O Solo Homo: The New Queer Performance

by Holly Hughes (Editor), David Roman (Editor)

“Fresh, funny, sad, and sexy . . . [A] diverse collection of good, honest, and soundly structured monologue writing” (David Drake, Obie Award–winning actor and playwright).  O Solo Homo is a diverse, definitive, and hugely entertaining collection representing the cutting edge of queer solo performance. The pieces in O Solo Homo touch nerves that run deep—from sex, politics, community, and health to the struggles and joys of family, friends, and lovers. Peggy Shaw, of Split Britches, revisits how she learned to be butch. The late Ron Vawter, of the Wooster Group, juxtaposes the lives of two very different men who died of diva filmmaker Jack Smith and Nixon crony Roy Cohn. Tim Miller, one of the NEA 4, surveys the landscape of gay desire before and after the advent of AIDS. And Carmelita Tropicana, the “national songbird of Cuba,” makes an unforgettable, hilarious return to Havana.   “A funny, personal, powerful primer of identity, performance and politics. O Solo Homo is a must read.” —Paula Vogel, Pulitzer Prize–winning author of How I Learned to Drive   “Naked passion, fiery intellect and dissatisfaction with the status quo mark all good performance art. This collection embodies those elements at their best. Each piece makes you sit up and listen.” —Jewelle Gomez, author of The Gilda Stories   “O Solo Homo represents the most significant and vibrant cross-section of queer solo performance since the gospels. A must-have field guide for the amateur and professional alike. Ten thumbs up!” —The Five Lesbian Brothers

Genres: Plays, Queer, LGBT, Drama, Fiction

495 pages, Kindle Edition

First published May 13, 1998

About the author

Holly Hughes has edited the annual Best Food Writing series since its inception in 2000. The author of Frommer's 500 Places for Food and Wine Lovers, she lives in New York City.

Reviews

[Miami University Libraries]

Sarah Senff performed an excerpt from Susan Miller's My Left Breast, which can be found in this collection. King Library (2nd floor) | PS627.H67 O2 1998

[Leigh · Rating 3 out of 5]

It's really impossible to rate anthologies as a whole. Three stars because there were a few pieces in here that I didn't care for, a number that were fine or good... and then there was Susan Miller's My Left Breast, which completely blew me away. I've cried every time I've reread it, and I have a few excerpts posted in important places in my life.

[Max · Rating 4 out of 5]

Fantastic compilation of queer solo performance. Funny, dramatic, biting, the plays in here run the gamut. Highlights (in my opinion) include "My Left Breast", "Virtually Yours", and "Hello (Sex) Kitty"

[Raya Tuffaha · Rating 4 out of 5]

Alec Mapa and Susan Miller were by far the highlights of this collection. Writing quality fluctuated between contributors, but overall an enjoyable experience.

[J.C. · Rating 3 out of 5]

There's a lot to this collection, which makes it varied, a good thing, but at the same time after a while I got the feeling like I was a school councilor, hearing about everyone's private life and their struggles. A lot of it is well written, in a very direct and honest way. The art of the solo performance is to expose one's soul to an audience, at least thats the way I look at it. I have never attended one before but from reading this book that is the understanding i've come to.

At times I got confused as to what was going on or what it was trying to say, and I think a majority of the reason why in those cases was because it didn't translate well without the visual performance. The words here can only do so much. Hearing someone speak it can do so much and add a great deal.

There's also crazy experiments with poetry and the like so if you're not into that you might have problems (i will not say whether I did or not, needless to say its not my favorite aspect).

Still, glad I took the time to read it.

[Chase · Rating 5 out of 5]

Remarkably moving and actively emotional, this anthology of LGBTQ bodies and voices provides insight into the contemporary queer culture, through stylistic narrative. Although I had to read this for an LGBTQ literature course, I would definitely recommend this to other scholars and theatre critics, who are interested in the development of queer identity and visibility. The voices of these actors are immensely moving, provocative, and I was moved by their insights into the queer world in general.

[hipcait · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book definitely fills a need but it's difficult to understand live performance art in a published text. I wouldn't try reading this without some supplemental reading material to help understand it.

[Kelley]

just got this from someone who found it in a freebox...so excited about it!!!