Charles Busch Does Mae West to Benefit the Hourglass Group, March 17

The Hourglass Group will present the first New York revival of Mae West’s 1928 play The Pleasure Man for a one-night-only performance on Monday, March 17.

The reading — which will benefit the group’s fourth season of new plays and The Actors’ Fund’s Phyllis Newman Women’s Health Initiative — will star Charles Busch, author of The Tale of the Allergist’s Wife and currently appearing Off-Broadway in Shanghai Moon. The remainder of 40-member cast includes Christopher Fitzgerald (Observe the Sons of Ulster Marching Towards the Somme, Amour), Nina Hellman (Sex, Red Frogs), Bruce Kronenberg (The Exonerated), Alice Playten (Seussical), Jeremy Shamos (The Complete Works of William Shakespeare Abridged), as well as David Drake, Cynthia Darlow, Peter Jacobson, Flotilla deBarge, Sunrize Highway, Murray Hill, Brini Maxwell, and Cashetta.

The Pleasure Man tells the story of a fellow whose many romantic dalliances lead to his downfall; the play calls for acrobats, comedians, dancing girls, and a troupe of female impersonators. The original production ran for three performances, two of which were raided by the New York City vice squad on obscenity charges. This reading of the play will be directed by Elyse Singer (Sex, Red Frogs, Hundreds of Sisters).

The performance will take place on March 17 at 8pm at the Culture Project, 45 Bleecker Street at Lafayette. Tickets, which include a post-show dessert reception with the cast, are available at $50 and may be reserved by calling 212-439-8122 or visiting the Hourglass Group’s website at www.hourglassgroup.org.