Continuing its 22nd season, A Red Orchid Theatre brings the Chicago Premiere of Accidentally, Like a Martyr to the stage. The story of a gay bar in Manhattan gives strong messages about ageism through the ages. The partying lifestyle is explored through humor and drama in flashes of time.
with Red Orchid ensemble member Shade Murray directing, Martyr looks to leave a mark with a play that could have been lost in the shuffle.
"Martyr" writer Grant James Varjas was nominated for a GLAAD Award with his past work 33 to Nothing, an Off-Broadway play.
As an actor, he's appeared in plays like The Castle and Twelve Dreams. He is a member of Moises Kaufman's Tectonic Theater and is also a board member of Tom Noonan's Paradise Factory Theater.
His film credits include Peter and Vandy, Paradise Framed and Parallel Lives.
After the Chicago premiere of "Martyr," Varjas met up to discuss the gay play with new life.
Windy City Times: Hi, Grant. Let's go over your background first.
GJV: I am Hungarian. I grew up in Connecticut. I was in New York for last 24 years, being in Brooklyn for the last 11. I went to the American Academy of Dramatic Arts. I have been acting since then. I started writing about seven years ago. I was working with Moises Kaufman and was cast in the movie project of The Laramie Project. I ended up rewriting a lot of it on the set with him. I became part of the company. We worked on writing 33 Variations. That is when I thought I might be able to write something, so I wrote my first play after that.
WCT: The GLAAD nomination for 33 to Nothing must have given you some confidence.
GJV: Yes, it did. The funny thing about this is Shade Murray, the director, sent me a Facebook message three years ago when we did the play in New York and he had read the review of Accidentally, Like a Martyr and asked for a copy of the play. He asked for a copy of my previous play as well. I sent out something to him and never thought about it again.
He's been trying to get it done for the last three years. Red Orchid called me and I didn't know how they got the play because I had never sent it to anyone besides Shade but I didn't remember. He reminded me about it and we finally got it done. We have really clicked on the whole project.
WCT: Michael Shannon from the company had told me about the play at a recent fundraiser for Red Orchid.
GJV: Oh, yeah? He came to see it last night, which was nice.
WCT: Where does the title Accidentally, Like a Martyr come from?
GJV: It is from a Warren Zevon song. It is the song they play at the very end. It is from his second album. I have always loved it. He, as a writer, is very influential to me. The way he writes about humans, especially ones in bars, is very inspiring to me.
WCT: Speaking of inspiration, is the bar in the show based on one you know?
GJV: It is partially based on a bar on the Lower East Side called The Boiler Room. It also came out of me doing a play as actor with a theater company and met some older gay men. I became quick close friends with them. They survived the AIDS epidemic, and I fell in love with them. Just being in bars with them, I realized how differently they were being treated. That is where the play came from. There is also a bunch of stuff from my life mixed into it.
Sometimes, I try to write a part for me in it but this one I was consciously trying to write a play. I did play one of the parts in it in New York but that wasn't intentional. I didn't write it for myself.
WCT: So you did the show in New York?
GJV: Yes. A company produced it with the smallest contract you can, which is an equity showcase. We did 16 performances. It went very well with good reviews. We just couldn't afford to do anything after that. I had never thought about sending my plays out. I have just been an actor and writer so I moved onto the next thing.
WCT: Now it has a new life. The dialogue is very smart.
GJV: Thank you. They did an incredible job.
WCT: There was some cattiness going on in that bar.
GJV: Yes. People's wit can be their sharpest weapon in their arsenal but it is also how they inadvertently show their insecurities too.
WCT: It was good to see David Cerda in that role.
GJV: David is fantastic. He said it is the first role he's ever done wearing pants! I love him in it and I think he's great. I think David was the perfect person to play the object of affection for these two gay guys because he is not what you expect from hearing Scott talk about him during this whole play. He's a wonderful man.
The whole cast is diverse in their mannerisms and their looks. It is a very tall cast!
WCT: You were in HBO's Sex and the City?
GJV: Yes, and I was a huge fan. I did a scene with Sarah Jessica Parker where we went on a date it was called The Man With No Soul. It still pays a quarter of my rent, probably.
WCT: She seems lovely.
GJV: She is. They made me smoke in the scene and I thought it made me look like an asshole. The director said, "We want you to look like an asshole." Sarah would take my cigarette between takes and smoke it. It was a clove cigarette and so gross. She was the coolest and I had the best time.
WCT: What other projects do you have going on?
GJV: I have been working with this actor Tom Noonan a lot. He's a big character actor and also a playwright and movie director. His most famous movie that he directed was called What Happened Was... It was the first Sundance Best Picture. I just did a play of his called The Shape of Something Squashed and then we did a film of it. We are hoping to do SXSW.
I have a new play that I just finished that I will hopefully do somewhere soon. It is called We Had a Good Time Didn't We? It is a two person play about an affair between a man married to a man.
WCT: Do you write any straight plays?
GJV: I get cast as a straight man when I act, but then I write gay plays so I can play gay in them. My first play had straight people in it.
WCT: When are you coming back to Chicago?
GJV: If the show is received well critically and the cast is not sick of it by the end of it, I will come back the last week. If they are limping to the end and wanting it to be over then I will stay in New York.
WCT: I have a feeling you will be back.
GJV: The response to the previews and tonight has been great. We have been selling out. I think Shade is responsible for that. I hope we have a working relationship together for a long time!
Accidentally, Like a Martyr is at 1531 N. Wells St., and closes March 15. Tickets are $30-$35 with shows Thursday through Saturday at 8 p.m. and Sundays at 3 p.m. Call 312-943-8722 or visit www.aredorchidtheatre.org .
