, Mel and Herman, grasp for “the real” in the bedroom, their conversations, silences, and moments of touch blur the lines between affection, sex, and euphoric romance.

“We still struggle to see full, rich, complex stories of queer love and intimacy because our previous route to liberation was through assimilation and acceptance by then-dominant straight culture,” said playwright Roger Q. Mason. “Even the phrase "love is love" troubles me at times because it abstracts and distances queer emotional connection from its physical expression - queer sex remains hidden, obscured, in the dark. However, every movement has its steps, and now we have to exist in our fullness to survive. It will make us human, and grant us the tools necessary to preserve the few civic gains that regressive policies around the country are trying to take away.  A play like THE PINK is a war paint rally cry for the transgressive, transformative queer love and sexual freedom we need in treacherous times like these.” 

If you would like to attend or get more information on the reading please contact ThePinkRQM@gmail.com. Please be advised that due to the intimate nature of this reading, seating is limited.

THE PINK was originally commissioned by Primary Stages as part of their inaugural Creative Access Grant Reading Series, dedicated to amplifying the work of underrepresented communities and artists. The play received an initial reading with Breaking the Binary Theatre in association with Primary Stages at 59E59 in April of 2023 with Original Dramaturgy by Gaven Trinidad. 

Roger Q. Mason (Playwright/Performer) (they/them) is a writer and performer who uses the lens of history to disrupt the biases that divide rather than unite us. Their playwriting has been seen on Broadway (Circle in the Square Reading Series, 24 Hour Plays at Town Hall), Off and Off-Off-Broadway, and regionally. Mason's World Premiere of Lavender Men was lauded by the Los Angeles Times as “evoking the mingled visions of Suzan-Lori Parks, Jeremy O. Harris and Michael R. Jackson.” They are a recipient of the 2024 Playwrights' Center National Playwright Commission, the inaugural Dramatists Guild Foundation Catalyst Grant Award, a nod on the Kilroys List, and the Chuck Rowland Pioneer Award - an honor also received by queer icon Billy Porter. As a filmmaker, Mason has been recognized by the British Film Institute, Lonely Wolf International Film Festival, SCAD Film Festival, AT&T Film Award, and Atlanta International Film Festival. Their films have screened in the US, UK, Poland, Brazil, and Asia. Mason holds degrees from Princeton University, Middlebury College, and Northwestern University. They are a member of the Dramatists Guild of America, and an alum of the Ma-Yi's Writing Lab, Page 73's Interstate 73 Writers Group, and Primary Stages Writing Cohort. Mason currently produces a memoir/cooking segment on Instagram called Cooking with Q: A Playwrights Guide to Telling My Trouble. Previously, they co-hosted the podcast Sister Roger's Gayborhood and hosted This Way Out Radio's Queerly Yours: Portraits in Courage. Mason has served as lead mentor of The Marsha P. Johnson Institute's Starship Fellowship, the New Visions Fellowship, and the Shay Foundation Fellowship. They are currently on faculty at CalArts and Lambda Literary. Instagram: @rogerq.mason

Kevin Newbury (Director) (they/them) is an opera, theatre, and film director. Career highlights: three PBS Great Performances Broadcasts: Bernstein's MASS (Ravinia Festival), Doubt (Minnesota Opera) & Bel Canto (Lyric Opera of Chicago); dozens of world premieres, including Kansas City Choir Boy (starring Courtney Love, NYC's Prototype Festival & National Tour), GRAMMY-winner The (R)evolution of Steve Jobs (Santa Fe Opera, Seattle Opera, San Francisco Opera), Fellow Travelers (NY Times “Best of 2016”), Castor & Patience (NY Times “Best of 2022”), The Good Swimmer (BAM Next Wave Festival), Eighty-Sixed (Diversionary Theatre), and GLAAD Media Award-Winner Candy & Dorothy.  Kevin's work has also been presented by Carnegie Hall, the Kennedy Center, the San Francisco Symphony and the Philadelphia Orchestra (including Candide, with Bradley Cooper & Carey Mulligan). TV/Film: Opera Director/Consultant for AppleTV's Dickinson “Split the Lark” (named one of the best episodes of 2021 by Entertainment Weekly), dozens of music videos, short films and film festivals/awards, including the Times Square Midnight Moment. In 2023, Kevin directed Liz Phair's Exile in Guyville 30th Anniversary Tour and his production of the world premiere of Gregory Spears and Tracy K. Smith's The Righteous is currently running at Santa Fe Opera.  Co-Founder: Up Until Now Collective. www.kevinnewbury.com www.upuntilnowcollective.com

Pierre Jean Gonzalez (Performer) (he/him) is a stage, film and television actor, director and producer. This multi-hyphenate is also an advocate for Latine and LGBTQ+ visibility and inclusion. Pierre is Co-founder with Cedric Leiba Jr of DominiRican Productions, a commercial media production company, and in addition with Cedric, a co-Producer for the 13x-nominated and Tony Award winning Hell's Kitchen as well as the revival of The Wiz on Broadway. Pierre's most recent film roles include Rafa in Barrio Boy (now streaming on Peacock and Apple TV) and Perez in American Made, an original DominiRican Productions film. Recently on stage, Pierre portrayed the role of Alexander Hamilton in an extended engagement for the U.S. national tour of Hamilton. TV: FBI, NCIS: NOLA, Pose, The Detour. Regional: The Elaborate Entrance of Chad Deity (Macedonio Guerra); In The Heights (Usnavi). London: The Globe's A Midsummer Night's Dream (Oberon/Theseus). Pierre frequently speaks at conferences and is listed on the roster of experts for the U.S. Speaker Program at the U.S. Department of State's Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs. Pierre received his BFA in Acting from Rutgers University's Mason Gross School of the Arts. Pierre was born in Manhattan and raised in the Bronx, is of Dominican and Puerto Rican descent, and continues to make NYC his home. @pierrlito @dominiricanprod

Christophe Desorbay (Producer) (he/him) is a French and American theater producer based in Brooklyn, NY. He is passionate about illuminating stories that bring human connection to the forefront, bridging cultural, societal and political gaps along the way. Previous producing credits include: The White Chip, Natalya Samee's And Then I Met You, Deaf West Theatre.

Gaven D. Trinidad (they/he/siya) is a first-generation queer Fil-Am dramaturg, director, playwright, and educator from NYC. Their play Learning How to Read by Moonlight was recognized as a finalist for the 2021 Bay Area Playwrights Festival, and their play novena as a semi-finalist for the 2024 Eugene O’Neill Playwrights Festival. They specialize in new play development as a dramaturg at institutions such as Philadelphia Theatre Company, National Queer Theatre, Second Stage, Page 73, Breaking the Binary, and more. They’ve had the privilege to collaborate with folx in arts administrative positions in places such as The Juilliard Drama Division, Jacob's Pillow Dance Festival, and New York Theatre Workshop. M.F.A. Dramaturgy, UMass Amherst; TCG 2021 Rising Leader of Color; Ma-Yi Writers Lab member; Orchard Project Greenhouse Lab Cohort ’22-23. www.gaventrinidadtheatre.com

Photo credit Bronwen Sharp