Five plays, including a new production of one of RTP’s biggest holiday hits, will take the stage at Richmond Triangle Players for its 2023-24 season, as the company celebrates its 31st year as one of the Commonwealth’s most acclaimed cultural arts institutions, and the longest-operating LGBTQ+ theatre in the mid-Atlantic region.
“Last year’s 30th Anniversary Season included some of the largest and most ambitious productions we have ever attempted,” said RTP artistic director Lucian Restivo. “This new season we will take an in-depth look into the LGBTQ+ experience with some intimate and edgier works, alongside a fantastical musical and the return of one of our favorite holiday hits.” As always, the focus of every RTP is rooted in staying true to its mission, presenting unique — sometimes provocative, sometimes challenging, and sometimes simply hilarious –- works of theater.
For over three decades Richmond Triangle Players has transformed the community’s conversations about diversity and inclusion through the production of LGBTQ+-themed works A nonprofit, professional theatre company founded in 1993, RTP takes pride in being the leading performing arts company in the region that produces high quality transformational programming rooted in queer experiences and supports the development of queer artistry.
RTP is the only professional theatre company in the Richmond area – and the longest continually-operating one in the entire Mid-Atlantic region — which expressly and regularly serves the LGBTQ+ community. While other local theatres occasionally produce plays with LGBTQ+ content, only Triangle Players has made an ongoing commitment to queer artists, issues, audiences and community support.
RTP opened its theatre at 1300 Altamont Avenue in historic Scott’s addition in early 2010. RTP’s Robert B. Moss Theatre is a 4000-square foot performing arts facility accommodating flexible seating arrangements for up to 90 patrons. A graceful lobby, which includes a generous bar, catering capability and box office, adjoins the theater, which features both traditional and cabaret-style seating. The building has fully ADA-compliant access, parking, and comfortable restrooms.
The theater’s 2022-23 season will conclude with its 30th Anniversary celebration on June 30, featuring Broadway star and Emmy nominee Eden Espinosa, and its summer production of the hilarious Broadway musical Head Over Heels, featuring the music of The Go-Go’s.
For more information, please visit RTP’s web site at www.rtriangle.org or call the Ticket Hotline at 804-346-8113.
The Mainstage Subscription Series
A defiantly embracing call to action
one in two by Donja R. Love
September 20 – October 14, 2023
Three Black queer men sit in an ethereal waiting room. One is about to be chosen to live the
unforgiving story of a man diagnosed with HIV, struggling to be defined by more than his
status. Ten years after his own diagnosis, Donja R. Love (RTP’s recent, award-winning
Sugar in Our Wounds) has written a fearless account of the reality for too many Americans.
A deeply personal call to action, one in two shines a light on the people behind a statistic
and the strength of the community they make up. “A raw, intense and surreal exploration of
what it’s like to be a queer African-American man with HIV…a blunt wake-up call that the
epidemic is far from over.” —TimeOut NY.
The raucous holiday treat returns in a brand-new production
Scrooge in Rouge, book and lyrics by Ricky Graham, additional material by Jeffery Roberson,
other interesting bits by Yvette Hargis, original music composed by Jefferson Turner
November 15 – December 23, 2023
This quick-change, cross-dressing version of the Charles Dickens classic is set in a Victorian
music hall. The Royal Music Hall Twenty-Member Variety Players are beset with a
widespread case of food poisoning. This leaves only three surviving members to soldier on
through a performance of A Christmas Carol. The undaunted trio gamely face missed cues,
ill-fitting costumes, and solving the problem of having no one to play Tiny Tim. Done in the
style of British Music Hall, Scrooge in Rouge abounds in fabulously bad puns, bawdy
malapropisms, naughty double-entendres, and witty ditties that are sure to delight!
A new look at a ground-breaking comedy
Torch Song by Harvey Fierstein
February 14 – March 9, 2024
In Torch Song – the revised two-act revival of Harvey Fierstein’s 1983 Tony Award-winning
Torch Song Trilogy – the life of Arnold Beckoff, a torch song-singing, Jewish drag queen
living in New York City, is dramatized over the span of the late 1970s and 1980s. Told with
a likable, human voice, Torch Song follows Arnold’s odyssey to find happiness in New York.
All he wants is a husband, a child, and a pair of bunny slippers that fit, but a visit from his
overbearing mother reminds him that he needs one thing more — respect. “Torch Song
brings laughter and tears simultaneously. It’s impossible not to feel electricity in the
theater.” – Entertainment Weekly
Forgotten women who are not easy to forget
Airswimming by Charlotte Jones
April 10 – May 4, 2024
Set in 1920’s England, Airswimming is based on the true story of two women — Miss Kitson
and Miss Baker — who have been incarcerated in a hospital for the “criminally insane” for
having borne illegitimate children. Forgotten by their families and not released until the
1970’s, Dora and Persephone adopt alter-egos, Dorph and Porph, to enact their fantasies
and survive the silence of incarceration. By turns very funny and moving, Airswimming
reminds us of the forgotten women of these generations in both Britain and Ireland. “A
small but sparkling gem that gleams with heartfelt anger, endearing comedy, and an
underlying sadness..” — Backstage
The musical that will roll right into your heart!
Xanadu book by Douglas Carter Beane and music and lyrics by Jeff Lynne and John Farrar, based
on the 1980 film of the same name
June 5 – July 13, 2024
This Tony Award-nominated, hilarious, roller-skating musical adventure is about following
your dreams despite the limitations set by others! Xanadu follows the journey of a magical
and beautiful Greek muse, Kira, who descends from the heavens of Mount Olympus to
1980’s Venice Beach, California on a quest to inspire a struggling artist to achieve the
greatest artistic creation of all time – the first roller disco! A moving, electrifying tale of
endless fun will keep you in stitches while the original legendary, chart-topping tunes will
lift you out of your seats. You’ll want to keep the music in your head and Xanadu in your
heart… forever.
The Spotlight Cabaret Series:
Georgia Rogers Farmer: Re-Butter My Biscuit! October 19 – 21, 2023. After a decade of sold-out
shows Richmond’s Queen of Cabaret (and certified domestic goddess) returns to her home
at RTP to perform and evening of her most iconic numbers and most requested songs,
stories, crafts and surprises! Not to be missed!
Darienne Lake: Altered Boy, January 19 – 20, 2024. RuPaul’s Drag Race alum (and featured in the
current All Stars 8) Darienne Lake shares intimate but hilarious anecdotes about her life;
from growing up as the middle child in a large catholic family, to coming out at an early age
as a drag queen and finding her chosen family and life purpose through humor and selfrevelation.
Dan and Jim: A (Sorta) Love Song, March 15 – 16, 2024. In a desperate attempt to stay relevant to
you (and each other), we’ve allowed Dan Stackhouse and Jim Morgan — two of Richmond’s
most beloved performers — to torment each other (and you) with stories and songs from
their 25 years together.
Nicholas Rodriguez: Sincerely, Sondheim, May 10 – 11, 2024. In a musical love letter, Nicholas
Rodriguez (One Life to Live, Sex and the City 2), and recently on Broadway in the Tony
award-winning revival of Company, celebrates Stephen Sondheim with a nod to both the
lyrical and musical genius of the late composer and his reputation for his renowned
penmanship. Pulling from thousands of handwritten letters to fans and colleagues alike,
Rodriguez weaves together stories from Sondheim’s own words and explores the
fascinating relationships with legends such as Oscar Hammerstein II, Jerry Herman,
Jonathan Larson and Lin-Manuel Miranda.
Plus a special New Year’s Eve event soon to be announced!
Subscriptions to the 2023-24 season will go on sale to subscribers beginning Tuesday, June
6 at 10:00 am; individual tickets go on sale eight weeks prior to each production’s opening night.
Prices range from $90-$185 for the five-production season, with subscriptions also available for
the four-event cabaret series at $160 each.
Each 2022-23 subscription season production begins with two low-priced previews on
Wednesday and Thursday evenings at 8:00 p.m. and continue to play Thursday through Saturday
evenings at 8:00 p.m., with at least two Sunday matinees per show at 4:00 p.m. and occasional
Wednesday evening performances. Talkbacks will occur after the first two Sunday matinees.
Various performances during the season will be audio-described and ASL-interpreted. Prices for
individual tickets will range from $10 – $45.