Dear Friend,


In this 1998 play, which premiered at Florida Stage, Hannah List lives in a large and comfortable home in Nuremberg, Germany in 1939. Within the peaceful setting of her glorious and well-maintained garden, she and her family are faced with a dilemma: take a stand or do nothing as the Nazi Party rises to power around them.

PBD’s reading is directed by Bruce Linser, who also reads the stage directions, and features Barbara Sloan, Jake Murphy, Lindsey Corey, Iain Batchelor, Leah Sessa, David Kwiat, Jordon Armstrong, Eric O’Keefe, and Aaron Kenigsberg. The discussion on June 9 is hosted by PBD Director of Education and Community Engagement Gary Cadwallader, who will be speaking with Linser and Dr. Peter Cruise, executive director of the LeRoy Collins Public Ethics Academy and affiliate associate professor at Florida Atlantic University.

We close out the month on June 30 with our next Luminaries of Stage & Screen program, a conversation with actor, playwright, cabaret artist, and drag icon Charles Busch. Both the McKeever and Busch interviews are conducted by PBD Producing Artistic Director Bill Hayes, and were prerecorded.


Please consider donating to PBD. With your support, we can continue to offer a variety of programs virtually and preserve our reserve funds as we await the return to our live, mainstage performances later in the year.

Stay safe.
INTERVIEW WITH PLAYWRIGHT,
MICHAEL MCKEEVER
JUNE 2
Michael McKeever has written 30 full-length plays that have been produced at theatres around the world. Theatres in North America include Penguin Rep, Marin Theatre Company, NCTC, Phoenix Theatre, Stage West, and Florida Studio Theatre. His work has also been seen in major European cities, including Berlin, Warsaw, and Vienna. His play Daniel's Husband, produced in New York by Primary Stages, was nominated for an Off-Broadway Alliance Award for Best New Work and went on to successful runs at the Westside Theatre (Off-Broadway) and the Fountain Theatre in Los Angeles. His play After was seen Off-Broadway at 59E59 Theaters in 2019. McKeever has won numerous Carbonell and Silver Palm awards, and has been nominated four times for the Steinberg/American Theatre Critics Association New Play Award. McKeever is a co-founder of Zoetic Stage, a Miami-based theatre company dedicated to developing new work. He is a member of the Dramatists Guild. michaelmckeeverplays.com
THE GARDEN OF HANNAH LIST
(June 7, 7:30pm; Discussion June 9, 7:30pm)
Hannah List lives in a large and comfortable home in Nuremberg, Germany in 1939. Within the peaceful setting of her glorious and well-maintained garden, she and her family are faced with a dilemma: take a stand or do nothing as the Nazi Party rises to power around them.
THE CODE
(June 14, 7:30pm; Discussion June 16, 7:30pm)
Hollywood, 1950. Prior to a dinner party at the home of director George Cukor, Billy Haines, interior designer to the stars, invites a handful of friends, including Tallulah Bankhead, for cocktails. When agent Henry Willson arrives with his newest protégé, Chad Manford, a simple request turns into a heated debate on the hypocrisy of what it takes to be a star in the land of make-believe.
DANIEL'S HUSBAND
(June 21, 7:30pm; Discussion June 23, 7:30pm
Mitchell Howard does not believe in gay marriage. His partner, Daniel Bixby, does. Before they can resolve their difference of opinion, fate intervenes. This Off-Broadway hit explores the devastating consequences that can occur when fundamental rights are denied.  
CHARLES BUSCH
JUNE 30
Charles Busch has forged a unique place in the world of entertainment as playwright, actor, director, novelist, cabaret performer and drag icon. He is the author and star of over 25 plays including The Divine Sister, The Lady in Question, Red Scare on Sunset, The Tribute Artist, The Confession of Lily Dare, and Vampire Lesbians of Sodom, one of the longest running plays in the history of Off-Broadway. The Tale of the Allergist’s Wife (in which he did not appear) had a run of 777 performances on Broadway and received a Tony nomination for Best Play. He wrote and starred in the film versions of his plays Psycho Beach Party and Die Mommie Die, the latter of which won him the Best Performance Award at the Sundance Film Festival. In 2003, Busch received a special Drama Desk Award for career achievement as both performer and playwright. He is also the subject of the acclaimed documentary film The Lady in Question is Charles Busch. He is a two-time MAC Award winner and has performed his cabaret act in many cities, including San Francisco, Los Angeles, Chicago, New Orleans, Philadelphia, London, Paris, Barcelona, and New York. In the winter of 2016, his show The Lady at the Mic premiered at Jazz at Lincoln Center’s American Songbook series. His first CD, Charles Busch Live at Feinstein’s 54 Below, was released in 2016 by Broadway Records.
Marilyn Meyerhoff and Samuel Feldman are the executive producers of Contemporary Voices.
Marsha and Stephen Rabb are the program sponsors for The Garden of Hannah List, The Code, Daniel’s Husband, and the interview with McKeever.
Louise and Barry Snyder are the sponsors of PBDonline.