BSR_S10E06 - Dachau For Queers - Daniel Neer

2025FringeArtsPhilly Fringe FestivalBSRBroad Street ReviewSeason 10Dachau For QueersTheatre ExileDaniel Neer

Sep 23

In this episode of the Broad Street Review Podcast, host Darnelle Radford speaks with playwright Daniel Neer about his new work, 'Dachau for Queers,' which explores the historical context of a psychiatric hospital in California that incarcerated gay men. The conversation delves into themes of empathy, self-acceptance, family dynamics, and the importance of community support within the LGBTQ+ experience. Neer shares insights into the creative process and the role of theater in fostering social change, emphasizing the need for understanding and connection in a fragmented society.

Chapters

00:00 Introduction to the Play and the Artist

02:05 Exploring the Themes of 'Dachau for Queers'

06:02 The Creative Process Behind the Play

11:58 Family Dynamics and Identity

18:14 Community and Empathy in the LGBTQ+ Experience

24:00 The Importance of Storytelling in Art

DACHAU FOR QUEERS

Workshop Production of a New Play by Daniel Neer

Directed by Ted Gorodetzky

Produced by The LAB

It’s 1970, and runaway Jonah Goodson is confined at California’s notorious Atascadero Psychiatric Hospital. His “sickness”? Homosexuality. Navigating a psychotropic maze of barbaric treatments, he encounters the most unlikely guides – but are they real or imagined?

Gruesomely referred to as Dachau for Queers, the maximum-security forensic institution Atascadero Psychiatric Hospital was widely renowned for its experimental therapies of electrical and pharmacological shock treatments subjected upon inmates to "cure" them of their perceived sexual deviations. The fictional Jonah Goodson, estranged from his family and adrift in 1970’s San Francisco, gets caught in the belly of that beast and wrestles with his jumbled mind to carve a journey out. At times shockingly brutal and at others comically surreal, Daniel Neer’s new play is an innovative odyssey punctuated by surprising characters, leaps of fantasy, and heartfelt truths.

Written by Daniel Neer
Directed by Ted Gorodetzky
Cast: Tristan Jenis, Lois Sach*, Neena Boyle, Ted Gorodetzky*, Avery Leach
(*appearing courtesy AEA)

FOR MORE INFORMATION: https://phillyfringe.org/events/dachau-for-queers/

Darnelle Radford

At Em3ry, LLC, we continue the goals of Rep Radio, to support, promote, engage and inspire the arts community by igniting the ghost light that shines on the stages of the up and coming, the unsung heroes, the brilliant writers and the dynamic designers.

http://Em3ry.com