SHARP CAST, BLUNT SATIRE
A Fierce Ensemble Fights for Meaning in Angry Fags

Topher Payne’s Angry Fags first made its appearance in 2015, in a world that was decidedly different from what it is now, and Ghostlight Ensemble’s new production at the Lifeline Theatre in Rogers Park is timely. There have been some changes made to the script to make it more topical, but for the most part the text remains the same.

Nora Brooks-Slauter’s set consists of several groupings of electronic detritus with embedded furniture. The individual piles are rotated depending on the location of the scenes. A backdrop of strips of white cloth with pages stapled to them functions as a screen for projections of a news studio backdrop. I guess it’s trying to make a point about electronic media, or media in general, but to this critic, both the point and the set came across as perfunctory.

The events of the play take place in the context of a local election in Atlanta, Georgia. An out lesbian state senator, Allison Haines, is in the middle of a tough re-election campaign against a Black Republican woman. When the ex-boyfriend of Bennett Riggs — the senator’s gay speechwriter — is the victim of a gay bashing, the story becomes a mainstay of the local election news. Infuriated by her equivocation on the subject, Bennett and his apartment mate Cooper drive themselves into a rage that culminates in them becoming vigilantes for the cause they feel she has abandoned. Bennett and Cooper are fighting for attention and respect as a force to be feared. What they plan to do with it once they get it is not clear to them (or to the writer, for that matter).

“It’s only terrorism if it doesn’t work. When it works, we call it a revolution.”

Tapping into the impotent rage and frustration of an incredibly politically active but marginalized demographic that has been repeatedly let down by the leaders they’ve championed is, in theory, a great concept for satire. The problem here is that Payne targets only one side of the political spectrum, making his satire lopsided. The Republican candidate is practically a saint. In his eagerness to avoid an easy target in Peggy Musgrove, this becomes a polemic against spineless Democratic politicians, and them alone. While they are worthy of scorn, it is disingenuous in the extreme to pretend that one side hews to its principles with integrity while the other abandons them at will; in effect, Payne is doing exactly what he accuses Allison Haines of doing: placation. There are several intriguing themes that are brought up and immediately abandoned — the concept of violence as a way of reclaiming one’s (perceived) masculinity tantalizingly shimmers in front of us for a moment. Just a moment.

Even worse, three-quarters of the way in, Payne wimps out with a revelation that forces the audience to see their two vigilantes in an entirely different light. It’s a cheap attempt to reclaim at least some moral high ground for one of the two characters, but all it does is completely neuter the satire and set the play on the road to an ending that manages to be craven, toothless, and predictable all at the same time. The arresting juxtaposition of warm humor and cold-blooded violence curdles into pointless nihilism.

So why is this still a “recommended” show? The answer to that would be the fantastic cast. As directed by Jack Bowes, they form a perfectly calibrated ensemble. Every single joke lands — Payne’s real gift is in creating affectionate and keenly observed moments of queer interaction, both within the community and with its allies. Every performance shines, and each actor brings tons of personality and exuberance to their part, elevating the material to an extent I would not have thought possible. As Bennett Riggs, Justin Broom finds the sweet spot with a character who shifts from outrage to affectionate exasperation to horniness, sometimes within the same scene. And as Cooper Harlow, Rafael Lopez walks away with the entire show, giving his vapid, self-absorbed queer cliché of a character the depth and nuance missing from the script. He does have an edge over the rest because he has the funniest lines in the play, but still — it’s an exquisite turn.

It is frequently said that the stage is an actor’s medium. Angry Fags has a cast that lives up to that statement.

If only they were working with material worthy of their talents.

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photos by Pete Guither

Angry Fags
Ghostlight Ensemble
Lifeline Theatre, 6912 N Glenwood Ave
Thurs-Sat at 7:30; Sun at 2:30
ends on November 23, 2025
for tickets (pay-what-you-will, with an average donation of $25), visit Ghostlight

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