full press kit

“The brilliant monologuist Justin Sayre offers witty observations concerning a
variety of topics of interest to - but not limited to - the gay audience. The
central event is always Mr. Sayre himself, whose monologues and sketches are
stirring, funny and can be appreciated by anyone.”
- Will Friedwald, The Wall Street Journal
“Hilarious and sardonic” - Michael Musto, The Village Voice
“Delicious. Sayre is a delightfully droll and catty host, and with The
Meeting* he’s putting a camp twist on the variety show.”
- Elisabeth Vincentelli, The New York Post
“The Meeting* has become a cult hit among a young, festive and culturally aware
crowd. Sayre is an avatar of modern-retro cultivation: a Wildean dandy with Fran
Lebowitz’s hair, he speaks in the kind of plummy mid-Atlantic tones that suggest years
of elocution class in the basements of MGM. Unafraid to play the clown when required
- he’s a surprisingly good physical comedian - Sayre is also at home in the role of
righteous avenger, and his night of arch comedy usually includes moment of pointed
political archery as well.” - Adam Feldman, Time Out New York
“So deliciously icy that it left me shivering with fear and delight”
- J. Bryan Lowder, Slate.com
“Justin Sayre - poised, funny and frighteningly knowledgeable - keeps the
gays laughing and informed at The Meeting*” - Mark Peikert, Out Magazine
“If you fancy yourself a smart, funny homosexual, you simply have to attend The
Meeting*. But while you’re sitting there sipping a Brandy Alexander, don’t imagine
yourself to be smarter, funnier or gayer than host Justin Sayre because you’re not. He’s as
sharp as they come, hilarious as all get out and even Oscar Wilde would have told him to
butch it up- which makes this fearless leader of the I.O.S. a most commanding presence
on stage.” - Frank DeCaro, Sirius XM Radio
“Comedian, raconteur, performing artist, gay rights activist, sexual outlaw:
I’m not sure Justin Sayre is classifiable. The veteran performer is on his
way to becoming a Downtown Manhattan institution along the lines of
Charles Ludlum or Charles Busch.” - Steve Weinstein, Edge Publications
“One of downtown New York’s most original and entertaining queer
happenings.” - Dan Avery, Logo TV/NewNowNext.com
NYC CULTURE – SEPTEMBER 19, 2013
The Jazz Scene
by WILL FRIEDWALD
The Meeting* hosted by Justin Sayre at 54 Below
In this monthly variety show, the brilliant monologuist Justin Sayre ("Chairman of the Board of
the International Order of Sodomites") offers witty observations concerning a variety of topics of
interest to—but not limited to—the gay audience. Said topics are frequently of a musical nature,
thus providing the opportunity for a rotating cast of guest vocalists to perform. This month, the
subject at hand is the iconic Liza Minnelli, and the three announced performers are all
completely stellar, namely downtown belters Molly Pope and Lady Rizo, who well know how to
get a room stirred up, and the slyly subversive Australian Kim Smith. But the central event is
always Mr. Sayre himself, whose monologues and sketches are stirring, funny and can be
appreciated by anyone.
Assimilation and Its Discontents:
Q-and-A with Justin Sayre on the
State of Gay Culture
By J. Bryan Lowder
When Justin Sayre walked into the dimly lit Czech bistro where we had arranged to
discuss the state and fate of gay culture, he was styled for the occasion. An elegant
scarf in warm, autumnal tones cascaded from his muted coat; a shock of carefully
carefree hair framed a face sculpted around a wicked grin and eyes more
accustomed to looking awry than straight ahead. I had requested this audience after
encountering Sayre in his position as Chairman of the International Order of the
Sodomites; at a recent edition of The Meeting*—the group’s monthly gathering
that’s executed in the form of a comedy/variety show (naturally) and dedicated to a
different gay icon/cultural touchstone each time—I had witnessed him deliver a
rebuke of modern gay taste and discourse (pegged to the MTV VMAs) so deliciously
icy that it left me shivering with fear and delight. The following Q&A is me going
back for more.
Bryan Lowder: David Halperin has this memorable line in his book How to Be Gay that goes something like: “gay men often
don’t really deserve gay culture.” He means that though we are all associated with gay culture by name, many of us don’t live
up to its promise. I wonder how you respond to a statement like that?
Justin Sayre: I think that gay people—gay men especially—are given a great choice in the world. They are able to see things
from multiple vantage points, and that’s what has made them great artists for many centuries. The trouble with the current
scenario is that the outsider vantage point is being described as “less than” rather than as an advantage. We live in a time when
there is a huge push for assimilation, a push to be our fathers (even be our mothers) and to ignore the strength of our unique
vision.
But still, to say that gay people don’t deserve their culture is a terrible thing to say. The interesting thing about right now is …
Lowder: What do you mean by “now?” Marriage equality? Just the general tendency toward assimilation with straight
lifestyles and culture? Sayre: Exactly. But what’s interesting about now is that within that trend, for the first time gay culture can be truly about gay
people. You know, in decades past, we always had to siphon out a gay storyline or a gay subtext from mainstream culture.
Now we can tell really strong, complex gay stories openly. It’s a much more interesting time, in a way. When I think about gay
culture, I think that it’s not so much “dying” as it is transitioning. We just have to start seeing our difference as a strength
rather than trying to get rid of it.
Lowder: With your show, The Meeting*, what is your philosophical project? How do you see you and the performers you
collaborate with as being part of that transition?
Sayre: Well, I started the show for two reasons. The first was that there was no forum where we were really discussing ideas
or even politics in a fun way anymore. But I also thought that it was a way of starting conversations about celebrating gay
culture while bringing in new and older artists in a cross-generational project. See, the problem is that you can never sit two
gay men in a room—one who is 50 and one who is 25—and have a conversation about, say, gay politics. You just couldn’t do
it. They are just too skewed by the differences between the experiences they’ve had. But if you can get them into a room
talking about Cher? The world is different. And their mutual love of Cher or that artist or movie starts a conversation.
When I moved to New York—let’s just say a while ago…
Lowder: Come on, when was it?
Sayre: Well … 1999. The point is, when I moved here, it was just the tail-end of the AIDS crisis. The healing had started, but
nobody wanted to talk to me about shit. There was no kind of cultural exchange; nobody said to me “Here’s Edmund White—
read that.” I kind of felt like an AIDS orphan, like I’d shown up too late. Then, as the years went on, I noticed that my
contemporaries felt very similar, and the kids younger than me were finding a lot of stuff on the Internet and didn’t have
anybody to talk about it with. So I really wanted to find a way to bridge traditional gay culture into a new time.
One of the key tenets of The Meeting* is that it’s never imitation …
Lowder: What do you mean by imitation?
Sayre: I mean it’s not about hiring a Judy Garland impersonator. Nothing like that. I want people to take these things we call
gay culture and make a new dialog with them, make them their own.
Lowder: So, let’s talk about that—what is gay culture, exactly? A collection or syllabus or icons, movies, texts, whatever, that
should be touchstones for all of us, perhaps? Like Sex and the City, Liza Minnelli, and Mildred Pierce? Or maybe it’s a way of
looking at those and other things? Which definition is more salient for you?
Sayre: I say it’s a way of looking at things, definitely. Actually, it’s always amazing to me how people find gay meaning where
I don’t really get it naturally. But when it’s shown to me how that appealing, maybe I can.
Lowder: Can you think of an example of that?
Sayre: Like, I get the camp aspect of Showgirls … totally. But I don’t really get what the hell it’s about! Do you know what I
mean? Like, I get it—it’s campy and terrible. But, like, are we supposed to empathize with Nomi Malone? I mean, what are
we supposed to do? It’s not so fabulous—it’s not like What Ever Happened to Baby Jane? where it’s so grotesque and
fabulous that you can’t kind of handle it.
Lowder: Or Grey Gardens or something like that?
Sayre: Yeah! It’s not a complex or deep narrative. Even something like Death Becomes Her, which is really becoming a gay
film and totally part of that lexicon—I totally get that. Totally get it! It’s fantastic and campy and gay men are always quoting
Isabella Rossellini’s monologue at me.
Lowder: Sempre viva!
Sayre: Right! I get that! But Showgirls I don’t get. You see, what’s fascinating about gay culture to me is that it’s still
homegrown. What’s so troubling about assimilation—it’s not about marriage, if you want to get married and have kids, fine by
me—is that gay culture has been one of the last holdouts in that it’s generated by the people that it’s meant for. It’s selfgenerated. It’s nothing that’s been prescribed, like with mainstream culture. Real gay culture has never had great marketing
behind it; we’ve always picked up on underdogs and little movies and things like that. Losing that scares me.
Lowder: But you have to admit that there is a kind of entrance fee for the world that you’re talking about, right? Certainly you
had to study this canon at some point. For myself, I literally have a book at home called High Camp that covers “camp
movies” that I’ve made a serious project of going through. It seems to me that to be conversant with a certain kind of gay man
or in a certain gay idiom really requires study. Is part of the point of The Meeting* to provide lessons?
Sayre: Absolutely! There is a big educational part to it. But I think if it more as sharing. I mean, did I study gay culture? No. I
grew up with my grandmother with whom I watched old movies and just happened to gravitate to that aesthetic.
But do I think there’s something really fascinating about watching someone get it. Watching someone be like, “Oh my God,
where have I been my whole life? Why haven’t I seen this?!” I’ve had attendees of The Meeting* tell me they studied up on a
particular subject, and I’ve had others admit to not knowing anything and still enjoying themselves. That’s the thing about gay
culture—you don’t really need to know, to know.
Lowder: That “Oh my God” feeling, that camp feeling, is really hard to describe. I know what you mean, but I worry that a
lot of younger gays are not having it. Do you think it’s biological or something contingent on a specific historical moment, and
that could therefore be lost?
Sayre: I think it could be lost, I really do. People are changing. Fran Lebowitz has this great line about how people always talk
about all the great artists who were lost in the AIDS crisis, but they never talk about the great audience that was lost, too. And
I think that’s why we don’t see a lot of gay investment in art anymore. There’s an embarrassment about being a serious art
geek.
Lowder: What you’re really describing is a classic “queen”—as in an opera queen, a musical theater queen, etc.
Sayre: Exactly! I just want to talk to those people and learn everything they know. Lowder: Gay icons today: Is there something vulgar about Lady Gaga or Bravo compared to the classic stuff we’ve been
talking about?
Sayre: When you boil down true camp pieces, there are big questions at play. Even in a John Waters movie—there are some
big questions in Pink Flamingoes!
Lowder: Well, there’s that great line about camp that you can only camp about something you take seriously.
Sayre: Absolutely. You have to be both in it and out of it, and that’s where gay men have traditionally thrived. On the surface,
you have to just walk around and look like a normal Joe, and then you go home and you are vastly different. And that’s a
benefit!
Lowder: Let’s talk about the gay generation gap. How do you recommend that younger gays go about finding mentors? What
would you say to older gays who are perhaps a little worried about making themselves available? Those kinds of relationships
seem very important if we want this sensibility to survive …
Sayre: Well, let’s start by not seeing it as “us” and “them.” I talk to a lot of people in both age groups. Rather than a number, I
see it as an issue of “where they are right now.” Someone who is 30 years older than me is going to have a lot more stories and
experience, and I find that fascinating. Someone who is 23 might not have that many stories. But the important thing is to
respect perspectives on both sides.
Lowder: I hear a lot from younger people about how they don’t understand why they are expected to have any connection to
any other gay person, especially these “old dudes,” just because of their sexuality. It seems like the opposite point of view that
we’re discussing—that there is something called gay culture that is worth preserving—is on the decline. What’s going on? Sayre: What I dislike about gay men right now is that there’s a real callousness that’s developing. I think it has a lot to do with
the Internet, with things like Grindr. You’re a picture, you’re a blip, you’re this other-than-me. You know, back when that Judy
Garland show, End of the Rainbow, came out, a younger gay said to me: “Old gays like Judy Garland because she was sad and
their lives are sad.” I just thought: How callous. How absolutely callous. Why should we respect our history, our elders? They
may not have raised you, but they were doing things with you in mind. There’s no thought given to that.
The great loss is that if you were gay in 1960, you had to figure out that life was your invention. You were going to have to
make peace with your sexuality, you were going to have to live a life that was yours. And that was on you—no one was going
to do that for you. As time’s gone on and we’ve become more mainstream, we’ve allowed other voices in that tell us what a
gay life should be. Look at the television—every gay person on television is married and has a child. It’s preposterous!
Lowder: But is it OK to be nostalgic for the past, given how bad things were by certain measures? Sayre: I don’t know that I’d use the word nostalgia. I’d say that there was a certain amount of opportunity—because these
men were constrained by a lack of certain freedoms, they were able to be free in other ways. I honor that. And I wonder why
people don’t feel as free today? Because everything in the world says you should be. Why isn’t that the case? Justin Sayre Praises Divas, Schools Sodomites In “The Meeting”: WATCH
August 24, 2013 • by Dan Avery
Even people who talk about the nefarious gay agenda don’t think there are monthly gatherings where policies and positions
are hashed out. Oh, but there are: For some time now, Justin Sayre has been honoring gay icons and laying out the
foundation of the International Order of Sodomites to eager acolytes at The Meeting, one of downtown New York’s most
original and entertaining queer happenings.
Each month Sayre enlists a variety of like minded entertainers, from Broadway gems to downtown scenesters, and pays
homage to a different icon—some predictable, some surprising—in his own unique way. (At a recent show honoring Cher,
Sayre and two other performers re-imagined The Witches of Eastwick with a Third Wave feminist bent.). The big show of the
year is the annual Night of a Thousands Judys—and if we have to tell who that honors, you might as well just stop reading
now.)
With the Meeting having just made its uptown debut at the very chic 54 Below, NewNowNext thought we’d ask Sayre about
the show, his craft and his personal gay agenda.
THEATRE
‘Night of a Thousand Judys’
Host Justin Sayre on the Legacy
of Gay Icon Judy Garland
By Tyler Coates on Jun 11, 2013
It’s National Gay Pride month, which is why you may be noticing a few more rainbows and equal signs than usual.
But celebrating gay culture is a year-round gig for Justin Sayre, who as host of The Meeting* of the International
Order of Sodomites dedicates a monthly variety show to the propagation of non-heterosexual contributions.
Having just wrapped up the fourth season in the cabaret space at the West Village bar The Duplex, Sayre is set to
host his annual celebration of perhaps the most widely loved gay icon: Judy Garland. Night of a Thousand
Judys brings together a variety of performers, singers, musicians, and actors to pay tribute to the venerable
performer in a show that benefits the Ali Forney Center, a non-profit organization that supports the needs of
homeless LGBT youth in New York City. This year’s show, which takes place June 17 at the Merkin Concert
Hall at the Kaufman Center, includes Justin Vivian Bond, Carolee Carmello, Martha Wash, Molly Pope,
Rachel Shukert, and Madeleine Peyroux, among others. I spoke with Sayre last week to learn about the
inception of both The Meeting* and Night of a Thousand Judys, as well Garland’s enduring legacy and impact on
the LGBT community.
Flavorwire: Night of a Thousand Judys is an extension of The Meeting*. Can you explain a little
about what The Meeting is and how you started the series?
Justin Sayre: The Meeting started about four years ago now, and it was in response to some talk about “gay
culture.” I came up with the idea of a secret gay society that would meet and celebrate gay icons. It was also really
about celebrating people rather than imitating them or anything like that. At the end of every season we wanted
to do a charitable event. I always wanted to work with the Ali Forney Center; it’s something I’m very passionate
about — how we take care of our kids. We came up with the idea of doing a show entirely around the music of
Judy Garland and the allure around her. It was a big success and the Ali Forney people were really behind us, so
we went to Playwrights Horizons the year after that. And this year we’re at the Kaufman Center.
Judy Garland is such a major gay icon. What about her has the community latched onto and
found in her?
There’s the tragic element and the camp element, as well as [an appreciation for] the larger-than-life,
depressed female figure in gay culture, sure. But she’s a once-in-a-lifetime performer. There’s never been
anyone else like her. She was so unique. But unlike so many other performers, she was able to really touch an
audience and even people who just listened to her records. She really sang to people as if they were the only
people alive in the world. I’ve heard this from people who saw her live — I didn’t experience it myself, but I
have with her recordings. She has this sense of magic that makes you feel like the only two people in the
world, and that the only person who really understands you is this woman singing this particular song. There
are other performers who have done that, certainly, but there’s a certain reverence with Judy. She was like a
comet that came and went. People get choked up about her — I get choked up about her.
Let’s talk about the performers who have done the show and are doing it this year. Were they
mostly peers and colleagues at first? How did you pick the roster of performers who you
wanted to be involved?
We always compile a list throughout the year of people we love in New York and would love to work with.
We’ve been very lucky; the first few years we always incorporated our friends; that’s something we’ve stayed
really true to. It’s always a mix of uptown and downtown performers. We’ve always tried to have a wide array
of performers rather than a Broadway roster. We really cast the net wide. New York is such a varied place
where so many people are doing interesting things, and we wanted to make sure the whole scene gets
represented for a night.
What about the Ali Forney Center is so important to you? Why did you choose this
organization as the beneficiary of the event?
I think the work they do is visible on the ground. I think marriage and bills and laws are important, but I think
how we take care of our young people is a huge part of not only gay rights and equality but also how we
survive and how we keep the culture going. That was really important to me right off the bat: I wanted to work
with a charity that was making a difference day-to-day in people’s lives. There are a lot of gay organizations
and causes, but being a persnickety old liberal, I’m not sure I’m on-board with everything. I wanted
something that I was totally on board with. Forty percent of all homeless kids in New York are [in the LGBT
community], and the Ali Forney Center doesn’t just place these kids in homes — they also help them get an
education.
Is that the impetus behind celebrating Judy Garland at an event that will benefit a younger
audience? I wonder if Judy Garland’s legacy will continue to be relevant to future generations.
There’s a big debate over whether she is relevant or not. I feel she’s more relevant now than she was before.
People have a lot more access to old films; the Internet puts everything out there, and it’s not unforeseen that
kids will go watch Judy Garland movies and still get excited for them. Will she still be a gay icon? I think so!
Right now, gay culture is at a weird point. We’re becoming mainstream in a real way, and that’s changing the
face of what makes up gay culture. There’s the weird thing about exploitation — we seem drawn to things
like Real Housewives, and I’m not sure why. It’s not Bette Midler; it’s a bunch of women with a lot of money
in New Jersey. I’m hoping there’ll still be a lot of torch-bearers like myself and people I know who will keep
responding to her in that way. That’s what’s important about the show we do; it’s not about doing the song
like Judy did it, but putting your own spin on it and letting your own voice be heard as a tribute to her.
Once a month, the poised and frighteningly knowledgeable—and funny—Justin
Sayre holds court at The Meeting*, the monthly gathering of the International
Order of Sodomites. The monthly variety show has all the earmarks of a
community meeting: the news, what’s coming up on the calendar, and some
very special tributes. This Thursday, Feb. 16, at 9:30 p.m., Sayre and The
Meeting* will pay homage to Judy Blume.
We spoke to Sayre about Blume’s status as a gay icon, the continuing
importance of Judy Garland, and what his required camp viewing consists of.
Catch Sayre and special guest Natalie Joy Johnson Feb. 16 at The Duplex in
Manhattan.
At what point did you think to yourself, The gays need a meeting!
About two-and-a-half years ago I was talking to a bunch of friends, and I was surrounded by all these gay men, and I said, ‘Wouldn’t it
be fun if we had a meeting we had to go to to find out what was going on?’ And I thought that was very funny. That was just the time
that Prop 8 had come out and been defeated and we kept finding out information afterward. A friend would tell me that Urban
Outfitters gave a bunch of money, and I thought, ‘Well, why didn’t we know that? Why aren’t we boycotting?’ And I thought why not
kill two birds with one stone and have this funny joke and also give out information at the same time?
I love the retro, old-school vibe of the event. Very Paul Lynde, Charles Nelson Reilly.
We did Match Game at the first benefit! I love Charles Nelson Reilly and watching it, it’s amazing the things they got away with. They
were so ahead of their time. And we try to do new. We’ll probably never do Lady Gaga. Well, maybe in 20 years.
One of the great aspects of the series is that here’s a place where the gay icons of previous generations are being
kept alive. There’s nothing worse than someone saying, ‘Who’s Paul Lynde?’
What I’m finding more and more is there is this young, gay kid who’s just hungry for that information. Who knows all the John Waters
movies and is mesmerized by Grey Gardens and has all the information, but feels like they’re trapped in a bubble. And when we do
something about this or that gay icon, people get excited because it feels like they’re being acknowledged.
And now you’re doing a tribute to Judy Blume!
We’re kind of doing the Vagina Monologues of Judy Blume. And I’ve been going through [the books] and going, ‘Wow. Not only was
she a great writer, but she really pushed the envelope.’ I don’t know if she’s technically a gay icon, if there’s a bunch of queens in
Atlanta having a Judy Blume party, but she’s certainly someone to be celebrated in the camp for speaking the truth and I think that
applies to gay people.
Who will you be celebrating coming up?
The next couple of months we’re doing Judy Blume, Diana Ross and John Waters. May, we’re doing mothers, because they made us
gay so we might as well celebrate them once. And then in June, as we’ve done the previous year, we do a big benefit for Ali Forney
called Night of a Thousand Judys. So we get a whole bunch of performers to do Judy Garland. And that’s one of my favorite events
because you get to see how many people want to be involved in Judy Garland and all the proceeds go to Ali Forney, which is a cause
that’s very dear to me.
Isn’t that exactly what you pictured New York would be like? Everyone doing Judy Garland?
I moved to New York in 1999 and when I first came people were just kind of shocked by everything that had happened. AIDS had kind
of slowed down and the gay men I knew were just in shock. And no one was able to mentor me or tell me what’s what. I had already
liked Judy Garland and all those queens, but it’s become this kind of triple discovery. And what I’ve found is there’s a lot of young gay
people looking for queer mentors. And the show tries to facilitate that and put a modern twist on that. I think the great aspect of the
show is the joke of it.
And finally, what are your mandatory camp classics?
There’s a triumvirate for me. I insist you watch Liz Taylor’s Cleopatra, because it will change your life. The spectacle! I definitely tend
to push that on people. I actually took a young gay man to see A Star Is Born because he had never seen it, and I was shocked. And he
died! He couldn’t grasp how good it was. And I was like, 'Welcome to my world.' So I’d say a Judy Garland picture or a Bette Davis. I
love all those. And Grey Gardens is a big one because it teaches you about relationships in a weird way. And that’s something that I
like to go back to.
November 16, 2012
I'm so tired of Lady Gaga-versus-Madonna comparisons that I was delighted to hear raconteur Justin Sayre compare
the Lady to late film legend Marlene Dietrich at last night's installment of The Meeting, a free-wheeling gay variety
show at the Duplex.
Said he: "Dietrich was the perfect gay icon. She lived alone in Paris in the dark. She didn't want anyone to see her. If
that's not gay, I don't know what is. She was so concerned about her body that she sometimes wore a rubber suit to hold
it all together. She didn't really have any singing talent and yet she sang a lot. She was a war hero, she turned her back
on the Nazis, and she fucked everything that moved."
And Gaga? "She's very encouraging to young people," he mustered. “"She has some music and she wears dresses
made of meat. But if anyone can explain what 'Bad Romance' means, I'll give you a silver dollar."
Furthermore, he added, "With Gaga, I do see the innovations. I saw them the first time – when Grace Jones did them!"
Creating the Gay Agenda (With Pauses for Music)
by Mark Blankenship
Justin Sayre’s The Meeting* tackles the serious and the
frivolous in gay culture
Is there a universal gay culture? Is there an aesthetic sensibility that
unites gay people across generations? And most importantly: Is there a
secret organization that plans the gay agenda? The first two questions
are difficult to answer, but the last one gets a fabulous “Yes!”
That’s because every month, playwright-performer Justin Sayre hosts The Meeting*, a comedy/variety show that both satirizes and
lionizes the gay experience. The droll conceit is that the show is actually a meeting of the International Order of Sodomites, the ruling
body of gay life. Sayre hosts this lavender lodge night, reading off announcements from the board of directors, reflecting on gay and
gay-adjacent celebrities, and delivering local news of interest.
Each meeting also celebrates a gay icon. This month’s show—on November 15 at The Duplex—honors Marlene Dietrich, with nightlife
staples like Nellie McKay and Kim Smith on hand to perform her songs.
But while The Meting* is full of music and jokes, it’s not all fun and games. The news updates are very real, and they’re often focused
on gay-related events in the New York area. And while Sayre, with his plummy voice and sherry-dry wit, is always entertaining, he can
also be quite serious. Quips about Jem and the Holograms, for instance, might evolve into condolences for a gay teenager who has
committed suicide.
The point is that all these tones—fabulous and heartbroken, triumphant and mournful—are equally valid. They’re all part of the gay
identity as the The Meeting* defines it. “The frivolity is important, and it’s fun,” says Sayre, who relentlessly reads the news for new
material to put in the show. “But we have to have a more nuanced exploration. I think what The Meeting* provides is the sense of,
‘There is a community. There are people who are interested in the things you’re interested in.’ It’s sharing in a different way than I see
a lot of the gay community doing right now.’”
Ultimately, The Meeting* functions as an actual meeting of the local gay community, which is why this month’s updates will focus less
on the elections and more on what’s happening around town. Sayre says, “I’ll mention that Obama got re-elected and that we won
marriage equality in three states from a popular vote, but the really topical section, for me, is about a gay activist who got killed
Queens. That the Ali Forney center got flooded. Those are the things you should know.”
It’s impossible, of course, for any single topic to be “universally” gay. Not everyone cares about Judy Garland or Madonna or Lady
Gaga to the same degree, and not everyone is passionate about the same causes. But by making bold claims in his show, Sayre hopes to
spur discussion in his audience. “If I say marriage is not the cure-all that we think it is, nobody gets angry and storms out,” he says.
“They stay and buy me a drink and say, ‘Why do you think that?’ And I talk to them, and I listen to their opinion, and they listen to
mine.”
Even the monthly “gay icon” invites that conversation. Sayre knows that some people love Marlene Dietrich more than others, but the
hope is that the entire audience, whether or not they’ve pre-ordered The Blue Angel on Blu-Ray, will respond to something larger that
she represents. “Everybody has their movie star that they like, and Marlene Dietrich may not be the one they go to,” he says. “But
when you look at this through the lens of, ‘What is this sensibility? Why does this appeal to people?’, you understand it differently and
maybe understand it with regard to why you like the things you like.”
In other words, the meeting might let you see how your tastes and concerns connect you to a greater culture. It might help you, as
Sayre says, “reinvigorate that sensibility that you can be gay, and in the gay community, and do whatever you want.”
THE STARS OF TOMORROW
By Elisabeth Vincentelli • October11, 2011
Mark your calendar for Thursday, October 20, when Justin Sayre will hold another installment of The Meeting* at the Duplex. Sayre is a
delightfully droll and catty host, and with The Meeting* he's basically putting a camp twist on one of my personal – and already plenty
cheesy – favorite genres, the variety show.
Translation: the evening is a grab-bag of comedy, singing and anything-goes performance – well, as much as “anything” as can fit on
the Duplex's tiny stage – introduced by a delicious MC. I've been only once but I lucked out on the Madonna special. October 20 is slated
to be “Rocky Horror” night, so consider yourself warned.
October 2011
REVIEW: THE MEETING*
HOSTED BY JUSTIN SAYRE
Sassy, saucy, bossy, bristling, gushing, gloating… pontificating, pompously praising,
pooh-poohing with pursed lips and quips… eye-rolling while leaving ‘em rolling in the
narrow Duplex aisle with laughter…. it’s Justin Sayre. Or, rather the character he plays:
all in fun, all his fancy, lording over an imaginary semi-secret gay “Society”! He regales
“members” (a.k.a.: audience) with revelations and ruminations. Eclectic guests’ songs
are respite or more spice. I’ve been to several of The Meeting*s ever-changing
presentations: not everything “lands.” Material can be risky and/or risqué, but rarely
really raunchy. A non-hit bit garnering groans gets “saved” with hilarious improvised
reactions (a snide aside or wary, weary facial expression).
September featured gay-friendly Madonna’s songs. Marvelously madcap Molly Pope
mixed Tennessee Williams dialogue (!) into hers, and distinctive vocalists Danielle
Grabianowski and Natalie Joy Johnson personalized theirs, an uphill battle to deepen
fluff. Audience volunteers competed, answering Madonna trivia questions covering
others. Satire sparkles when Sayre sticks to the “Society” framework conceit and calling
out public figures’ public shames and sham. He does not suffer fools gladly, shooting
expertly-timed withering looks or shooting venom-dipped arrows at homophobes, selfrighteous, self-serving politicians or vapid celebrities. He’ll pat someone on the head,
metaphorically. Equal parts gay-centric and eccentric, with mock condescending
attitudes of Dame Edna proportions, Sayre tests the waters, testily tackling world
events and events in his self-created world. The theater and cabaret worlds’ balladeers
and belters help that world spin as Justin Sayre puts his own spin on, well, anything on
his fertile mind.
-- Rob Lester
Justin Sayre Invites You to a Meeting
BY DUSTIN FITZHARRIS • December 15, 2011
Every month in New York you are invited to a meeting, an underground meeting called the International Order of Sodomites that promotes the
homosexual agenda. Hosted by Justin Sayre, the IOS is actually a variety show that has been running for two years. The first Meeting* was
inspired by Proposition 8. Sayre, who admits he was never a political person, realized there was a need in the community to come together and
discuss current events in a different kind of way.
The show is structured as any members-only meeting would be: business of the day first, and then the fun begins with discussions, comedy
sketches, musical numbers, and sometimes even games. The next Meeting* is set for Dec. 15 at the Duplex in the West Village and will pay
tribute to writer Quentin Crisp. It will also feature Cole Escola and Randy Rainbow. I had a chance to talk with Sayre, a native of Forty Fort,
Pa., about the upcoming show, his childhood, and his important message to those who are being bullied.
Is the IOS based off anything?
We made up everything as we went along. We made it up as this age-old institution with gay people deciding what was going on.
It's sort of the Shriners for gay men.
Really, darling. Only we have better hats. I prefer pearls.
This upcoming show, your holiday celebration, pays tribute to Quentin Crisp. What do you love about him?
He was born on Christmas, so that is one of the things we love about him. He was out publicly before a lot of people. There's a certain amount of
bravery and sense of bravery. I think he was really fascinating -- even today. I've met people who knew him, and they have had wonderful things to
say about him.
You just turned 30 on Dec. 5, but it's been said you moved to New York believing it was still 1947. Could you explain what that
means?
I was raised primarily by my grandmother. I just thought you'd go and see Benny Goodman or see Tennessee Williams having a cocktail
somewhere. Then when I came I was sorely disappointed -- well, not disappointed, but it was different from what I had expected.
What were you like as a little boy growing up in Pennsylvania?
I think I was very interested in make believe. There was a little girl next door to me, and I think we watched the Bette Davis movie The Virgin
Queen, and we were fascinated by her. We'd play Mary Queen of Scotts in the backyard and chase each other around. I was imaginative and a
little shy but fascinated by comics and comedy and how you could make a group of people laugh. Even as a child I took notes on comics and how
they wrote jokes and how many beats you waited.
How did your peers respond to you?
I was not teased as much as I probably should have been. I think having humor as a defense, you were always able to get out of it. I was always
able to turn it around on a dime. I was not out in high school, which is a regret of mine now. I see young people being so brave, and I think it's just
wonderful, but I was not there yet. I was about as gay, but I think it came across as just artsy.
There has been a lot in the news lately about bullying. What would you say to those who are being bullied?
You have to figure out how to operate in the world because there's always going to be someone who's not going to like you. I used to go around at
parties as a young person and say, "There's one person in this room who doesn't like me, and if I don't find them, it's my loss." I wish kids a lot of
luck, and I hope they know they are supported, but I hope they find ways to be true to themselves and really make the best of some really awful
situations.
When did you come out?
I was old. I was out of college. Everybody had my number except me. It was fine when I came out with my mother and father. It's the subtleties of
it that take a while, I feel. Coming out is just not one day where you sit and have a heart-felt brunch. It's a process of years.
Finish this sentence: Justin Sayre is the kind of man who...
Is always shocked he's called a man! I forget that I'm an adult and not some kid.
Oh, I thought you meant that you were confused that you were actually a man -Oh, no, I don't confuse that. I think I'm going to grow up to be an old lady, but I'm never confused at where I'm at now.
Since your shows always focus on current events, what do you think is the biggest issue facing the LGBT community today?
I think it's a search for identity. I don't think it's marriage. I think marriage is the issue that is political. For being a group who love the same kind
of people, we're so different. I think our greatest struggle is to find where we're similar. I think if you put five different homosexuals in a room,
you'll get 10 different opinions about everything. There are people who don't think that marriage is the answer. There are a lot of people who are
exploring different ways to live. I think the greatest issue is how do we come together and how do we honor each other without taking things away
from each other?
What is your identity?
I'm probably old-fashioned. I'm just an old-fashioned gay person. I know there is queer, and I have many friends who identify as that, but the
theme that comes trickling off my tongue more often than not is a gay person. I'm very comfortable with that. I'm very proud of that identity. But,
I understand the search for other names, and I'm always interested in those conversations with people.
So, being old-fashioned, do you believe in marriage for you?
I don't know that I'll have children. I'd like to get married. I don't think I'll have a wedding. I'll just sit with some man over brunch and say, "Oh,
let's just go."
What is your ultimate dream in life?
I'd like to be the gay Woody Allen.
Do you want to be famous?
I don't know. I hate people staring at me on the subway now. I think the purpose of fame is that I could walk into a room and everyone would
know my work and would want to continue to work with me, but I wouldn't want to be followed around by the paparazzi.
You speak with such a distinctive accent. It's almost British. How did you acquire that from being born and raised in
Pennsylvania?
That's the funny story. When I was very young I had a stutter. So, I went to a speech pathologist, and this is what came out. If you listen to earlier
Bette Davis movies, this is exactly what she sounds like.
After everything you've accomplished, what are you the most proud of?
I wrote a routine a couple months ago for National Coming Out Day. I wrote this funny, little guide to coming out for those people in the audience
who had yet to do it. We got a lot of laughs. Somebody in the audience came up to me after and said, "My mother still hasn't spoken to me from
coming out, and it's finally good to laugh about it." It's moments like that that make me very proud of being an artist.
IN THE NOH: Sodomites Unite!
By David Noh • MARCH 16, 2011
The monthly meeting of the International Order of Sodomites was held on February 10 at the Duplex, presided over by Justin
Sayre, who’s rather a modern Oscar Wilde –– whom he resembles.
It’s a rollicking, wry affair complete with funny political commentary on current events, but gay Republicans are definitely not
welcome, for, as Sayre says, “To those who tell me, ‘Say what you will about them, look what they did for Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell,’
that’s like, ‘Say what you will about pedophiles, at least they drive past schools slowly!’”
Re: that new phone app that enables Catholics to make confession: “Yes, you can be absolved for your sins between a game of
Angry Birds and Grindr! Great way to trivialize a religious institution. We thought that was our job!”
Sayre’s special guests were Summer & Eve, a delightful musical quintet (minus one: the pianist got a paying gig), who performed
droll ditties about scary sister acts like the Olsens, Kardashians, and Jacksons, celebrity bad behavior (“Oh, Lindsay, what is going
on, girl? We heard you stole that necklace”), and my favorite, “The Bong Song.”
The group joined Sayre for his tribute to gay icon Molly Ringwald (“Yeah, I know that’s pushing it a little”), which was a witty mashup of all her movies, which inevitably have her wanting to go the prom, stuck in detention, and pissed that no one remembered her
birthday.
Sayre’s final benediction was a dramatic reading of the lyrics to Lady Gaga’s new gay anthem, which, sans music, are hilariously
incoherent. Next IOS meeting is scheduled for March 17 and will include a Tennessee Williams centenary tribute.
Gaywatch: The Meeting* has a birthday
Posted in Upstaged by Adam Feldman on Nov 17, 2010 at
5:30pm
If you're gay and looking for good time in the Village tomorrow
night, your best bet—really!—is upstairs at the Duplex, where
the remarkable Justin Sayre will be celebrating the first
anniversary of his delightfully droll monthly variety show, the
Meeting*.
Inspired by the myth of the gay agenda, Sayre poses in each
episode as the president of the International Order of
Sodomites, presenting formal decisions from the I.O.S.'s
directors on pressing sociopolitical and pop-cultural questions
of the day ("The Board would like to register an
uncomfortable wince…"); the show typically also includes
wittily scripted riffs and rants, plus sketches, audience
interaction and musical interludes by local singers.
The Meeting* has become a cult hit among the young, festive and culturally aware crowd that has been called the New Old
Gays, and Sayre himself is an avatar of modern-retro cultivation: a Wildean dandy with Fran Lebowitz's hair, he speaks in
the kind of plummy mid-Atlantic tones that suggest years of elocution class in the basements of MGM. Unafraid to play the
clown when required—he's a surprisingly good physical comedian—Sayre is also at home in the role of righteous avenger,
and his night of arch comedy usually includes moments of pointed political archery as well.
Toss in first-birthday guest appearances by the alto sensation Molly Pope and the good-time Mostly Sondheim team of Ben
Cameron and Emily McNamara, and you've got the makings of quite a night. The cherry on top? Tickets are just $10, plus a
two-drink minimum. Go and have a gay old time.