The Hang
A joyfully queer fantasia that draws on jazz music and operatic form to reimagine the last hours of Socrates as an ecstatic celebration.
The latest work from playwright Taylor Mac and composer Matt Ray takes us to ancient Athens on the eve of the death of famous philosopher Socrates. Sentenced to die for corrupting the youth (by having sex with them), Socrates decides to spend his remaining hours doing what he loves: engaging in philosophical debate about the true meaning of virtue. And singing songs. And dancing. And just, you know, hanging out. What follows is a musical-theatrical riff on philosophical history, complete with a Plato who assiduously but inaccurately writes it all down, implying that what’s most essential in life, as in theater, are the unwritable moments of joyous communion. In other words, “the hang.”
Taylor Mac (who uses “judy”—lowercase [sic]—as a gender pronoun) is the author of Joy and Pandemic; The Hang (composed by Matt Ray); Gary: A Sequel to Titus Andronicus; A 24-Decade History of Popular Music; Prosperous Fools; The Fre; Hir; The Walk Across America for Mother Earth; The Lily’s Revenge; The Young Ladies Of; Red Tide Blooming; The Be(A)st of Taylor Mac; and the revues Comparison Is Violence; Holiday Sauce; and The Last Two People on Earth: An Apocalyptic Vaudeville (created with Mandy Patinkin, Susan Stroman, and Paul Ford). Mac is the first American to receive the International Ibsen Award; is a MacArthur Fellow, a Pulitzer Prize finalist, a Tony nominee for Best Play; and is the recipient of the Edward M. Kennedy Prize for Drama Inspired by American History (with Matt Ray), the Doris Duke Artist Award, a Guggenheim, the Herb Alpert Award, a Drama League Award, the Helen Merrill Award for Playwriting, the Edwin Booth Award, two Helpmann Awards, a New York Drama Critics’ Circle Award, two Obies, two Bessies, and an Ethyl Eichelberger.
Matt Ray is a New York-based pianist, singer, songwriter, arranger, and music director. His arrangements have been called “wizardly” (Time Out New York) and “ingenious” (New York Times), and his piano playing “classic” (New York Times). For his work on Taylor Mac’s show A 24-Decade History of Popular Music he won the 2017 Kennedy Prize for Drama Inspired by American History. Notable live performances include playing at Carnegie Hall with Kat Edmonson, the Hollywood Bowl with reggae legend Burning Spear, Lincoln Center with Joey Arias, and shows in Paris and the UK with Justin Vivian Bond. He co-wrote songs for and performed in Bridget Everett’s one-hour Comedy Central special Gynecological Wonder as well as Everett’s hit show Rock Bottom. He also music directed Taylor Mac’s Obie award-winning play The Lily’s Revenge. Ray has released three albums as a leader: We Got It! (2001), Lost In New York (2006); and Songs For the Anonymous (2013).
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