Covid Queertet

Overview

Covid Queertet is a new play from Kutztown University professor and playwright, Dr. Deryl Johnson. The play explores the question of “Who controls your identity after your death?” The World Premier debuts at 7 p.m., Thursday, Sept. 21, Plays and Players Theatre, 1714 Delancey Place, Philadelphia.

Set during the height of the COVID-19 pandemic, the evening takes an ominous turn when four actors begin to examine the artistic works, identities and legacies of Oscar Wilde, Willa Cather, José Sarria and Kutztown, Pa. native – Keith Haring.

This special, one-night-only event features a pre-show concert by the Philadelphia Gay Men’s Chorus. Admission is free, but tickets are strongly recommended and available from the Philadelphia Fringe Festival Box Office at 215-413-1318 or online. For more information about the play, please contact: covidqueertet@kutztown.edu.

About the Artist

A playwright, performer, professor and storyteller, Dr. Deryl Johnson began teaching at Kutztown University in 1993. In addition to his creative pursuits, he served as the founding director of Kutztown’s LGBTQ+ Resource Center and twice as president of the Kutztown University Senate. Johnson is the playwright of Peter Taylor’s “Old Forest”, “Short Changed: Depicting Women in Literature”, “Persona” and “Just Wilde about Haring”. Johnson’s most acclaimed play is “Centralia.” His book and play of the same name follows the saga of the Pennsylvania mining town consumed by an underground fire and the people who stayed. He is also the adapter/director of four plays for WVIA’s NPR Radio project based on the short stories of Pennsylvania native John O’Hara.

Johnson is a member of the Pennsylvania State System of Higher Education’s DEI Advisory Board (Diversity, Equity and Inclusion) and the IDEA Council (Inclusion, Diversity, Equity, and Access) of the National Communication Association. He is currently a professor, and former chairperson of KU’s Department of Communication Studies, where he teaches Storytelling, Spoken Word Poetry, Acting and Introduction to Theatre. Johnson is the 2016 National Communication Association Lambda Award winner for service to the LGBTQ+ Community.