Love in the Face of Atrocity: Bent

a Diversionary Theatre and Ion Theatre Company are staging the eagerly-awaited collaboration of the riveting Holocaust love-story, Bent. Commemorating the 30th anniversary of this seminal play, Bent is being co-directed by Ion artistic directors, Glenn Paris and Claudio Raygoza.

This 1979 play about Nazi persecution of gays took the world by storm when it debuted in London (featuring Ian McKellan) and had a groundbreaking impact when it transferred to Broadway in 1980 (featuring Richard Gere) earning nominations for both the Pulitzer and the Tony.

The story of a man on the run — from the SS-infiltrated streets of Berlin to the refugee-filled forests of the German hinterlands to the trains of terror that raced the innocent to inevitable destruction — Max, an inveterate scoundrel, struggles to keep his soul afloat amidst the horrors of the labor camps, where even love is still possible, if not inevitable.

Diversionary’s cast features Michael Zlotnik as Max and Charlie Reuter as Horst, with Chris Buess, Eric Dowdy, Philip John, Steven Lone, Walter Ritter and Bobby Schiefer.

Started in 1986, Diversionary Theatre’s mission is to produce plays with gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender themes that portray characters in their complexity and diversity both historically and contemporarily. Ion Theatre Company also nurtures powerful, provocative new plays from emerging playwrights, re-imagines classics using the lens of theatrical innovation and connects with new audiences by embracing technology while chronicling its evolving cultural and educational impact in the community.

Bent
Co-presented by Diversionary Theatre and Ion Theatre Company
Oct. 29 – Nov. 22
Tickets: $29-$33

Diversionary Theatre, 4545 Park Boulevard #101 (in Hillcrest)
Box Office: (619) 220-0097
Online: www.diversionary.org or www.iontheatre.com