THE GORGEOUS NOTHINGS

Inspired by true events, THE GORGEOUS NOTHINGS unlocks the doors of the “Fag Ward,” a secret wing of the Men’s Penitentiary in 1930s New York City, where inmates were imprisoned for homosexuality. With a score drawn from the Great American Songbook, this world premiere musical weaves six inmates’ stories into high-camp numbers from the ward’s annual Christmas pageant— “The Fag Follies” — to expose a hidden, fabulous world that was never supposed to have existed.

WORLD PREMIERE: PAC NYC (2027)

BUY TICKETS

PREVIEW VIDEO

REHEARSAL VIDEO

REHEARSAL PHOTOS

PRODUCTIONs

WORLD PREMIERE: PAC NYC (February 16, 2027 - March 20, 2027). DEVELOPMENT WORKSHOPS: Baryshnikov Arts (May 5-16, 2025; December 1-19, 2025), Abrons Arts Center & ART/NY (December 6, 2024). STAGED READINGS: New York Live Arts (February 12, 2024), Lincoln Center (December 12, 2022). CONCERTS: Joe’s Pub (June 27, 2024 & February 17, 2020), Playbill (June 20-27, 2020). RESIDENCIES: Baryshnikov Arts Center (2025), Millay Arts (2025), Blue Mountain Center (2025), Yaddo (2023), Drama League (2020-2022), Graduate Hotel on Roosevelt Island (2021-2022), Tectonic Theater Project (2020), SPACE on Ryder Farm (2019).

PEOPLE

CREATOR & WRITER: Travis Lee Russ. DIRECTOR & CHOREOGRAPHER: Danny Mefford. ARRANGERS: Dan Schlosberg, Alejandro Senior. ORCHESTRATIONS: Dan Schlosberg. SCENIC & COSTUME DESGINER: David Zinn. PRODUCERS: PAC NYC, Life Jacket Theatre Company. EXECUTIVE PRODUCER: Kevin Jennings (CEO - Lambda Legal). PRODUCING PARTNERS: Making Gay History Podcast (Eric Marcus, Executive Director), Baryshnikov Arts (Mikhail Baryshnikov, Artistic Director). RESEARCHERS: Travis Lee Russ (Lead Researcher), Emma Dorfman (Assistant Research Dramaturg), Ale Campillo, Kyle Cherry, Andrew Dawson, Angela Dohrmann, Anthony Dvarskas, Brian Joseph Ferree, Colby Frederick, Dylan Gurrera, Ashley Hamilton, Thomas Hodges, Daniel Hurewitz, Jessica Kahkoska, Matt Kelly, Ashley Marinaccio, Derek McNally, Aisling Murphy, Carrie O'Dell, Nicholas Orvis, Kasha Pazdar, Daniel Rattner, Amy Marie Seidel, Zach Shultz, Lauren Sullivan, Roniel Tessler, Gareth Tidball, Linnea Valdivia, Harry Waller, Rachel Whorton, Emma Wilk, Levi Seth Wilson. MUSIC CONSULTANT: Thomas Hodges. CASTING: Life Jacket Theatre Company, Dale Brown, CSA. MARKETING CREATIVE DIRECTOR: Jeremy Kotin. SPECIAL EVENT CO-HOSTS: Joe Harper, Kevin Jennings, Mark Stephanz, Patrick Hinds, Steve Tipton, Tom Viola.

SUPPORT

This work was developed, in part, with support from the National Endowment of the Arts, New York State Council on the Arts, New York City Department of Cultural Affairs (in partnership with the City Council), Baryshnikov Arts Center, Making Gay History, Drama League (in connection with the Harold and Mimi Steinberg Charitable Trust and Howard Gilman Foundation), Howard Gilman Foundation NYC Small Theatres Fund, Actors’ Equity Foundation, ART/New York's Creative Space Grant (in conjunction with the Andrew W. Mellon Foundation), Embrey Foundation, Off-Broadway Angels, John Golden Fund, Puffin Foundation, LGBTQ+ History Association, Glasser Foundation, and Indie Theater Fund.