BY HUNTER CLAUSS
Texas is known for its skin-melting temperatures in the summer, and director Wayne Shaw hopes to generate some of that heat with Southern Baptist Sissies. Sissies, which was written by the former executive producer of Queer as Folk, Del Shores, follows four young men as they confront their sexuality in an overly religious community in rural Texas.
Shaw, a theater major at the University of Illinois at Chicago, had to overcome many obstacles in order to bring Sissies to the UIC Studio Theater, 1040 W. Harrison. Not only did the student director have to figure out how to finance the production but he also had to confront issues involving some of the cast members' parents, which ultimately led to recasting two roles.
Despite these stressful situations, Shaw was able to bear through it all with guidance from Shores, whom Shaw developed a correspondence with. Windy City Times was able to sit down with Shaw and talk about the challenges he faced and what he learned about himself from Southern Baptist Sissies.
Windy City Times: What kinds of connections do you have with the material in Sissies?
Wayne Shaw: My family is originally from southern Illinois. Many people in my family are Southern Baptists, so this material was not new to me. The whole schematic of how a Southern Baptist church actually works is as fundamental to me as Catholicism is to many people that I know here in Chicago.
WCT: What kind of role did religion play in your life as you were growing up in southern Illinois?
WS: My mother and father were not religious. I was never forced to go to church. I did recognize early on, however, that religion played a huge part in most people's lives. I think I was the only one out of my friends who was not required to go to church every Sunday. On the other hand, I was required to listen to country-and-western music. So I don't know which trade-off was better.
WCT: What did you learn about the play while researching it?
WS: I learned it garnered a bunch of awards both here in Chicago as well as Los Angeles, and I also found out that the author [ Shores ] had a Web site. I e-mailed the author and what ensued over the last few months…were some pretty interesting e-mail conversations between the author and myself.
WCT: What was going on in your head when you sent out the initial e-mail to Shores?
WS: He would never write back. I had never written to anyone that's famous. I never in a million years thought he would write me back. Not only has he written me back, but he has actually given me advice about different difficulties I've had with the script. He has even written e-mails to the cast—giving them encouragement. He's a hell of a guy.
WCT: Since school is out for the summer, what sort of sacrifices did some of the cast members have to make?
WS: Some of the cast members made a lot of personal sacrifices to be able to [ be a part of Southern Baptist Sissies ] . They gave up jobs and problems with parents has been a big one. We actually lost two cast members over problems with their parents.
WCT: What kind of problems?
WS: [ Some parents ] not wanting their son or daughter to be in the show.
WCT: Why did they not want their children in the show?
WS: The show's very controversial. The religious and sexual aspects in the show were too much [ for some parents ] .
WCT: How did you handle those situations?
WS: If they couldn't do it, they couldn't do it and I re-casted. It's sad that—being at the college age—you're still dealing with the parent issue but it is a reality nonetheless. There is nudity in the play. There is one simulated sex scene that's pretty risqué. They're not really having sex. It happens on the elevated platform and underneath a cross—it's a very disturbing visual image.
WCT: What have you discovered about yourself through the production of the show?
WS: There's a love story in here between the main character Mark and another one of the boys in the church, TJ. I practically lived that story, which is why this play had a real deeply personal connection to me.
WCT: The play is also going to be turned into a movie. How do you feel about that?
WS: I think that Del is more of a film animal than a theater animal. He's really [ gone ] after film.
It's interesting because the guy who is my TJ in real life is a film producer in Hollywood. He's very successful. We recently got back in contact right before I discovered Sissies and we had huge arguments over film versus theater. Del seems to like both but he does definitely have an avid love for film.
WCT: You mentioned you got back in contact with your real life TJ. What was that like?
WS: I searched for him for 20 years. He basically disappeared off the face of the earth. Luckily through the Internet, I found out his information and e-mailed him. I waited two weeks for a response, which was a long two weeks, and then got a response from him. We ended up having a conversation online with an instant messaging thing for like eight hours. We've talked a couple times on the phone since then. He's married and has two kids—assumedly very happy.
WCT: What was that like when you found out he was married?
WS: I probably had some hopes that his life had taken a different turn. Knowing he had become an incredibly successful film producer was also just as shocking.
WCT: Why should people in for the Pride Parade weekend stop by the UIC Studio Theatre and check out the Southern Baptist Sissies?
WS: I think it's a great piece of contemporary gay theater. Del Shores has put some significant insights into it. Certainly the concept of our rights to live and love as we please, without the religious restrictions that are placed on us in many areas of the country, are well represented in this play.
Southern Baptist Sissies is produced by the Chicago Circle Players in association with S&M Productions at UIC Studio Theatre. The play will be performed on June 23 at 8 p.m. and June 24 at 2 p.m. and 8 p.m. Tickets cost $10. For more information, call 630-988-0768.
