TOSOS HONORED by NYC & NYS governing bodies

In honor of the 50th anniversary of the founding of TOSOS in 1974, we received proclamations from New York State Senator Brad Hoylman-Sigal, New York State Assembly Member Tony Simone, and New York City Council Member Erik Bottcher, whose Chief of Staff, Carl Wilson, presented it to us. Chanel Lopez, Deputy Director of LGBTQ Affairs in the Office of Governor Kathy Hochul, joined in the fun with a lovely speech to the crowd. We are over the moon!

Pictured: Mark Finley (Artistic Director), Senator Hoylman-Sigal, Assemblyman Simone, Chanel Lopez, Chris Andersson (Board President)

FREE READING SERIES

Goldfish Explode Under Emotional Duress

Violet and Penelope were best friends before the apocalypse. Now? They don't really know where they stand.

By Caitland Winsett
Directed by Graydon Gund

MON 6 APR @ 7:00 PM

The Flea Theatre
20 Thomas Street, NYC

Tickets are free but seating is limited and we often fill up. So please register if you plan to attend.

 MARCH 2026

BARRY BOEHM’S OUR HOUSE

Written by Barry Boehm

Directed by Mark Finley

Produced by Ken Goldman & Barry Childs

OUR HOUSE is about family. In Iowa, the year before marriage equality is recognized by the Supreme Court, Andy, an ACT-Up NY veteran and his husband are to host the wedding of their nephew Brendan to Eugene, who is African-American. The happy occasion is threatened when the young couple venture out into the neighborhood and a confrontation with locals force this modern family to face some hard facts about what it takes to make everyone feel safe in “our house.” It's a hopeful comedy packed with honest truths, similar in style to HBO’s “Somebody Somewhere.”

What a wonderful night!
We were so excited to bring you this stellar lineup of performers!

UPPER: Jason Veasey (host), Jackie Cox, Lisa Stephen Friday, Murphy Taylor Smith

LOWER: Dan Hoy, Jackie Cox, Lisa Stephen Friday, Bryan Blaskie

For [artistic director Mark] Finley, who has lived “on either side of 10th Avenue” since he moved to the neighborhood in 1994, his association with TOSOS began upon meeting Doric in 1999. “We hung out at the Film Center Cafe until about four in the morning, talking about acting and playwriting and the union and all of this stuff,” said Mark.

“And the next day he called me up and said, ‘I want you to be my director.’ I was like, ‘Would you like to see some of my work?’ and he said, ‘No, no, I don’t need to — you’re doing theater for the right reasons. Lanford Wilson had Marshall Mason. I want you to be my Marshall Mason.’” The offer was “A little intimidating, but that’s our Doric,” laughed Mark. “A little while later, he and Barry Childs and I decided to reboot the original TOSOS company, and here we are — 22 years later!” 

Article for Gay City News by our very own Kathleen Warnock!

For 26 years, the St. Pat’s for All (SPFA) Parade in Sunnyside and Woodside has led off St. Patrick’s season in NYC as the first inclusive parade. As the years went by, SPFA led the way for other parades across the city and around the country to open their ranks to include groups from the LGBTQIA+ community.

“Peace and blessings, love and light. Let’s breathe,” Public Advocate Jumaane Williams began. “We are in this together. It’s all connected. They are trying to erase us, but we will have no one left behind. Let’s celebrate love, with all the colors.” 

TOSOS CELEBRATES PRIDE

The Other Side of Silence (TOSOS) celebrates writers — the chroniclers of our diverse collective history — and serves as a curator of the LGBTQ+ theatrical timeline by keeping our theatrical heritage alive and in conversation with the playwrights of today.

Through our mainstage productions and our free reading series, our audiences — and especially our LGBTQ+ youth — can hear the voices of both the past and the present to learn how far we’ve come (or not) as a community. They are given the opportunity to understand the generations who came before us, what life was like for them, and how they fought for the rights and freedoms we have today. At the same time, we give the stage to the writers of the present day who help us understand the continued struggles and incremental triumphs of our community and give us perspective on our collective progress.

Community is big for us. With great joy and good humor, we bring our TOSOS family together at social events like our free play readings and holiday parties. We discuss and debate the art we showcase — to learn from each other and build respect and understanding — and have lots of laughs!

At TOSOS, we embrace our differences. As an LGBTQ+ theater company, we value the diversity of artistic, cultural and life perspectives our artists bring to our stages. As storytellers, we champion the voices that aren’t being heard. As people, we strive toward equality, toward a world where everyone is welcome to the party. Join us!